After eight lead changes and four ties in the first half, No. 2 Manteca closed off the second period with a 5-0 run that broke the final tie, capped by Jada Ikharo’s buzzer beater on the way to a 46-29 thumping of visiting 15th-seeded El Camino.

“We just have to play four quarters,” Buffaloes coach Oscar Calix said. “The first half, we allowed 16 points and in the fourth quarter we held them to four points. Defensively, we turned it up and forced turnovers.

“But we have to learn to take care of the ball. We had our share of turnovers and they weren’t even pressuring us that hard.”

Ikharo (three assists, four steals) posted a double-double with 10 points and 21 rebounds, leading Manteca (23-6) to a resounding 45-28 advantage on the boards.

“This was a really fun game,” Ikharo said. “We knew that if we didn’t win we would go home, so everyone brought their ‘A’ game.

“We can improve on turnovers and keeping energy up, but I think we will keep it up for next game.”

The Buffaloes’ Michailla Springs hit three from beyond the arc, leading all scorers with 15 points along with five rebounds, five assists and three steals.

“At first the game was going slow,” Springs said. We picked it up and we were working hard.

“We worked hard all season for this moment and at the end we pulled out a win and I am proud of the team.”

Manteca really clamped down in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Eagles (16-14) of Sacramento 12-4.

Jaesha Dunn (four points) pulled down 13 rebounds for the Buffaloes with Kalaja Reese and Brea Vieira chipping in six points apiece.

El Camino’s Noelle Potratz posted a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds.

Manteca will host either No. 7 Kimball or 10th-seeded Los Banos on Friday at 7 p.m.