Humboldt Teams Head Into Big NCS Basketball Weekend With Playoff Hopes

Ferndale Wildcats will get the opportunity to play for a second straight North Coast Section championship and a third in five years after a dominating 54-27 win in their Division-6 semifinal, and seven Humboldt-Del Norte League teams remain alive as the NCS quarterfinals arrive.

"The dates and times for this weekend’s North Coast Section basketball playoff games involving local teams have been finalized." Both Ferndale and St. Bernard’s earned first-round byes; St. Bernard’s is scheduled to play Friday, while Ferndale will take the court Saturday, setting a compact local slate that will decide section titles and shape state-playoff qualifications.

St. Bernard’s girls continue to carry momentum into the weekend. St. Bernard’s, a school of less than 200 students, hosted a pair of Division-1 schools in the North Coast Section playoffs on Friday night, and the Crusaders acquitted themselves well. The small-school program advanced into the NCS semifinals and will play its next game Friday after earning a first-round bye.

The Loggers have become the H-DNL boys’ standard-bearer this postseason. The last remaining H-DNL boys team in the North Coast Section basketball playoffs will look to make some history this weekend; on Tuesday, the Loggers held on late to beat Redwood Christian and advanced to an NCS final, leaving the program poised for a rare deep run.

Eureka’s boys program also advanced to NCS semifinals, reinforcing the county’s presence across boys and girls brackets; the NCS roundup specifically listed "SB girls, Eureka boys advance to NCS semifinals," keeping Humboldt County represented at the penultimate round.

College of the Redwoods women opened their playoff campaign in a tight contest. "A competitive and back-and-forth game got away from the College of the Redwoods women in their playoff opener in basketball on Wednesday night. The CR women welcomed Hartnell ..." captures the close nature of the matchup, which slipped from CR’s grasp late in the game.

Not all local programs survived. Del Norte’s season concluded with a 49-41 loss to Jesse M. Bethel, eliminating one H‑DNL entry from the postseason and narrowing the field locally as quarterfinal pairings firm up.

As we head into the weekend quarterfinals, seven H-DNL teams remain in the chase for a North Coast Section championship in basketball. Local outcomes this weekend will not only determine NCS crowns in multiple divisions but also clarify which Humboldt County programs advance toward possible state playoff berths, with finalized dates and times now in place for the decisive games.