NAMPA - Before Pocatello's appearance in the 4A state title game Saturday at the Idaho Center in Nampa, Indians coach Lee Ralphs took his senior post Colter Morton aside.

"I told him, 'I need you to have the game of your season,'" Ralphs said.

Morton took it to heart.

"Coach told me he needed a lot from me today," he said. "I knew it was my last time putting on this shirt and playing with these guys."

Morton rose to the challenge, leading all scorers in the game with 26 points, including two big shots from beyond the arc and a tying basket at the end of regulation.

But it wasn't enough, as Skyview, which trailed most of the game, pushed past upset-minded Pocatello in overtime, winning 59-58 and dashing the Indians' dreams of a state title.

"It came down to little things," Ralphs said. "(Skyview) hit three big 3's, and we missed some foul shots down the stretch."

After the game, with friends and family consoling teary-eyed Pocatello players, Morton thought about whether he and his teammates could have done anything better to walk away with a championship.

"I don't know. I think that was the best game we played all year," he said. "Maybe we could have gotten off to a better start."

Skyview opened the game with a 7-0 run. But Pocatello battled back and midway through the second took the lead.

The Indians led most of the remainder of the game. The Hawks tied the game three times, but the Indians (14-15) pulled away each time. Pocatello was just never able to put Skyview away for good, and with seconds left in the game, Hawks guard Terrell Rowe hit a 3-pointer to put his team up 51-49.

"They are a quality ball club," Ralphs said of Skyview. "They didn't go undefeated on the season without good reason."

Morton wasn't through yet, however, and his jumper at the buzzer sent the game into overtime knotted 51-51.

Skyview (26-0) jumped out to a three-point lead in the extra period and never gave it up. A final shot by Pocatello guard Michael Decker hit the rim and bounced to fellow guard Ryan Pearson out beyond the arc.

"I thought my shot was in at the end of the game," said Decker, who finished with 14 points on the night. "We played as good as we could."

But there was still one more shot. Pearson scooped up the ball from off the floor and put up a shot at the buzzer that would have won the game if it drained, but it deflected off the rim.

"There has to be a winner and a loser," Ralphs said. "Even that final shot looked like it was going in."