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By Ray Hamill — The smallest school in the Big 5 packs quite a punch when it comes to boys basketball.

This year, the McKinleyville Panthers claimed a first-ever outright Big 5 title at the varsity level, while also taking home a second straight Dick Niclai Tournament trophy and a third in four years.

But if you think that’s the whole story, think again.

The school’s JV and freshmen teams have been every bit as impressive, and arguably even more so.

In addition to the varsity conference title, the Panthers also won both the JV and freshmen league titles, the latter sharing the crown with rival Arcata.

The three Mack boys teams were a combined 21-3 in league play this winter, with a particularly impressive winter for the JVs.

Head coach Brandon Fike’s team have been consistently setting the standard on the local basketball courts over the past few years and the Panthers are showing no signs of slowing down.

They were undefeated in conference play this year, claiming a second Big 5 title in three years.

In fact, the McKinleyville JVs have surpassed the 20-win mark in each of the past three seasons, going a combined 68-8 in that time.

They would be three-time defending conference champs but for two losses by a combined three points to undefeated Del Norte in 2024/25, which were the team’s only losses that entire season.

This year, however, they got their redemption, going 8-0 in league play and winning their Big 5 games by an average margin of almost 16 points.

And that success was founded at one end of the court in particular.

“We typically start on the defensive end,” Fike said. “I like to rely on our defense to get our offense going. I really like to emphasize defense early in the year, and then everything else falls into place.”

It’s a strategy that has worked well for the Panthers in recent years.

In addition to the conference title, the McKinleyville JVs also won two of the three tournaments they competed in, taking home trophies from Eureka and Enterprise, the latter of which was one of the highlights of the campaign.

The Panthers posted big wins over University Prep, Eureka and the host school on the way to the title.

“The Enterprise tournament is always such a hard tournament to win,” Fike said. “There are big schools over there, so that was very exciting. It was a good moment winning that tournament.”

As you would expect from a championship team, several of the players enjoyed big winters, including the talented sophomore tandem of Jake Brunner and Talon Turner.

“Talon and Jake just really led the team,” Fike said. “Talon kind of did everything for us. He rebounds and he plays great defense. He’s a silent leader for us. And Jake was our offensive scorer.

“Those two together were a great tandem.”

Fellow team captain Becker Rine, another sophomore, also had a big impact on this year’s team and played a variety of roles, along with Turner, with Brunner playing point guard and shooting guard.

Two freshmen also made some big contributions, with Tyson Marshall and Dillon Vargas enjoying big debut campaigns with the program.

Fike described the young duo as “vital pieces of the team” and says both showed a lot of growth over the course of the season.

“Tyson Marshall is a heck of an athlete,” Fike said. “Him and Becker were probably our two best defenders on the team. Both are super quick and active.”

Vargas was the team’s sixth man and consistently gave his teammates a spark off the bench.

This year’s roster also included sophomores Trevor Marsh, Van Dalmolen, Grady Harmon, Kahlil Metters, Ryker Wilson, Zachary Buttonow, Isaac Rouse and Tate Saso, as well as freshmen Bryson Phillips and Jeriah Spannus.

Fike also praised the contributions of assistant coaches Mark Sundberg and Ronnie Roubidoux, as well as a former head coach who gave him his opportunity a few years back.

“I want to give a big shout out to Sonny Tripp,” Fike said of the former Panthers program head, who sadly passed away earlier this year and whose contributions to McKinleyville basketball were remembered all season long. “Sonny brought us on, me and Ronnie. I’m only here because of Sonny.”