Submitted photos – The Del Norte players and coaches celebrate their tournament championship in Yreka.

The Del Norte Warriors enjoyed a statement early-season win in the championship game at the Yreka tournament on Saturday afternoon.

The Warriors made it three wins in three tournament games with a 59-55 victory over Eureka in overtime.

Junior Justin Cushmann hit a big-time 3-pointer late in regulation to force the overtime period and was named tournament MVP.

“It was an outstanding team win,” Del Norte head coach Cris Rice said. “We played hard and we weathered the storm. That was a big win.”

Cushmann finished with a game-high 23 points and also pulled down seven rebounds, while Damian Escalera added 16 points and seven assists, and Markus Parras added 12 points and six assists.

Escalera and Ty Blue were both also named to the all-tournament team for Del Norte.

Parras, Sawyer Fry, Kanyon Starkey and Rek Alameda all played outstanding defense, according to the coach, as the Warriors improved to 4-1.

The victory also avenged a loss to Eureka in last year’s Yreka tournament championship game.

“I’m proud of the boys,” Rice said. “And you’ve got to give credit to Eureka. They’re tough. (Head coach) Jimmy (Rodgers) has got his kids playing hard. They’re going to be very tough this year.”

The loss for the Loggers was their first of the year, as they dropped to 4-1.

Submitted photo

“It was tight throughout,” Eureka assistant coach Andrew DeHart said. “Del Norte played their style of basketball, heavy defensive pressure and they shot the ball from deep.

“Just a lot of credit needs to go to Del Norte. Coach Rice is a great competitor.”

Ryder Mitchell had a good game for the Loggers and finished with a team-high 16 points, while Xavier De La Rosa Alcantara added 14 points and Owen Hiscox chipped in eight points.

“Ryder was phenomenal on the boards,” Dehart added. “He’s a physical kid, and just a lot of other guys played well too.”

Point guard Kyle Giacone continued to impress at both ends of the court and turned in a gutsy performance, returning to the game after suffering an injury.

“He really fought through the injury and played some valuable minutes down the stretch,” DeHart said of the standout sophomore. “We’re really proud of the way a lot of our guys played.”