Ray Hamill./HumboldtSports.com

McKinleyville’s Neil Moon enjoyed a successful return to his old stomping ground on Tuesday night, as the Panthers continued their impressive early season in boys basketball.

Moon, who is in his second year at Mack High after transferring from Hoopa after his sophomore season, led the Panthers to a 78-38 win over the Warriors at Hoopa.

The standout senior guard and team captain, who appears poised for a good final high school campaign, scored a team-high 21 points in the win.

But he was far from the only contributor on a Mack team that has impressed so far this season and improved to 5-1.

“Great team win tonight from the whole roster,” McKinleyville head coach Chris Davis said. “Our defense really propelled our offense towards transition points throughout the night.”

Lucas Jones added 13 points in the win, while Thomas Brown and Patrick Wilson each chipped in nine points.

“Offensively we were able to get good reversals and attack the gaps in their zone to make multiple defenders guard us in order to find open shooters or drop down passes,” Davis added. “I was very happy with how we shared the ball.”

Jones and Gaelen Creighton helped the Panthers to fast start.

Both of them “gave us a great spark early off the bench, which set the tone for the rest of the night,” according to the coach.

No stats were immediately available for the Warriors, who dropped to 4-4 with the loss.

Next up, McKinleyville travels to pay at the Mt. Shasta tournament, which tips off on Thursday. 

The Panthers open against Yreka at 5 p.m.