Mesa Mountain View knew it had a size advantage as it warmed up to play Harvard Westlake (North Hollywood, Calif.) on Sautrday afternoon. The Toros took their time often enough to seize that edge and it proved decisive in a 45-31 victory over the visiting Wolverines in the first round of the Nike Tournament of Champions I girls basketball tournament at Court One in Tempe.

Six-foot-three sophomore post Jordan Jensen, who entered the game averaging eight points a game, tossed in a season-high 19 as the Toros improved their record to 8-0 on the season. Mountain View advances to the winner's bracket of the White Division for a Monday afternoon game with Narbonne (Harbor City, Calif.).

"One thing we're still learning and we're getting better at is patience on offense," Mountain View coach Henry Bribiescas said. "We needed to get the ball inside. Sometimes we're not patient enough. They played very good defense so it tests you. We got some needed points inside."

Jensen connected on 8-of-12 shots from the field, all from close range. Harvard Westlake had no players 6-0 tall or better, but their relentless defense still made it difficult to land the ball in Jensen's hands.

Mountain View started  fast  taking a 17-6  lead after the first period. The Toros did everything right -- hitting 50 percent of their shots, turning the ball over just twice keeping the perimeter-minded Wolverines from getting good opportunities from oustside.

Harvard Westlake turned up the pressure on defense after the first period and gradually pecked away at the lead. The Wolverines forced 14 Mountain View turnovers in the middle periods. They cut the deficit to six by halftime and stayed withint striking distance heading the final period, down 33-25.

In the final period Mountain View got back to the level of play it showed in the first period, working the ball inside to Jensen twice for layups and once to senior forward Carly Stine. The Toros took better care of the ball -- one turnover -- outscored Harvard Westlake 12-6 in the final period.

"We did much better in the fourth quarter," Bribiescas said. "We settled down and passed the ball better. Their pressure didn't let up, we just handled it better."

The only other Toro player to scored in double figures was junior Arnecia Hawkins. Hawkins, who has committed to ASU, tallied 10 points. She was back in the lineup after missing a game with tender ankle.