Springfield found a way to win, even if they still couldn't stop Stephon Thompson.
Chandler Dawes scored 11 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter, including two free throws with 33.5 seconds left, as Springfield rallied to beat Phoenix 84-76 in Game 2, to even up the playoff series at one game a piece.
Thompson, who made the winning 3-pointer at the end of overtime in Game 1 to give the eighth-seeded Phoenix a 96-95 victory, had another big game in Game 2. He scored 32 points but missed on a drive in the final minute.
Chandler Dawes also redeemed himself. In the series opener, he went 3-of-8 from the line and missed three free throws in overtime, allowing Thompson to win the game on his buzzer-beater. He went 4-of-6 at the stripe in Game 2, including two late.
"It was a lot better than missing them," he said.
With Springfield leading 77-76, Paul Hammond made a 3-pointer from the wing with 1:02 left. Up till then, Springfield had gone only 4-of-22 from behind the arc.
"Down the stretch we made a big shot, just like last game when Phoenix made two 3s," said Springfield head coach Will Jenkins, referring to Thompson's winner and a 3-pointer by Damion Anderson in the waning seconds of regulation.
Thompson missed a drive to the basket on the possession after Hammond's basket. Springfield then clinched the victory by making all four of it's foul shots in the final minute -- Dawes two and two by Conor McCaffrey with 12.5 seconds left.
Thompson, who also had 10 rebounds, said Phoenix were happy to return to game 3 and game 4 with one victory. "We wanted the split, and we got it," he said. "We have the advantage now."
Hammond led Springfield 23 points. Chandler Dawes also had 12 rebounds, and Clarence Davis, starting in place of the injuried Charlie Dawes, had 10 rebounds. Terrance Hardaway scored 17 points for Phoenix.
Springfield led by 10 early in the third period before Phoenix got to 51-49 on Thompson's two free throws.
In the fourth quarter, Phoenix took the led on a short jumper by Jake Voskuhl, and ran the advantage to 72-65 before Springfield closed out the game with a 19-4 run.
"It came down to missed shots," said Phoenix coach Frank Johnson, whose team went 1-for-17 on 3-pointers. "We took some quick shots (and) defensively we weren't as sharp. We became hesitant, for whatever reason."
The first two quarters were also defined by big momentum swings, the first in Phoenix's direction and the second towards Springfield.
Thompson made his first five shots from the floor against Conor McCaffrey, accounting for 11 of Phoenix's first 13 points. And on defense, Phoenix limited Springfield to 5-of-19 shooting (26.3 percent) in the period.
But Springfield went on a 15-2 run to open the second quarter, started by an alley-oop pass by McCaffrey that Hammond turned into a two-handed dunk. Hammond stole the ball from Josiah Johnson on the next possession for Phoenix and hit McCaffrey with a pass for a layup.
Hammond scored 12 points in the quarter and McCaffrey had 10 as Springfield held a 47-41 lead at the break. Hardaway scored eight for Phoenix in the quarter.