Forward Mojica helps Lions fend off Bengals

Jessica Mojica provided the perfect answer to Bonanza's zone defense Thursday.

The Sierra Vista senior forward scored 14 of her game-high 22 points in the second half of the Lions' 63-55 victory at Bonanza.

Mojica hit four of the Lions' eight second-half field goals, finding ways to get inside against the Bengals' 2-1-2 zone defense. She also was 6-for-8 from the free-throw line and had eight rebounds, six on the offensive glass.

"She's such a hard worker," Sierra Vista coach Lindsay Whalen said. "She's not flashy at all, but she does a lot of the little things people don't notice."

The Lions (5-2, 1-1 Southwest) had success early beating Bonanza's full-court press with freshman point guard Jeannette Jackson scoring nine of her 16 points in the first quarter to help them to a 23-11 lead.

But Sierra Vista made only 12 of 43 shots the rest of the way as the Bengals cluttered the paint with their zone.

Bonanza trimmed the deficit to 45-44 on Laura Nelson's stick-back basket in the first minute of the fourth quarter, but a three-point play by Jackson started a game-clinching 10-3 run.

"The zone got us back into it, but we spent most of our energy trying to get back (in the game)," Bonanza coach Dean Bosch said. "We had a couple of mental mistakes. There was nothing left in the tank."

Brea Foster added 11 points for Sierra Vista. Foster and Jackson each had nine rebounds for the Lions.

Christin Figgins, Terra Novak, Asta Galaviz and Nelson each scored 11 points for the Bengals (6-4, 1-1). Galaviz added 12 rebounds.

• Spring Valley 58, Clark 56 -- At Spring Valley, Brianna Mills pulled down a rebound and drained a jump shot at the buzzer to give the Grizzlies a double-overtime victory over the Chargers.

Mills finished with 11 points, and teammate Teaira Newman had 17 points, seven rebounds and six steals.

Clark's Joanne Umana had a game-high 26 points to lead a second-half comeback, including a late 3-pointer to send the game into overtime.

• Durango 73, Western 35 -- At Durango, Lindy La Rocque had 26 points and 10 assists and Mia Bell added 18 points and seven steals to lead the Trailblazers.

• Desert Pines 62, Valley 40 -- At Valley, Clarissa Davis scored 14 points and Andrea Jefferson 13 to lead the Jaguars.

Vanessa Corona led the Vikings with 13 points.

• Las Vegas 47, Chaparral 40 -- At Chaparral, Amber Kelly scored 13 points and Jervaie Taylor added 11 points to lead the Wildcats over the Cowboys.

• Canyon Springs 43, Agassi prep 29 -- At Canyon Springs, Diamond Broadus scored 11 points to lead the Pioneers.

BOYS

• Bonanza 64, Sierra Vista 63 -- At Bonanza, Marcus Matt put the Bengals ahead for good with a steal and a layup with 25 seconds left in overtime.

Matt's layup made it 63-62, and Tomo Delp split two free throws with 7.6 seconds to play, bumping Bonanza's lead to 64-62. The Lions then made one of two free throws for the final margin.

Matt Andrews had 15 points and Landry Peterson 14 for Bonanza. Delp added 10 points and 10 rebounds. Josh McLain led Sierra Vista with 20 points.

• Canyon Springs 96, Agassi Prep 56 -- At Canyon Springs, Juron Criner led five players in double figures with 17 points as Canyon Springs sprinted to a 49-23 halftime lead and cruised to victory.

Antonio Snow added 15 points and Mario Hawkins scored 14 for Canyon Springs.

• Spring Valley 60, Clark 41 -- At Spring Valley, Tenacious Gibson drained six 3-pointers and scored 25 points in only three quarters of play to lead the Grizzlies.

Ronnie Norsworthy added 12 points for Spring Valley. Isidro Garcia paced Clark with 12 points.

• Western 82, Durango 68 -- At Durango, Johnnie Diggs scored 24 points to lead the Warriors over the Trailblazers.

Phillip Payne added 19 points for Western. Glenn Pulliam led Durango with 15 points.

• Valley 63, Desert Pines 50 -- At Valley, Deante Jones had 13 points, 26 rebounds and eight blocked shots to lead the Vikings.

Cordero Harris added 20 points and nine rebounds for Valley. Cliff Harrell paced Desert Pines with 18 points.

• Las Vegas 66, Chaparral 61 -- At Chaparral, Zerrick Pryor scored 22 points and Marvin Campbell 14 to lead the Wildcats over the Cowboys.

Tyler Bryant scored 18 for Chaparral.

• Walnut (Calif.) 63, Mountain View 33 -- At Anaheim, Calif., Almond Cordell had 23 points to lead the Mustangs over the Saints at the Fairmont Prep Tournament.

Cortland LeBoeuf and Raymond Velarde each scored 10 for Mountain View.