CHARLESTON — For the third straight season, Tucker County finds itself in the Class A state championship game.

The second-seeded Mountain Lions (21-2) rallied from a five-point deficit in the fourth quarter to get past PVC rival and third-seed East Hardy, 42-36, Friday night in semifinal action inside the Charleston Coliseum & Convention Center.

Tucker County will square off against top-seed Tug Valley (24-2) at 7:30 p.m. today in a rematch of last year’s title game, won by the Panthers, 35-32, in dramatic fashion.

Tug Valley advanced with a 71-63 win over No. 4 Greater Beckley Christian in Friday’s other semifinal as Ashton Davis scored 21 points and Braydun Ferris chipped in 20.

The teams met twice during the regular season, each winning at home, including an overtime thriller in Hambleton.

In Friday’s contest, the Mountain Lions trailed 34-29 midway through the final quarter before Ethan Cummings hit a 3-pointer to cut the deficit to 34-32.

A jumper by the Cougars’ Jordan Teets was answered by Sam Marks’ inside basket. All-stater Trevan Bonner then took over for Tucker County.

The senior scored five straight points, including converting a traditional three-point play, to give the Mountain Lions the lead for good, at 39-36, with :41 left to play.

It was the first lead of the second half for Tucker County.

Cummings added a pair of free throws and Bonner another with 19 ticks remaining to seal the deal.

The Mountain Lions trailed 9-7 after the opening quarter but drew even at 10-10 on Mikey Mitchell’s trey with 6:41 left in the first half.

Tucker County took a 14-11 advantage on a pair of free throws from Bonner, but the Cougars answered with two from the charity stripe by Gideon Good with just one tick left in the quarter to cut the deficit to one at halftime.

The squads went back-and-forth in the third, with the game deadlocked at 14-14 and 19-19.

Layups from Teets and Evan Hamilton then treated East Hardy to a 23-19 advantage.

However, Bonner’s basket with five seconds left in the frame brought the Mountain Lions to within 26-24 after three quarters.

The Cougars, who finished the season with a 20-6 record — three of those losses at the hands of the Mountain Lions — were led by Hamilton and Teets with 12 points each.

Price added eight points, Gideon had 10 rebounds and two blocked shots and Hamilton added five steals.

Bonner finished with 16 points, three assists and three steals for Tucker County.

Cummings came off the bench to contribute a key 14 points, including four 3-pointers. Mitchell had a team-high eight rebounds.