Maturity.

South Kitsap girls basketball coach Mike Hulet believed he saw that when his Wolves overcame a late challenge to win 49-45 in a nonleague game Saturday against Jackson.

They appeared to have the game in control with a 39-28 lead entering the fourth quarter. But the Timberwolves later reduced their deficit to 42-36 with 4 minutes, 7 seconds, remaining when Emily Brown and Imari Clinton connected on consecutive 3-pointers.

Clinton later cut South’s lead to 44-40 on a layup with 2:24 left. But Clinton, who scored a game-high 21 points, was disqualified about a minute later when she picked up her fifth foul on a charge.

Game over? Not quite.

After South junior point guard Libby Borgonia split a pair of free throws, Timberwolves’ senior guard Martina Mason missed both shots from the stripe at the other end. But Jackson collected the rebound and Brown’s 3-pointer banked in with 42 seconds remaining.

“I thought, ‘We can’t lose on a banked 3,’ ” Hulet said. “But our kids kept their composure. I don’t know if we could’ve done that last year.”

Enter MaryBeth Bray.

Facing pressure from a pair of defenders, the Wolves’ senior wing found classmate Alona Lund for an uncontested layup with 22 seconds left.

“It was really nerve-wracking,” Bray said. “I almost turned over the ball several times, but I kept it and was able to get it to Alona.”

Fifteen seconds later, Bray faced another pressure-filled moment. After Jackson freshman guard Jadyn Edwards drove for a layup to cut South’s lead to 47-45, Bray was fouled. She connected on both free throws to secure the Wolves’ fourth consecutive win.

“I just keep trying to stay calm,” said Bray, referring to free-throw shooting. “I treat it like it’s practice and keep the crowd out of my head.”

Those were not the only significant shots Bray took during the contest. Just before time expired in the first quarter, Bray hit an NBA-range 3-pointer to extend South’s lead to 14-7.

“That was really surprising,” Bray said. “I really don’t like smiling when I’m playing basketball — I tried to keep a straight face — but I couldn’t.”

Bray scored a team-high 15 points, but Hulet said her contributions extended beyond the offensive end.

“We always put her on the toughest offensive player and she always rises to the occasion,” he said. “It’s just fun to see her rewarded for her hard work.”

The Wolves (7-1) never trailed, but their advantage always seemed tenuous. Perhaps that was because the Timberwolves’ offensive rebounding prowess gave them several second-chance opportunities. Even though Jackson converted just 5 of 26 field goals during the first half, it only trailed 24-18 at the intermission.

“We talked about that a little at halftime,” said Hulet, referring to the Timberwolves’ offensive rebounding. “But give them credit. They’re aggressive and they attack.”

Hulet noted that Jackson (1-6) has played a difficult nonleague schedule and suffered a 48-47 loss in its last game, Dec. 19, at Lake Stevens, which is in first place in Class 4A Wesco. He was more concerned about an aspect of his own team.

“Here we are almost halfway through the season, or getting close, but I still think our conditioning is kind of a bugaboo,” Hulet said. “As you can see, we kind of get gassed a little.”

But Hulet, whose team has not lost since it suffered a 50-39 setback Dec. 30 at Renton, is happy with how South has progressed since that point.

“That’s a testament to these guys,” he said. “We didn’t play very well at Renton, but we came back and were focused.”

The Wolves conclude the nonleague portion of their schedule at 6 p.m. Saturday at Kingston. Hulet scheduled Tuesday and Wednesday off to give his team a break before his team resumes 4A Narrows League play Jan. 7 at Olympia.

“Just go home and be a family,” said Hulet, relaying his message to the team. “Leave the basketball in the gym. Get a little mental break, come back and then there’s the big push.”

At South Kitsap 49, Jackson 45

Jackson 7 11 10 17 – 45

South Kitsap 14 10 15 10 – 49

Jackson-Makayla Nearing, Kaylei Werner 3, Emily Brown 11, Imari Clinton 21, Kelsie McKay 2, Martina Mason 3, Mackenzie Conrad, Kassaundra Jackson 3, Jadyn Edwards 2.

South Kitsap-Libby Borgonia 6, MaryBeth Bray 15, Mckenna Mallory, Brianna Shafer 6, Alona Lund 10, Sophia Canton, Kaylee Yergeau 8, Kaylee McEdward 4, Amanda Lind.