Illawarra has booked a semi-final series showdown with Melbourne United after star guard Justin Robinson put the Hawks faithful on his back down the stretch of an 88-85 win over the Breakers in Wollongong on Monday.
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The Hawks led by as much as 15 early in the second term, but were utterly unconvincing from that point on, with Robinson the glaring exception.
The Virginia native has copped his share of flak through an inconsistent season that's seen him shifted to the second unit, but the 26-year-old came up huge when it mattered.
With just two points at the half, Robinson had 10 straight points for the Hawks to close the third term, and back-to-back threes to square the ledger after the Breakers took the lead in the fourth.
He went 14-14 from the line, including a cool six of six inside the final 29 seconds to first re-take the lead, and then hold it to the final buzzer.
All up, Robinson finished with 26 points, four rebounds, three assists and three steals in what was his best, and certainly most timely performance of the season.
Skipper Sam Froling had 21 points, nine rebounds and two assists on a night fellow stars Tyler Harvey (seven points) and Gary Clark (seven points and six turnovers) had rough outings.
After a roller coaster season, Robinson said he was never going to shy away from the big moments.
"I just love those moments," Robinson said.
"I think I've been that way my whole life. Early in my professional career, I want to take that moment and embrace it.
"I think it's who I am, it's how my parents raised me, to never give up. It's not always going to be sweet, it's not always going to be good, it's just how you handle adversity.
"My mom just called me on FaceTime in the locker room. It's 6.19 in the morning in America so they're just starting their day.
"I've had an up and down year, but like JT has told us before, it's 28 games a preseason and these are the big moments.
"It's my little saying that big time players step up in big time moments and I think that's what I did. Luckily I was in those positions to shoot those free throws and they went my way.
"For the guys to have that trust in me, and for me to execute like that down the stretch is a huge testament to them, and a huge testament to me as well."
The performances was also a huge testament to coach Justin Tatum, whose faith in his point-guard has been unwavering amid criticism.
"He's got iced water in his veins," Tatum said.
"J-Rob is a true professional. We've asked him to come off the bench, he still plays similar minutes that he played as a starter, but he's more effective and more aggressive.
"For him to be able to step up at this time, in a do or die situation, and do that, there's nothing but trust that I've been having in this guy for the whole season."
The Hawks will now head to Melbourne on Thursday for the series opener against United.
A boil-over there would see them return to Wollongong on Sunday eyeing a sweep having now notched the club's first finals win in Wollongong since 2017 under Rob Beveridge.
Bruise brothers give Hawks jump start
Tatum called Breakers star Parker Jackson-Cartwright the "head of the snake" in the lead-up, and he deployed his pair of snake catchers in Wani Swaka Lo Buluk and Will Hickey to start the game.
Swaka Lo Buluk stuck to the diminutive Breakers star like glue through the opening stretch, while Hickey went after Will McDowell White from the the jump.
It worked early, with the Hawks jumping out to an 18-8 lead that forced Mody Maor into an early timeout with the margin at double digits.
Jackson-Cartwright had five points at 2-5 for the term, with the Hawks taking a 14-point cushion to the first break.
He finished with 19 points, but it came at 5-17 from the field, and 2-9 from three, his last-ditch attempt at forcing overtime from beyond the arc rimming out on the buzzer. He was also forced into six turnovers.
"We contained PJC to our best ability," Tatum said.
"He didn't score 30, but they were still in the game so he did really well. I believe he had eight or nine assists, so he was finding his teammates, but we wanted to make it difficult.
"I think he had six plus turnovers, so we wanted to just throw him off his game. The focus is just to wear him down and tire him.
"Sometimes the free throws that he missed or a layup that he could have had, I think that's a testament to those guys picking him up full court, putting pressure on him.
"Wani is a tone-setter, he sets the tone defensively. He brings consistent defensive toughness for us and he does his job by making everything difficult for the [opposition's] best player.
"He gets the other guys going because they know, when he's sub in for Wani, you can't drop it down, you've got to keep it going."
Hickey continues to win over the Hawks faithful with contributions that go well beyond the nine points, three rebounds and two assists on the stat sheet would indicate.
The Hawks were +10 with Hickey on the floor, and the tenacious guard is doing plenty to warrant the Hawks re-signing him for next season.
Win a great escape after squandering hot start
The Hawks looked so good to start even NBL CEO David Stevenson couldn't help but get caught up in the atmosphere, tipping "the Hawks by 12" into the on-court mic.
That prediction came with the Hawks leading 35-25 in the second term, and didn't seem all that bold, but the Breakers went a stunning 17-7 from there to close the term.
The Hawks red-hot start evaporated as they coughed up seven turnovers and went a dismal 4-18 from the field.
Three turnovers on on as many trips up the floor contributed to an 11-0 run for the visitors that quickly whittled away a 15-point lead to see the scores locked at 42 apiece at the break.
The Hawks also began the fourth quarter with three straight turnovers as the Breakers took the lead for the first time in the game with seven minutes to go.
In the end the class of Robinson, and 20 offensive rebounds were enough the get the hosts home - but it was not the type of performance that will test United on Thursday.
Win sets up enthralling coaching match-up
Just six votes separated Tatum and United coach Dean Vickerman in NBL Coach of the Year voting, but they'll be separated by almost 300 games experience when they meet in the southern capital on Wednesday.
Three-time championship-winner Vickerman has coached more post-season games than Tatum has games as a professional coach.
It will be a true David and Goliath battle, but shapes as a free swing for the Hawks having deflected the Breakers last throw of the dice.
"I'm a competitor, I love it, I love this environment," Tatum said.
"Going into Melbourne and being in the final four right now in the best of three series, I love it because we weren't supposed to be here.
"We've fought from the graveyard to be up top to have a heartbeat, so we just want to keep finding a way to keep playing and keep making our mark.
"We've just got to make sure we get ready for the moment. Melbourne has been off for three weeks, they've been waiting to see who they were going to play.
"We've just been in the grind for the whole season, not just for the last couple of weeks, so I think we just enjoy this moment.
"I'll bust that bubble tomorrow doing film, and then we get right back on and prepare for Melbourne."
Mitch Jennings
Sports writer. Sport is my passion, rugby league my first love.
Sports writer. Sport is my passion, rugby league my first love.
