Chandler continued its roll in girls basketball Tuesday night. For the second time in two weeks that meant knocking off neighbor to the south - Hamilton.

The Wolves got 31 points inside from Je Zhe Newton and Raven Anderson and gradually wore down the host Huskies, 71-55, in a battle for the top spot in the 5A Fiesta Region.

Chandler (18-4, 7-0) used prettty much the same blueprint to beat Hamilton (16-5, 5-2) as it did at Wells Fargo Arena on MLK Day. Anderson scored eight of Chandler's 16 points in the opening period -- six on offensive putbacks. Newton, who has become the sixth man for coach Zon Thompson, tallied a team-and game-high 17 points. Like Anderson, Newton was effective on the boards and winning post-up battles with Huskies' defenders. Anderson finished with 14 points.

Point guard Dezirae Elias and transfer backcourt mate Simone Westbrook combined for 20 points. Most of the their scoring came off defense and the transition game, the strength of the Wolves.

"We're playing well right now, but still taking it one game at a time," Thompson said. "
We're working on sustaining things. We're going to have times in the game when we score in flurries, but we also have to know when to settle and control the momentum we get. We did a good job of keeping the lead and not letting them get a run at us."

Chandler, which has won its last eight games in a row, led 16-12 after the first period. The Wolves extended it to 34-23 at halftime and bumped it up more heading to the final period with a 56-41 advantage. Eleven of Chandler's 12 players scored.

Hamilton, which has been balanced in scoring this season, got 13 points from Cassidee Ranger, 12 from Chelcee Pullam and 11 from Erin Curry. The Huskies leading scorers -- Lauren Evans and Kyndall Adams --- struggled. Neither scored in the first half and Evans didn't tally until 2:50 remained in the third period. Evans finished with nine points. Adams only points came on two fourth-quarter free throws. Each entered the contest averaging 13 points a game.

Two of the top five teams in the current 5A-I girls power-rankings are Hamilton and Xavier. Chandler is 3-for-3 in beating those region rivals, each one a decisive triumph. Finishing strong is still Thompson's mantra.

"We need to keep taking care of business, not look too far ahead," Thompson said.