TAWAS — Hillman’s varsity boy’s basketball team, 18-2, picked up a road victory that had a playoff atmosphere as it traveled to Tawas, 8-10, and earned a thrilling 55-53 victory..

The Tigers would lead the entire first half taking a 28-21 lead at the intermission, but the third quarter would be full of dramatics as the tide shifted.

Hillman led throughout the third quarter but in the final two minutes of the quarter Hillman’s lead would dwindle and Tawas would outscore the Tigers 22-11 in the third period.

During the period Tawas would head to the charity stripe 13 times connecting on nine of those attempts, as the Tigers were assessed two technical fouls as well. At the end of the third quarter, the Tigers found themselves trailing 43-39 heading into the fourth quarter.

That would set up some fourth quarter dramatics as the two teams exchanged the lead several times, setting up a dramatic finish.

Hillman got a stop and trailed by one, 53-52, with only 18 seconds left, setting up some tense moments as Eddie Prue would bring the ball down the floor.

The Tigers would miss several shot attempts until Ty Muszynski received the ball on the baseline and drove to the basket, scoring a go-ahead layup and drawing the foul with six seconds to go.

Muszynski would sink the free-throw giving the Tigers a 55-53 lead with six seconds left. The Tigers would get a critical stop on the following possession, clinching the win.

Leading the way in scoring was Eddie Prue with 19 points. Evan Crane would pick up a double-double, scoring 18 points and adding 10 boards. Aedan Tucker would finish with 10.

Leading scorer for Tawas was Vance Spencer with 21 and Reuben Edwards with 12.

Hillman Head Coach Eric Muszynski spoke about his team’s thrilling road victory as the regular season winds down.

“This was a great road victory versus a nice Tawas team,” Muszynski said. “It was a great game with a playoff atmosphere which is something you want heading into the playoffs!”