South East Melbourne Phoenix have kept their NBL title hopes alive, fighting their way to a 101-94 victory over the Illawarra Hawks to level their semi-final series.
After the ladder-topping Hawks banked a win in game one by the same margin, the Phoenix responded in style in game two on Sunday at Melbourne's John Cain Arena.
Import forward Matt Hurt, who was quiet in the opener, was the star for the victors with 30 points, including four three-pointers, while skipper Nathan Sobey bagged 25 points and Angus Glover 16.
SEM coach Josh King said he was proud of the way his team contained key Hawks players and held their nerve, with the lead changing hands 13 times.
"I thought for the most part we kind of controlled the game," the American coach said.
"It was a back-and-forth game, but I thought we really controlled it.
"They're a really good team, they've got a lot of good players and they can put you in a lot of tough spots, but I thought we did a really good job on their key guys."
Since joining the NBL for the 2019-20 season, SEM have never made a grand final series. Their hopes of a maiden appearance will go on the line in game three on Wednesday night in Wollongong.
The Hawks have also been starved of grand-final action, with their last series in 2017. They haven't won a championship since 2001.
The winners will face either the Perth Wildcats or Melbourne United, with those teams squaring off in a decider on Tuesday night.
While captain Tyler Harvey and Trey Kell starred for the Hawks in game one, both tipping in 24 points, they had a forgettable match on Sunday.
With Harvey fouled out in the fourth quarter, the back-court pair managed just four from 23 from the floor, while the squad only managed 17 from 29 free throws.
"Guys have got to take more pride in doing their best to make their free throws, taking advantage of the opportunity," said Hawks coach Justin Tatum.
"We missed a lot, clearly, but we'll bounce back - anything can decide a playoff game.
"We've just got to get better, we have no choice. We want to win the grand final, we've got to win Wednesday."
Despite the loss in game one, SEM entered the second game with confidence, having won two of their three regular-season meetings with the Hawks.
The teams were locked at 24-24 at quarter-time, with Sobey making an early statement with 10 points.
The home side dominated the second stanza, with Hurt adding three three-pointers to push the lead out to 13 points, but the Hawks hung tough, with the Phoenix ahead 51-47 at halftime.
The teams continued to go toe to toe, with Illawarra back in front 68-66 heading into the final term.
But the Phoenix wrested back control, with import Joe Wieskamp dropping a crucial three-point bomb with 2.22 left on the clock to extend the lead to 87-81, before they saw out the win in front of an elated home crowd.
