Photos by Ray Hamill/HumboldtSports.com

By Ray Hamill — The Panthers will get the rematch they wanted.

On Wednesday night, McKinleyville High School defeated St. Bernard’s 57-47 in the Dick Niclai tournament semifinals at College of the Redwoods to set up a Friday night date with the Arcata Tigers for the tournament championship.

The win was their ninth in their last 11 games, but both of those losses have come against Arcata in the Big 5, so the Panthers will be eager for a rematch on the biggest stage of the year in local sports and in front of a packed house at Lumberjack Arena.

On Wednesday, they started the stronger of the two teams and led 13-3 barely four minutes into the game.

The two schools battled neck and neck for the remainder of the night, but try as they may there was no way back for the Little 4 champs after that.

“We came into the game knowing we really had to respond better to potential runs they were going to make,” McKinleyville head coach Chris Davis said. “Our team responded really well to each small run they went on, especially in the third quarter when it could have really gotten tight, and we stayed composed and made some nice plays to hold them off.”

The game was back and forth for the rest of the opening half and the Big 5 school carried a 10-point lead into the break (31-21).

But the Crusaders started the second half the stronger of the two teams and cut the deficit to five on a couple of occasions in the third quarter.

However, a pair of Neil Moon 3-pointers late in the period saw the Panthers stretch their advantage back out to double digits and they never allowed the Crusaders come close again.

“Despite our best efforts we couldn’t break through,” St. Bernard’s assistant coach Pat Shanahan said. “Credit to coach Chris Davis and Mack, they played some good defense and when we cut into their lead and built some momentum they would hit a key shot and keep us at bay.”

Bode Douglass was instrumental in that and scored a game-high 18 points in the win, while Moon continued his impressive Niclai run with 14 points, just two days after he scored 25 in a win over Eureka.

The Panthers would not be denied snd came into the game knowing what they had to do to get the better of the Crusaders for the second time in three weeks.

“We knew we had to step up our physicality tonight, and even though as a coach you always want more, our guys stepped up to the challenge tonight,” Davis said. “There were some moments of adversity we faced and we held our mental toughness. Very proud how our team held up through the game.”

Nick Maher also had eight points in the win and Cole Armstrong chipped in six points.

Carson Costa had a big night for a St. Bernard’s team that does not have a single senior on the roster this winter.

The junior forward scored a team-high 18 points and also had five assists, while teammate Liam Dyer added 12 points and four assists despite taking a knock and battling through the injury.

Garrett Shanahan also had a big night and finished with a double-double, scoring 10 points and pulling down 12 rebounds.

“Carson knocked down some big-time shots for us,” Pat Shanahan said. “Liam played hard and through adversity. Garrett was aggressive on both ends of the court.”

Prince Latimer also inspired his teammates with his energetic play.

“Prince’s heart shined bright through his passionate play all night” the coach added of the junior who had six points.

Tyler Hinrichs also had his usual big night defensively and “played strong down low,” according to the coach, while Trenten Hagler “sparked us as well with a gritty effort in the fourth.”

Davis also praised the performance of the Crusaders. 

“I have been impressed with Gildea and his team all season and they showed why tonight — tough mentally and physically and players with high basketball IQ,” he said. “With almost no seniors they’re going to be dangerous for a while. I’m excited to see how they respond in sections”

The win gives the Panthers the chance to play for their fourth Dick Niclai tournament title, with the most recent coming in a thrilling overtime win over Arcata two years ago.

Friday’s game is set for 7:30 p.m. and will be preceded by the girls championship game at 6.

The Crusaders will now turn their attention toward next week’s North Coast Section playoffs.

“Tough to lose such a big-time game,” Pat Shanahan said. “Good luck to (McKinleyville) and Arcata Friday, and we’ll start prepping for playoffs tomorrow.”