Hartnell College Athletics – Bailey Cotter (11), the daughter of the legendary Geno Cotter, will feature for Hartnell College in Wednesday night’s playoff game at College of the Redwoods.

By Ray Hamill — The Cotter name is synonymous with the game of basketball here on the North Coast, and it will be front and center once again on Wednesday night.

Former South Fork Cub and College of the Redwoods player, Gene “Geno” Cotter, founded Basketball Jones Hoop Camps back in 1996 and the organization has nurtured the love of the sport for countless young players over the past three decades.

And that has continued long after his tragic passing in a car accident 10 years ago at the age of 44, with the Basketball Jones Hoop Camps now an annual event at multiple locations here in Humboldt County and well beyond.

But Cotter’s legacy goes well beyond that.

On Wednesday night, his daughter Bailey Cotter will be here on the North Coast playing for the Hartnell College women’s team, when the Panthers travel to play College of the Redwoods in the first round of the state playoffs.

Tip-off is set for 5 p.m.

Bailey, who wears the same No. 11 as her father used to, is a sophomore guard for the Panthers and has been one of her team’s most influential players this winter.

The Hollister native, who has coached at some of the Basketball Jones Hoop Camps, has started 18 games for Hartnell this season and is averaging 8.9 points a game, as well as 5.8 rebounds and 4.1 assists.

According to the Hartnell Athletics website, Bailey “delivered a true ‘big dawg’ performance” in a recent 70-66 win over Mission on Sophomore Night.

The sophomore finished with 14 points, while “battling through adversity and refusing to back down. 

“Her toughness set the tone and earned her game-changing recognition on a night meant to celebrate the sophomores.”

The 2024 Hollister High graduate is in her second year with the Panthers and will be looking to extend her JC career in what should be a competitive showdown at CR on Wednesday.

Redwoods (16-12) is seeded No. 12 in the NorCal bracket, while Hartnell is No. 21 after tying San Jose for the best record in the Coast-South Conference with a record of 7-1 (17-10 overall).

Bailey and the Panthers have won six of their last seven games and will carry plenty of momentum into the postseason.

The Basketball Jones camps stress fundamentals, selflessness and the team concept, and they are high energy and hosted in the spirit of how Geno played the game and the passion he brought to the court.

According to the Basketball Jones Hoop Camps website, Geno started the camps “to share his love and passion for the game with young athletes throughout Northern California,” and they are “built around making basketball fun and accessible.”

This year, the camps will visit Miranda, Fortuna and Arcata.