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Timpview senior Truman Burningham sets up to shoot the game-sealing free throws during the Region 8 game against Orem in Provo on Friday, Feb. 11, 2022. (Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald)

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TImpview senior Truman Burningham drives to the basket during the Region 8 game against Orem in Provo on Friday, Feb. 11, 2022. (Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald)

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Orem sophomore Lance Reynolds shoots a shot during the Region 8 game against Timpview in Provo on Friday, Feb. 11, 2022. (Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald)

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Timpview players celebrate a big shot during the Region 8 game against Orem in Provo on Friday, Feb. 11, 2022. (Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald)

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Orem senior Dane Christensen looks to make a play during the Region 8 game at Timpview in Provo on Friday, Feb. 11, 2022. (Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald)

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Timpview senior Andrew Keck goes up for a layup during the Region 8 game against Orem in Provo on Friday, Feb. 11, 2022. (Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald)

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Orem senior Nick Clark shoots a shot during the Region 8 game against Timpview in Provo on Friday, Feb. 11, 2022. (Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald)

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Timpview senior Truman Burningham attempts to beat the buzzer during the Region 8 game against Orem in Provo on Friday, Feb. 11, 2022. (Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald)

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Timpview head coach Izzy Ingle directs his team during the Region 8 game against Orem in Provo on Friday, Feb. 11, 2022. (Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald)

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Orem head coach Perry Wildeboer directs his team during the Region 8 game against Timpview in Provo on Friday, Feb. 11, 2022. (Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald)

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Timpview senior guard Truman Burningham appeared stoic as he walked toward the foul line but had to be feeling the pressure.

He knew exactly what was on the line.

His Thunderbird team led visiting Orem, 55-53, with just 8.8 seconds left — and Timpview had made just 4-of-8 foul shots in the fourth quarter. A miss would leave the door open for a Tiger miracle.

“They called timeout and we went to the huddle and all my teammates said they believed in me,” Burningham said. “They were telling me I got it, that they’re going in. I believed in myself. I just had to stay composed, stay calm, and knock them down.”

The Thunderbird leader did just that, calmly draining both shots. Orem wasn’t able to score again and Timpview secured the 58-53 victory to get the season sweep over the Tigers.

Burningham said seeing the ball go through the hoop in that moment “felt amazing. It felt so good.”

While those clutch shots from the charity stripe were enormous, Thunderbird head coach Izzy Ingle said his team relied on Burningham to set the tone throughout the contest.

“I came to him about a week ago and said, ‘how are you feeling? Can you can you play 32 minutes if we need it?’ and he said, ‘absolutely,'” Ingle said. “We try to find time where we can pull him out for a minute here or there and he’s like, ‘Coach, I’m good. I’ll die before you have to pull me out.’ We rely heavily on his leadership. We have a great team but he really handles the pressure, runs the show, makes big shots and makes big free throws. I just love the kid.”

Burningham ended up scoring 22 points to lead the Thunderbirds in scoring but also was big on defense and in taking care of the ball. That last part was the most important, according to Ingle.

“That was our main emphasis,” Ingle said. “We knew it was going to be similar to last time, which was a one-possession game. Valuing possessions was huge for us. We only had one turnover in the first half. Orem switched some defenses in the second half but our goal was to not turn it over — even though we didn’t make some free throws. Valuing possessions was big.”

Timpview was able to play from in front for most of the game, going up by as many as 12 points in the second half at 39-27. The Tigers, however, answered with a 7-0 run and stayed close enough to be dangerous the rest of the way.

“We just knew we had to come out on fire because they were going to come and try and bury us quick,” Burningham said. “We knew we had to come out and get the lead, which allowed us to control the game.”

Orem made some big plays down the stretch, including getting a tough 3-pointer from senior Nick Clark to make it a two-point game in the final seconds and set the stage for Burningham’s big shots.

The win was a big one for the Thunderbirds, who dropped a pair of tough games to Alta earlier in the week.

“It was big for us because we had had two tough battles,” Ingle said. “We knew that Orem was going to be ready for us but we knew we had to come in and get momentum going. We came in ready.”

Burningham said he feels like the team is coming together with the goal of making a deep run at state, but the key is going to be continuing to make things tough on opposing offenses.

“I think that we’ve just got to play defense for all 32 minutes,” Burningham said. “We also need to come out stronger. We have had some slow starts in the beginning of games and then also to start the third quarter. But if we just keep playing hard throughout the game, I think we’ll be fine.”