Regis Jesuit coach Carl Mattei was pleased as his team prevailed shorthanded.

Chandler coach Zon Thompson felt sort of the same as his Wolves never gave up.

But better shooting and perhaps a little more poiseSaturday afternoon  was the difference as Regis Jesuit (Highlands Ranch, Colo.) handed Chandler its first loss of the season with a wire-to-wire 45-38 victory in the first round of the Nike Tournament of Champions , John Anderson Division at Willis Junior High.

Regis Jesuit, playing without its top two players --injured  junior Katie Heckman and injured sophomore sensation Maddie Montgomery -- got the job done with a handful of freshmen, juniors Jamie Revels, Marquelle Dent  and senior Colleen Rooney.

Rooney, a 6-foot-3 forward headed to Santa Clara, scored a game-high 15 points. Nine came in the second half as Regis Jesuit gradually built on a small first-quarter lead, an eight-point halftime advantage and as much as a 15-point lead with just more than four minutes left in the game.

When Chandler sliced a 42-27 lead to 44-38 with 1:43 left, Regis Jesuit managed to get a turnover and a couple stops down the stretch to withstand the run.

"We didn't have Katie Hickman who has some offers and Maddie Montgomery our talented sophomore," Mattei said. "We used eight freshman and they did a nice job. Our defensive pressure was good and that helped."

Chandler (5-1), which is used to winning the turnover battle with its opponents, had 31 turnovers and Regis Jesuit 30. But even Regis Jesuit's sub-par 29 percent shooting from the field in the first half, kept it in front. Chandler made just 5-of-33 shots from the floor the first 16 minutes (16 percent). Through three quarters that number improved slightly to 20 percent (10-of-50).

"We had a glazed look in our eye," Thompson said. "At times it was like we were glued to the floor. We're going to have days like this. You have to give them credit. They had good height and speed, but  I still thought we had an advantage. What I liked was even down like we were, we didn't fold up. We hung in in there and were able to make a run at the end."

Dent had nine points for Regis Jesuit and freshman Jordan Molyneaux had six. Two of her baskets were off offensive rebounds.

Chandler was led in scoring by Raven Anderson with 14 points. The Wolves didn't get the scoring they're used to from forward Je Zhe Newton (six points) and point guard Dezirae Elias (seven points). Elias was just 3-of-18 from the field and made her only 3 in the final period. Newton was frustrated in the post by the Raiders swarming defense. Newton connected on 3-of-11 shots.

"This tournament has always helped us and it will again this year," Thompson said. "It's one of the best in the country. You want to win these games, but it's what you come away with in them win or lose that will make us better."