HILLMAN - Jan. 29, 2010 - Andy Smith burned Arenac Eastern for the second time this season and Hillman negated the Eagles' usual advantage inside as the Tigers kept pace with Hale atop the North Star League with a 70-55 victory over AE on Friday.

Smith scored his 1,000th career point and hit four 3-pointers, but AE coach Bob Morgan said the Tigers won the game in the paint.

"They just have many weapons that we couldn't stop," Morgan said. "We were outrebounded, which normally doesn't happen. They move the ball very well, which made it difficult to stop their 3-point shooting. Smith only needs a split second to hit a shot."

After a shootout of a first quarter that ended with the Tigers up 20-15, Hillman took control with a 25-9 run that made it 45-24 at the half. Kevin Tracey scored nine of his 13 points in that quarter. Hillman continued to pull away in the third, upping the lead to 64-34.

Smith finished with 18 points, with Andrew Saddler adding another 10 as the Tigers improved to 10-1 (8-1 NSL).

Kyle Zobel scored a career-high 18 points for the Eagles (6-6, 4-5), with Kevin Kovacs adding 10 and Graham Morgan scoring nine.