Unbeaten Willard hosts Margaretta in huge Bay game

WILLARD — The usual suspects are back. Since the Willard boys basketball team started its impressive run since the 2018-19 season, few teams have given it fits. But one particular opponent has arguably stood out more so than others, which only adds to the intrigue of Thursday's big Sandusky Bay Conference Bay Division game. The unbeaten Crimson Flashes (8-0, 3-0) entertain Margaretta (6-1, 3-0) at about 7:30 p.m. inside Robert L. Haas Gymnasium. Since the start of that 2018-19 season, Willard is 107-32 overall, which includes a 42-13 mark in SBC Bay Division play. The Flashes have won at least a share of four of the past five league titles in the Bay Division. But within that league record is a 6-4 record head-to-head against the Polar Bears. In the previous five seasons, the two teams have played three games decided by a combined five points, while seven of the 10 games were single-digit margins. Further, the cumulative score of those games is 615-584 in favor of the Flashes, an average score of 62-58. In that same stretch, Margaretta is 80-42 overall and 32-20 in the Bay. Now comes Thursday, with the winner getting an early grab of sole possession of first place. "We have three players who have played in games like this, which helps, but you really go in with a mindset of it's another game in January," Willard head coach Joe Bedingfield said. "We don't want to get too high or too low depending on the outcome. "We just want to win each day and play our best basketball at the end of the year." Those three returning seniors — Max Dawson, Cam Robinson and Isaac Robinson — are again the main cogs behind Willard's 8-0 start. Bedingfield said their ability to bring along Levi Schag and Jackson Beamer is a big reason for the fast start. "And we are getting some added depth this year with Aiden Slone and Masyn Johnson, which has been helpful in certain weeks," he said. Dawson — an NCAA Division II Ashland University recruit — has done nothing to hurt his place as one of the top scorers in Willard's steep history. He entered Thursday averaging 25.5 points per game, along with 4.5 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.5 steals per contest. Unofficially, Dawson has 1,423 career points. Cam Robinson is averaging 17.8 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.6 steals per game. Jackson Beamer adds 7.9 points and four rebounds per game, and Isaac Robinson averages 6.1 points, 8.8 rebounds and four assists per contest. After a 46-43 loss at Bellevue (7-1) in its season opener, Margaretta has won six straight games by 21-to-41 points. Julian Washington paces the Polar Bears with 19.1 points, six rebounds, 2.9 assists and 2.3 steals per game. Judah Keller is next with 13.2 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 2.5 steals per game. Also for Margaretta, Gage Bodey adds 7.6 points, three rebounds and 3.1 assists per game, and Tate Bailey is scoring 8.1 points per game. "Margaretta is a very young talented team that I could see making a long run in the tournament," Bedingfield said. "Their kids play a lot of basketball, and play very hard at both ends of the floor. "We will have to take care of the basketball, not allow them to extend possessions on the offensive glass — and find some balance on the offensive end of the floor." Bedingfield is also looking for his team to limit unforced turnovers in the matchup. "We also need to rebound the ball on both ends of the floor to extend our possessions and limit how many opportunities we give them," he said. "You also want to play loose and enjoy it. You can't make shots being tight, and at this point in the year, there is no reason to be tight." The Flashes are coming off a 69-49 win over Elyria Open Door Christian on Dec. 30 in the Jingle Bell Jam showcase at Cedar Point's Sports Center. Dawson scored a career-high 41 in the victory. But up next are the Polar Bears, followed by a visit to Tiffin Columbian (6-2) on Saturday and a non-league game vs. Sandusky (6-1) next Tuesday. The stretch will test the Flashes, who also still have non-league tests against Bellevue, Lucas (7-1) and Shelby (6-2) along with a rematch against the Polar Bears in Castalia. "It will be a difficult stretch, but we need to find out how good we can be or things we still need to work on," Bedingfield said. "Those teams will present quite a few challenges for us, but that is why you play the games. "We need to challenge our kids as much as possible since we have been in Division II for two years now," he added. "Our January and February will be challenging, but hopefully we have prepared our kids well enough to be successful, and hopefully they are up for the challenge."