William Hickey has missed a crucial late free throw as the Adelaide 36ers held on for a thrilling 90-88 NBL win over the Illawarra Hawks at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre.

In a topsy-turvy finish to Sunday's match, the Hawks trailed by as much as eight points late in the third quarter before producing a strong finish to close the margin to one with a minute to go.

When 36ers superstar Bryce Cotton made only one of his two free-throws with 6.4 seconds remaining, it meant Illawarra trailed by just two points with the chance to either win or tie the game.

Hickey didn't have the chance to fire off what could have been a match-winning three-pointer, but a foul sent him to the line for two free throws with just 1.6 seconds remaining.

The 26-year-old missed his first shot, and then purpose

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