Mesquite's girls basketball team overcame a big lead and lost a big lead. When all was said and done, however, Friday afternoon the Lady Wildcats got the right shot at the right time for a second successive win in the John Anderson bracket of the 18th annual Nike Tournament of Champions invite at Perry High School.

Alexis Springfield scored on a driving layup with 30 second left to snap a tie and give Mesquite a 55-53 victory over Century High (Pocatello, Idaho). The win advances Mesquite (10-4) to the semifinals of the division on Saturday afternoon at 4:40 against Brea Olinda HS Calif., a 56-50 winner over Corona Centennial HS, Calif., at Perry High.

Mesquite, which trailed by 10 points in the second quarter and led by 12 in the third period, saw that lead melt and eventually settle to a tie in the final period on four occasions. A layup on an inbounds play by Century's Kylee Casper knotted the score a final time at 53 with 44 seconds left.

Mesquite called a time out with expllicit instructions from coach Candice Gonzales.

"I told them nothing but a layup," Gonzales said.

Springfield, a junior and one of only two players for Mesquite this year with extensive varsity time from last year, got the ball in front court after the timeout. She dribbled for a few seconds then used her quickness and a very quick first step to get past her defender and get exactly the shot Gonzales called for and connected for the game winner. Springfield finished with 16 points, with her seven field goals layups or a putback.

"Her experience gives us a little spark and she did that today," Gonzales said. "She was in foul trouble a lot today, but gave us a lift when she was in there."

Century got one possession to try for a tie or better, but turned the ball over with 22 seconds left before getting off a shot. Mesquite was able to maintain possession to the finish getting fouled twice. Since the Lady Wildcats weren't in the bonus, they didn't shoot free throws and ran out the clock.

"We are known for shooting threes and they knew that," Gonzales said. "That's a big part of our game. The other part is penetration. We got a lot from doing that today. What I was really pleased with was how we held the ball the last few seconds. We are very young and they handled the pressure fo the situation very well."

Mesquite got a game-high 23 points from one of three freshmen starters -- Lindsey VanAllen. VanAllen made two big baskets in the low-scoring final period. Sophomore Lauren Harrington came off the bench to add 10 points, including a pair of threes that helped Mesquite build a 12-point lead in the quarter. Century had two players score in double figures. Post Henny Hearn, committed to Montana, had 14 points and Rian Rawlings chipped in with 11.

JOE SMITH DIVISION

BLACKMAN, TN 58, DESERT VISTA 48: For the second day in a row, Blackman knocked off an Arizona team on its way to the bracket semifinals, beating the defending state Division I champion Thunder.

A strong first half from Blackman was the difference. The Blaze built a 35-18 lead at halftime and never let Desert Vista pull closer than 10 in the second half. Forward Alex Johnson, who is headed to Middle Tennessee State, led Blackman with 23 points, Crystal Dangerfield, who is committed to UConn added 13 points and junior Jazz Bond tallied 10.

Desert Vista (9-2) got 11 points each from center Kristine Anigwe and guard Sabrina Haines. Haines, bound for ASU, didn't get off a shot in the first half as the Blaze paid close attention to her on the perimeter. Anigwe didn't have it easy, either, as Blackman collapsed on defense often double and triple-teamed the 6-foot-4 California-bound senior. Anigwe picked up three fouls in the first half and notched her fourth with two minutes left in the third. She fouled out with four minutes left and scored just four points in the second half.

The other Arizona team in the winners' bracket of the division -- Millennium -- dropped its first game of the year to drop to 11-1. The Lady Tigers bowed to Parkview HS, Liburn, GA, 40-36.  Hamilton, which lost a first-round game to Blackman on Thursday, was beaten in the losers' bracket by Dillard (Fort Lauderdale, FL, 44-37.

After two days of play Arizona teams have a combined record of 13-25. They were 5-14 on Thursday and 8-11 on Friday.