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Taylorsville • The Sky View Bobcats grabbed hold of the vice grips and held tight. The No. 1-ranked team in Class 4A, just as they have up to this point in their magnificent 2014-15 season, put on yet another display of suffocating defense. Now their staple and star player, Lindsey Jensen, has the Bobcats four quarters away from a state crown and an unblemished season.

Sky View, 24-0, handcuffed the Mountain View Bruins 65-45 in Friday's 4A semifinal at Salt Lake Community College to earn a berth in Saturday morning's state championship game. In usual fashion, Jensen had a game-high 22 points and a well-rounded offensive effort piggybacked off the Bobcats' dominant defensive display.

Sky View forced 20 Bruin turnovers, none more impressive than the string in the third quarter when the Bobcats finished on a 20-2 run. Mountain View pulled within 10, 27-17, with just over five minutes remaining, but the Bobcats dialed up the pressure and pulled away by clogging the passing lanes and interrupting Mountain View's offense with its patented zone defense. Up double digits, Sky View coach Kimber Hall called a timeout.

His message?

"It's just been fun this year because when you call a timeout, you calm them down a little bit and away they go," Hall said.

It worked. After holding Jensen in check for nearly the entire third quarter, Mountain View couldn't keep the senior guard from expanding the lead. She made two free throws and soon after drained a 3-pointer to up the lead to 24.

"Hands up, playing with heart, [grab] those rebounds, those defensive stops," Jensen explained of her team's defensive prowess. "Just never give up — just everyone playing as hard as they can."

Bruin head coach Alan Groves said Thursday the goal in defending the Bobcats was to limit the damage from Jensen and force others to step up and hit big shots. Sophomore Kylie Hale spotted her side three 3-pointers off the bench, initially helping Sky View build its first big lead of the game when the Bobcats outscored the Bruins 15-3 in the second quarter. She was one of 12 different Bobcats to chip in offensively.

"She did an excellent job of hitting three big 3s today," Hall said. "And I'm not afraid of those girls shooting 3s. I just tell them if they have an open shot, they're the shooter, not the passer."

The Bobcats aren't going home to Smithfield. Hall said the team is staying the night in the Salt Lake Valley ahead of Saturday's 4A title game at 11 a.m. in Taylorsville. When the topic of potentially finishing a season undefeated at 25-0, Hall joked, "I think they ought to just give us the trophy."

"We're just thrilled to death to be there," he added.

ckamrani@sltrib.com

Twitter: @CKTribune —

Sky View 65, Mountain View 45

R Bobcat star Lindsey Jensen has game-high 22 points and nine rebounds in the win.

• Sky View ends third quarter on 20-2 run en route to runaway victory over Bruins.

• Mountain View's Paulani Tarawa finished with a team-high 21 points. —

Class 4A championship

P Sky View vs. Skyline

At SLCC (Taylorsville)

Tipoff • Saturday, 11 a.m.