Dec 7, 2019 3 min read

CANONSBURG – It has often been said that basketball is a game of runs. More often than not, the team that makes the more timely scoring run, usually late in the contest, comes away with the win.

That was the case for the Trinity boys team Saturday night as the Hillers pulled out a come-from-behind 72-64 win in the final of the Canon-McMillan Tip-Off Tournament over the host Big Macs.

Trinity ups its record to 2-0 with a tournament title while the young Big Macs fall to 1-1.

“It’s all about experience,” Trinity coach Tim Tessmer said after the win. “We talk about it all the time. You can’t practice it. You can’t mimic it. You can’t get it anywhere else except by going through some tough times.”

It was the first time in seven years that the Hillers have won this tournament, a fact that was not lost on Tessmer.

“The first time we’ve beaten Canon-Mac and Latrobe since I’ve been here,” he added. “When we do the right things, we can be something special.”

Trinity was paced by Michael Koroly’s 17 points. Although he struggled with his shot over stretches, Koroly made winning plays when it counted such as a run-down block from behind on Big Macs guard Tommy Samosky late in the fourth when the outcome was still somewhat in doubt.

Noah Johnson contributed 14 points for the Hillers while Mike Dunn chipped in with 13. Dylan King rounded out the double-figure scorers for the Hillers with 10.

Samosky paced all scorers with 27 points. He was held scoreless by the Hillers’ defense in the fourth as he missed all six of his shots.

“We did a better job of taking his space away especially in the second half,” Tessmer added.

Cole Stanley was the only other double-figure scorer for the Big Macs as he finished with 10 points.

The Hillers looked prepared to win their second straight over the weekend as they roared out to a 23-16 lead after the first and eventually extended their advantage to 30-19 midway through the second quarter.

Koroly and Johnson keyed the early Hillers run by making four of their six three-point field goals in the opening frame.

But several turnovers and questionable shot selection by the Hillers opened the door and Canon-McMillan was more than happy to walk in as a long-range display by Samosky dragged the Big Macs into the fray. His 16 second-quarter points, four of them via the three-pointer, helped turn a 30-19 Hillers lead into a 36-33 halftime advantage for the hosts.

Canon-McMillan kept the momentum in the third quarter as it pushed its lead to 56-43 midway through the frame thanks to a Samosky three-pointer. But it was at this point that the Hillers had seen enough and began to climb out of a 13 point hole.

Trinity then embarked on a 17-0 run that spanned the end of the third and into the final quarter. The telltale sign that this may become the Hillers’ night was when Johnson hit a floating buzzer-beater to cut the Big Macs lead to 56-48 at the end of the third. Johnson later splashed home a three-pointer that pushed the Hillers lead to 60-56 and showed that they would not look back.

“We feel like we have at least have six guys who can get into double figures every night,” Tessmer added. “We always tell them if we get five guys into double figures then we’re going to be alright.”