VAN BUREN -- Thayer and Neelyville will meet again for the MSHSAA Class 2 District 3 girls basketball championship.
Two state-ranked teams -- one unbeaten, the other a six-time defending champion -- have been marching toward a postseason rematch all season.
Neelyville scored the first 15 points Tuesday and overcame a rough shooting performance to beat Alton 65-33 in a semifinal before Thayer knocked off host Van Buren 66-55 to reach the final.
Both schools will also play for the boys title, making for a championship doubleheader. The girls tipoff at 6 p.m. followed by the boys Thursday.
"It's going to be pretty exciting," said Neelyville senior J'Kayla Fowler, whose brother Curtis starts for the Tigers.
While the Neelyville boys are looking to win the program's second title ever and first since 1984, the girls reached the final for a ninth straight year.
The Tigers (21-4), ranked No. 5 in the state coaches poll, face a Thayer team that is ranked No. 2 and has not lost since the district final last season when Neelyville made a late comeback for a 60-57 win.
"I'm sure it's been on her mind and it's been on ours since last year at this time," Thayer coach Cecil Meyer said of his counterpart Becky Hale.
The Bobcats (25-0) have won by an average of 33.5 points per game with only one, a 7-point win over Gainesville, decided by single digits.
Van Buren (20-6) never overcame Thayer's 11-2 start Thursday night, getting within six points in the first half on three occasions.
The Tigers had an even more impressive start, forcing six turnovers and scoring 15 straight points 2 minutes, 21 seconds against the Comets (18-9). Neelyville scored 20 points off 15 Alton turnovers in the first half alone.
"I think we surprised them a little bit with our defense," Hale said.
Jentri Worley scored a game-high 20, Fowler added 14 points, eight rebounds and four steals. Autumn Dodd had 10 points and five steals to lead Neelyville. Worley and Tori Harlow each sank three 3-pointers while Dodd added a pair.
The Tigers shot 36.4 percent from the field but finished plus-16 on rebounds as Mackenzie Hobbs led with nine and Rhegan Tutor added eight.
"That's what we really work on is rebounding," Fowler said. "That's what we've got to do to win, rebound."
Neelyville led 24-4 after one quarter and led by 30 midway through the second, taking a 43-14 lead into halftime. Fowler had as many points at the break as Alton, scoring 12 in the opening quarter.
The Comets shot 26.3 percent from the field and turned the ball over 22 times.
Meyer said his Bobcats will have to handle Neelyville's pressure to control the tempo in the final.
Thayer forced 21 turnovers against Van Buren but finished just plus-6 in points off turnovers Tuesday.
Caitlin Jones scored 22 points and had five steals along with Julie Stone, who scored all but two of her 14 points in the second half. April Earls chipped in 10 points off the bench while Taylor Madden added nine.
Jalynn Morgan led the Lady Dawgs with 17 points, all in the second half, while senior Jenny Morey added 12 and Hannah Zimmer chipped in 10.
"We just didn't get to the basket the first half at all," Van Buren coach Randal Jenkins said. "We didn't get anything at all to the basket.
"Give them credit for that. They're not 25-0 now for nothing."
Thayer scored seven straight points midway through the opening quarter to build an 11-2 lead. The Bobcats forced five turnovers during the stretch.
Rosalee Cipponeri's steal of an inbound pass led to a transition basket for Morey to get Van Buren within 14-8 by the end of the quarter. The Lady Dawgs missed a chance to get closer but got within six points early in the second before Meghan King answered with a 3-pointer.
Thayer took a 35-25 lead into halftime and led by as much as 14 in the third quarter.
Zimmer and Morgan sank 3-pointers a minute apart to pull Van Buren within 39-31 but Stone answered with a drive to the basket, finishing with a turn-around jumper. Thayer took a 47-36 lead into the fourth quarter and never let Van Buren get closer than eight.
Half of Van Buren's six losses were to Thayer. The Lady Dawgs had won 10 straight since an 84-69 loss at Neelyville.
"I'd trade at lot of (teams) places but that's the luck of the draw," Jenkins said. "We won 20 games in that district so you can't take anything away from these girls."
It was the final game for Morey, who held Stone to one first-half basket.
"I really hate it for Jenny," Jenkins said. "We're going to miss the stinking tar out of her. She's our defensive stopper."