Hillman wins 65-45 basketball district final against Posen | News, Sports, Jobs

As in the previous two meetings, Hillman won in a landslide with a score of 65-45.

With Friday's win, the Tigers advance to the regional semifinals and will not host any remaining games.

Although the team's season is over, the final home win marks Hillman High School's third consecutive district championship.

“This is our seventh (district championship) in the last 10 years and our third consecutive (district championship), so this moment is pretty special,” Hillman coach Eric Musinski said. “This is all a testament to the building of the program and the hard work they've put in to make this happen. I'm so happy for these players, this school and this town, because it's a huge boost for everyone. Because I know it means something.”

News photo: Owen Kinsey

Posen got off to a great start with a corner three from Logan Timme as the Tigers got off to a strong start and an even stronger finish.

After Timme's three points, the Vikings' offense struggled, especially against Hillman's tough and long press defense.

As always, one man controlled the Tigers' scoring: Trenton Taratuta.

Unlike past games where he reached the rim almost every time, Taratuta got to his spot in the midrange and knocked down most jumpers.

His impact as a playmaker shone throughout the night with his ability to find the open man to set up easy baskets inside and outside.

Hillman held a narrow 13-10 lead at the end of the first quarter, but the offense quickly began to explode.

Taratuta continued with the same style of play and the points started flowing for the Tigers.

Everything was in Hillman's favor as he had built a significant lead until Taratuta reached his third foul.

Hillman's offense plummeted as he had to endure the final two sets, but the Tigers still held a 33-18 lead going into halftime.

Coming out of the break, Hillman continued its intensity and worked just as hard as in the first half.

The Tiger defense was solid, and Posen didn't score or had much of a chance to score.

Offensively, Taratuta did his job distributing the ball to open teammates.

Heading into the final quarter, Hillman had a large enough lead to coast to the finish line.

The team's defense allowed an extra point, but the offense defended it and won 65-45.

“Today was more about making strategic steals and making easy baskets at the right time,” Muszynski said. “Our press was very strong throughout the game and really gave our opponent's ball handlers a hard time. Especially when we weren't getting points early on, it was big for us to get easy points.”

As usual, Hillman's leading scorer on the night was Taratuta with 28 points.