Polar Bears want to top Bay

CASTALIA — Jake Leibacher is a bucket. The preseason is a time of finding oneself, of implementing offensive and defensive principles, of figuring out rotations. But for Margaretta, with the league's leading scorer Leibacher back for one more run at it, it's easy to take comfort in at least that fact — no one in the SBC Bay Division will score as much, or as comfortably, as Leibacher. And so the goal of a Bay title that Leibacher and fellow senior Ben Palomo openly discuss have a good place to start. "We all want to put something on the banner up there because the last one was 2004," Leibacher said. "That's gonna motivate us a lot." As a junior, Leibacher averaged 22.5 points per game. He shot 85 percent from the foul line, 69 percent from inside the arc and 34.5 percent from 3-point range. A big guard, Leibacher put in lots of time in the weight room during the offseason while focusing on being a more consistent perimeter shooter. It could all add up to something great. "He's so much quicker than last year," Palomo said. "He's always been quick, but he's even quicker this year." "He's really worked hard in the weight room," Margaretta coach Steve Keller added. "He's really increased his strength level. He's also gained some pounds. That certainly will help him." There's much more to the promise at Margaretta than just Leibacher, though. The Polar Bears return their top four scorers. Palomo put up 10.5 points and 6.8 rebounds per game as a junior. His importance to Margaretta was most evident to Keller this past summer, when Palomo missed some of the offseason activities due to baseball. "We knew when Ben wasn't there," Keller said. "Ben has length. He's a three-year guy. I'm pleased with his improvement. I'm pleased with his growth, his maturity level. Physically he's gotten better. He's gotten a little bit taller. We're expecting Ben to come out and compete really well because Ben always does." Nathan Schaefer and Cameron Sosa both averaged 7 points per game last season and return. Each shot better than 33 percent from outside the arc and snatched more than a steal per game. All the returning talent meant that when Margaretta hit the court for preseason practices, they didn't miss much of a beat. The returners got back on the same page quickly, and that allowed them to start helping the younger guys along. "We're a little rusty, because everyone is at the beginning of the season, but it only took us one practice and our chemistry was already good," Leibacher said. "We're passing the ball well. I think it'll be a good year." That ball movement will be key when opposing teams choose to key on Leibacher, who dropped a school-record 45 points in one game as a junior. But Margaretta is equipped to do just that. The Polar Bears also bring back Gage Bodey and Hayden Wiley, two members of the football team who were part of the rotation last season. In a very small sample size of 5-for-9, Bodey was the best 3-point shooter for Margaretta in 2020-21. "We have so much chemistry between our guys, and we know what each other wants to do," Palomo said. Margaretta's gym should be rocking all winter. The girls team will look to defend their Bay Division crown as the boys team looks to join the championship ways. And with Leibacher leading the way and a strong supporting cast right along with him, Keller's group definitely has a shot. "At the end of the day, we've just gotta keep pushing, keep getting better," Keller said, "and these guys want to do that." Roster No.&emsp;&emsp;Name&emsp;&emsp;Pos.&emsp;&emsp;Ht.&emsp;&emsp;Yr. 1&emsp;&emsp;Gage Bodey&emsp;&emsp;G&emsp;&emsp;6-0&emsp;&emsp;10 3&emsp;&emsp;Cameron Sosa&emsp;&emsp;G&emsp;&emsp;6-1&emsp;&emsp;11 4&emsp;&emsp;Nathan Schaefer&emsp;&emsp;G&emsp;&emsp;5-11&emsp;&emsp;12 5&emsp;&emsp;Austin Dillery&emsp;&emsp;G/F&emsp;&emsp;5-10&emsp;&emsp;11 10&emsp;&emsp;Colson Biehl&emsp;&emsp;G&emsp;&emsp;5-8&emsp;&emsp;11 11&emsp;&emsp;Reese Keegan&emsp;&emsp;F&emsp;&emsp;6-0&emsp;&emsp;11 12&emsp;&emsp;Aldon Gibson&emsp;&emsp;G&emsp;&emsp;5-9&emsp;&emsp;11 20&emsp;&emsp;Jake Leibacher&emsp;&emsp;G&emsp;&emsp;6-1&emsp;&emsp;12 22&emsp;&emsp;Ben Palomo&emsp;&emsp;F&emsp;&emsp;6-2&emsp;&emsp;12 24&emsp;&emsp;Mason Miller&emsp;&emsp;G&emsp;&emsp;5-10&emsp;&emsp;12 34&emsp;&emsp;Hayden Wiley&emsp;&emsp;F/C&emsp;&emsp;6-3&emsp;&emsp;11 40&emsp;&emsp;Evan Miller&emsp;&emsp;F&emsp;&emsp;6-0&emsp;&emsp;11