Photos by Ray Hamill/HumboldtSports.com – The St. Bernard’s Crusaders.

The Crusaders are finding their groove at an opportune time of the season.

And so too are their fans.

Playing in front of a packed and enthusiastic home crowd for the second straight night on Saturday, the St. Bernard’s boys won a non-conference basketball game against crosstown rival Eureka 62-51.

With the win, which was their ninth in 10 games, the SB boys improved to 11-3 on the season.

And the fans played their part.

“For the second night in a row our SB students, families, alumni and fans showed up and supported these guys,” said St. Bernard’s assistant coach Pat Shanahan, whose team also defeated Ferndale on Friday night. “The gym was absolutely rocking.”

So too were the players.

“We played our most complete game thus far,” Shanahan added. “As a team we came together.”

The loss was the second straight for the Loggers, who dropped to 11-4.

Several players stood out for the Crusaders, including the ever-dangerous Liam Dyer who is enjoying an outstanding season.

The dynamic junior guard finished with a game-high 30 points, to go with five rebounds, two blocks and two steals.

“Liam continued to play extremely well,” Shanahan said. “He battled through some foul trouble in the first half and was a playmaker both inside and outside.”

Eureka assistant coach Andrew DeHart echoed the sentiment.

“He was as advertised,” he said of Dyer. “He could shoot the ball. He kind of hurt us from deep and then (Garrett) Shanahan down low did a great job on the boards and with the put back.”

Will Mooney scored a team-high 17 points for the Loggers, while Elijah Estrada also continued to impress and added 11 points and six rebounds.

Dyer wasn’t the only standout for the home team.

Garrett Shanahan added 13 points and nine rebounds, while Prince Latimer dished out a team-high five assists and displayed his tremendous speed.

“Garrett played strong and battled all night. His leadership and motor helps us all,” Pat Shanahan said. “Prince flew around the court. His speed is unlike anyone else’s on our team and he makes us better with this passing and unselfishness.”

Carson Costa, who finished with seven points and five rebounds, and Tyler Hinrichs, who added seven points, both also impressed for the home team, as did Luke Brunton.

“Carson had one of his best all-around games of this year. He had an impact on all facets of the game,” said the coach, who added “Luke Brunton moved the ball well and played some great defense.”

Hinrichs gave the Crusaders a big boost with a key 3-pointer late in the game, while teammate Trenten Hagler hit a couple of clutch free throws in the fourth quarter to help keep the visitors at bay.

Standout sophomore Ryder Mitchell also impressed for the Eureka boys and finished with 10 points and nine rebounds.

So too did sophomore Xavier De La Rosa.

“He came off fetch bench in the second half and was tasked with guarding Dyer and we felt like he did a good job with his minutes and on the rebounding end as well, which was an area that we needed some help,” DeHart said of De La Rosa.

The Loggers made the home team battle all night.

“Eureka is a dynamic and experienced team,” Pat Shanahan said. “We had a lead and it was never enough as they can score in bunches.”

Overall, however, it was another good team performance for the Crusaders, who, according to assistant coach Troy Vizenor, “are trusting the process, and it’s starting to show.”

The Eureka coach also praised the SB players’ effort.

“Just a lot of credit needs to go to St. Bernard’s, their coaching staff — coach Shanahan, coach Gildea — they did a great job of getting their guys open and getting them ready to play,” DeHart said. “They came out on fire shooting the ball, but also their effort was really great.”

The Loggers will try to bounce back when they travel to play at Del Norte in Big 5 action on Wednesday.

“We’re really looking forward to continuing to move on to the next league game on Wednesday at Del Norte, which we know will be a tough one as well,” DeHart said.

Next up for the Crusaders is a key Little 4 showdown at home against South Fork on Thursday night.