BARRE, Vt. — When Jason Gray took over as Thetford Academy’s boys basketball coach nine years ago, he had a simple message for a program that hadn’t reached the playoff quarterfinals during its four previous seasons.

“I told the players that moving the ball and moving yourself is how we’re going to win,” said Gray, a 2009 Thetford graduate who later played at Vermont State-Lyndon. “This year’s group has really bought into that. We don’t have any knock-down shooters, but we have 10 guys who are athletes and can be in the right place at the right time.”

Thetford is back in the right place for this time of year after beating Winooski, 62-46, on Thursday during a VPA Division III semifinal at the Barre Auditorium. Dillon Vance led the second-seeded Panthers with 18 points. Dempsey McGovern had 13 points and Liam Murphy added 10 points as their team improved to 20-3.

Thetford, the division’s defending champion, faces fifth-seeded Hazen in Saturday’s final at the Aud. An all-Upper Valley title game had been anticipated by many fans, but Hazen pulled off a 62-50 upset of previously undefeated White River Valley to set up a rematch of last year’s championship clash, won by the Panthers, 57-53.

Hazen won the 2022 division title by beating Winooski, then fell to the Spartans at the same stage a year later. The Wildcats knocked Thetford out in the 2023 semifinals.

Thursday’s contest had little drama. Thetford led, 16-4, after an opening quarter in which it held the Spartans to 2-of-11 shooting from the field, including 0-of-6 from 3-point range. Winooski, which missed its first five field-goal attempts, also committed five of its 11 turnovers during that first stanza.

“We knew they were fast, so we had to play good defense and keep them controlled,” said Gray, whose team led, 29-16, at halftime and 49-30 after three quarters. “They had that really fast first step, so we had to keep them contained and keep them out of the paint, and hopefully their shots weren’t falling.”

Sixth-seeded Winooski (15-8) was tentative and unproductive against Thetford’s defensive intensity. The Spartans either didn’t pass enough or, when they did, failed to put teammates into high-percentage scoring opportunities. Meanwhile, the Panthers put on a passing clinic.

“For us it’s ball movement, and you can’t get stagnant on offense,” Gray said. “In our offense, if you’re standing, you’re disrupting it. You have to pass and cut and keep your eyes open all the time so the ball can be passed back.”

“We’re not a 3-point shooting team, but when we get to the lane, we’re good at layups and other shots there.”

Notes: Gray, a baseball and soccer player at VSU-Lyndon, was inducted into that school’s athletic hall of fame in 2020. … Thetford has won three basketball titles during the past six seasons. … The Panthers’ student section sang “Happy Birthday” to senior Spencer Durkee as the team exited the court following the game. … Thetford beat White River Valley, 6-0, to win the 2023 Division III baseball title. Panthers hoopsters Dempsey McGovern and Liam Brooks were part of that squad. The Wildcats earned revenge with an 8-6 semifinal victory at Thetford last spring.

Tris Wykes can be reached at ctwykes@aol.com.