Seton Catholic's bid for a Nike Tournament of Champions bracket title was denied Wednesday via a Bishop O'Dowd (CA) trio.

Leading that trio was 6-foot-1, guard-forward Amaya Bonner, a Division I college commit. Bonner scored 12 points and teammates Emma Mathai and Savannah Jones added 12 and 11, respectively as the Dragons pulled away in the second half for a 44-34 victory at McClintock High School.

The teams each won their first three games - Saturday, Monday and Tuesday - to reach the Dan Wiley bracket final. They traded two-point leads in the first half - Seton up 10-8 after the first quarter and Bishop O'Dowd on top, 21-19, at intermission. Bonner scored 8 of her 12 points in the second half dominating inside via post-up or strong drives to the hoop. Teammates Emma Mathai and Savannah Jones tallied in double figures, 12 and 11, respectively. Once the Dragons lead hit seven points after three quarters they didn't let it dip below six in the final stanza.

Seton's 5-4 senior guard Sasha Daniel paced the Sentinels with her usual zigging and zagging drives through the paint. Daniel netted a game-high 18 points. It wasn't enough to offset the balance produced by Bishop O'Dowd, which improved to 6-0 for the season. Seton is now 9-4 and saw a five-game winning streak end.

"Twenty two (Bonner) is a Pac-12 commit (Cal), a nice player," Seton coach Karen Self said. "We fought hard, and for the most part held our own."

Three-point shooting favored Bishop O'Dowd. The Dragons only shot four threes, but connected on all of them. Mathai was 3 for 3 as part of her 12 points. Seton hit on only 1 of 13 beyond the arc with half of those in the final quarter trying to cut the deficit.

Seton won't play again until the New Year, but won't wait long after it dawns. The Sentinels travel to Flagstaff to face Coconino on Monday January 3.

Seton poses with its bracket runner-up plaque from the 2021 Nike TOC. (Azpreps365 photo)