Young Panthers Clinch Big 5 Title, Second Straight Dick Niclai Trophy

McKinleyville High’s Young Panthers finished the 2025-26 boys basketball season by claiming an outright Big 5 conference title and adding a second straight Dick Niclai Tournament trophy, with senior guard Bode Douglass a steady scoring presence after returning from a long-term offseason injury.

At McKinleyville High, a 49-42 victory over Del Norte delivered a key conference result. Douglass and Henry Turner each scored 12 points in that home win; Neil Moon and Gaelen Creighton added eight points apiece. Coach Chris Davis said, “Bode got in a nice groove tonight from beyond the arc and was really the only one who was for us tonight, despite the open looks we felt good about.” The game also marked Douglass’s comeback stretch after the offseason injury that sidelined him earlier this winter.

McKinleyville also posted decisive road results during the season. The Panthers recorded a 61-52 win at Del Norte in a separate meeting and a 53-52 come-from-behind victory at Fortuna that featured a 14-0 second-half run credited to a player identified only as Mack in game coverage. A photo caption from the Fortuna game noted Douglass finished with 15 points in that contest. Those consecutive road wins pushed McKinleyville to 3-0 in conference play at that point and left the Panthers emerging as a favorite in Big Five competition.

Coach Davis framed the team’s identity around ball movement and shared scoring as the season unfolded. “the guys know we can be a very good passing team and an unselfish team, but we’re missing that extra pass at the moment. We get it sometimes, but right now there’s a big focus on hitting that one extra pass. We’ve got great shooters on this team, and just making sure we feel as excited for making our own basket as getting that assist,” he said, citing a tactical emphasis heading into the stretch. Davis is in his third year leading the program and collected his second Big 5 crown in that span.

Roster availability and role play factored into McKinleyville’s run. Patrick Wilson missed at least one game while on a trip to prospect for his next academic destination; Gaelen Creighton, Henry Turner and Douglass were singled out by Davis for strong second-half rebounding in the Fortuna comeback. A person identified as Rice also anticipated a raucous Del Norte crowd, saying, “It’s going to be loud in our gym, and its going to be a hostile environment.”

With the Big 5 title and back-to-back Dick Niclai Tournament trophies, McKinleyville closes the 2025-26 campaign with tangible hardware and a roster that blends veteran leadership from seniors like Douglass with complementary contributors such as Turner, Creighton and Moon. The program will carry those results and Davis’s emphasis on extra passing into postseason play.