In literature, it's called foreshadowing: a moment or scene that tips off what is to come.

In the case of Granger's 41-24 semifinal loss to Burbank, the foreshadowing was, literally, the tip-off.

The Spartans' Janae Klarich, a 5-foot-4 sophomore, went out for the opening tip against Burbank's Tiffany Idler, who, at 5-10, is three inches taller than anyone in the Granger lineup. When the ball went up, Klarich simply backed away and Idler easily tipped it to a teammate.

The Spartans were conceding the tip, as they have all tournament. But it seemed also a concession that the long-armed, long-legged Coyotes were going to arrive first at seemingly every rebound, every loose ball and every Granger pass not whipped with enough muscle.

The Coyotes did all that, and also sank six of their 11 3-pointers to boot, to earn their 9 p.m. championship date with top-ranked Lynden Christian.

"They're just a really good team," Klarich said of the Coyotes (23-3), who had a 13-point lead midway through the second quarter and never relinquished it. "We usually shoot well, and we didn't tonight. Some of it could have been their defense, because they were really good, but the shots didn't fall today."

"Defense was the key," said Burbank coach John Muchlinski. "We got after it."

For the Coyotes, the trip to the school's first title game ended three years of tournament frustration.

"It's amazing," said senior guard Kara Rucker, whose 12 points led Burbank. "Three of us (Rucker, Ashley Winsor and Brianna Smith) have been here all four years. The other seniors have been here for three years. Our freshman year, we had an incredible team, and we got upset right away, and I think we wondered if we'd ever get here again.

"And here we are."

But not without some bumps along the road. The Coyotes lost first-rounders each of the last two years.

The difference this year?

Experience with all those seniors, four of whom start, and some good old luck of the draw.

"We got in a really good bracket," Winsor said. "And we're just really a close-bonded team. We know what each other does."

And what they did on Friday was rebound — building a 34-22 advantage — hit the long shot and play that defense. The Spartans, meanwhile, shot just 23 percent from the field (just 1-for-11 on 3-pointers) and will now have to face Lakeside for third place today at 5 p.m.

"You know, we held them to 41 points," Granger coach Andy Affholter said. "Defensively, I thought we played pretty good basketball. We gave them some second shots that we shouldn't have, but other than that we played OK. They were just a half-step quicker than us."

The final score was nearly identical to the Coyotes' 43-26 win over Granger two weeks ago in district play, so the result wasn't too surprising.

"That doesn't really take away the sting," Klarich said. "But if we could come back and take third, that'd be a great thing. Finishing on a winning note at state would be a great thing."

Affholter, whose team has only one senior, knows his team has already racked up the school's winningest girls basketball season (22-5) and can do no worse than tie its best state-tourney finish.

"I'll tell you what," he said. "If you'd have told me on Nov. 6 that we'd be in the third-sixth game, I'd have said I'll take that."