Foundation of success: Willard boys continue winning ways

WILLARD — When asked to reflect, Joe Bedingfield didn't hesitate. The head coach of the Willard boys basketball team gave his viewpoint of a game from five weeks ago, when the Crimson Flashes fell, 52-41, to visiting Oak Harbor in an SBC Bay Division game. The result has only gotten bigger over time. Willard (10-4, 5-1) visits the Rockets (6-6, 5-1) on Friday, with sole possession of first place — with just three SBC Bay games remaining — on the line. "They came in and outplayed and outcoached us in every aspect," Bedingfield said. "It woke our team up, and hopefully we can adjust this time." The loss early last month inside Robert L. Haas Gymnasium was just the third game of the season for the Flashes. Four nights later, they rallied from a 17-point third quarter deficit in a 59-54 loss at Ontario to fall to 2-3. But in the four weeks since, Willard has gone 8-1 in its last nine games, with the lone setback on Jan. 16 against a quality Tiffin Columbian (10-2) team. "The biggest reason for (the turnaround) is defining roles and having guys buy into the roles," Bedingfield said. "Our team has improved with sharing, defending and rebounding the basketball in the last 10 games." In the first meeting with the Rockets, the Flashes held a slim 20-19 halftime lead. But the deep shooting of Oak Harbor — which made 11 total 3-pointers — did Willard in over the last 16 minutes. The Rockets average just 47.3 points per game, but more than half those points (25.3 per game) come from their three-point shooting. Oak Harbor is 93-of-213 shooting (43.7 percent) from two, but is also 98-of-307 (31.9 percent) shooting from the three-point line. That breaks down to an average of 8-of-26 shooting from beyond the arc per contest. "Communication defensively will have to be a key," Bedingfield said of defending the three-point line. "And limiting them to one shot, which on long rebounds can be difficult. But hopefully our kids are up for the challenge." Oak Harbor also averages 22.7 rebounds and 8.6 assists per game. The Rockets are shooting 83-of-119 (69.7 percent) from the free-throw line. Blake Booker is the top player for the Rockets. The 5-foot-10 senior guard averages 19.1 points, 4.5 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.3 steals per game. Junior wing TJ Hallett (6-2) adds 10.9 points per game, while senior guard Brenen Ish (5-8) averages 6.8 points and 2.3 assists per contest. Friday's matchup also comes one year after the two teams played two thrillers just one week apart. Willard's Terry Baldridge missed a late 3 as Oak Harbor held on for a 49-48 win at home, only for Baldridge to then beat them at the buzzer, 44-43, a week later in Willard. The end result was also a co-league championship. "They have very good guards, and Booker is one of the better players in our league," Bedingfield said. "We will have to do a good job of defending the line and attacking the basket." Willard enters Friday's matchup averaging 63.1 points and allowing 54.4 points per game. The Flashes also average 31.2 rebounds and 13.3 assists per game. Willard is shooting 242-of-449 (53.9 percent) on two-point field goals and 67-of-239 (28 percent) from the three-point line, but just 61.4 percent (129-of-210) at the foul line. Senior guard Trey Paxton is averaging 17.1 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.7 steals per game to lead Willard. Senior Myles Pinkston averages 13.4 points, 7.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists and two steals per game, while senior Austin Adelman adds 11.8 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.5 assists per contest. Freshman Max Dawson adds 6.6 points per game for the Flashes. Willard entered the season needing to replace 39 points and 18 rebounds per game from Balridge and Cooper Parrott, who were also both All-Ohioans in Division III. "Our seniors are special, but not just the kids like Myles, Trey, Austin or Micah (Dawson)," Bedingfield said. "Kids like Trey Mock, Jake Cok and Cooper Wiers — they play a huge role Monday through Thursday preparing our team. It's a rarity in 2021 that kids still understand the importance of the team being bigger than self. "But those kids show up, work hard and never complain because they want to leave their year on the wall in our gym — and that's what it is all about," he added. "Trey has adjusted nicely to his role. He's had games with 29 or 30 points, but other games with nine points and nine assists." Bedingfield also cited the rotation of younger players such as Max Dawson and junior Cole Weiss. "They have allowed us to be a little deeper than what maybe we were in the beginning part of the season," he said. Perhaps the biggest achievement to date this season for the Flashes has been their ability to extend the success of the past two seasons. Over the last two seasons, Willard won two league championships, two sectional titles and one district title. The Flashes are 53-11 since the start of the 2018-19 season — a stretch not seen in Willard since the Flashes went 60-13 over the 2004-06 seasons. "We have played a lot of quality opponents, and I think our kids have done a nice job of developing our own identity and creating their own legacy here at Willard," Bedingfield said. "They're not relying on the past, which is what we want to do each season."