Check out our VirginiaPreps.com One-on-One ZOOM conversation with Western Branch Head Basketball Coach Paul Hall following his team's 37-33 from-behind victory over Grassfield at Indian River High School for the Chesapeake City League Championship on June 2, 2021.
Hall, who came to Western Branch after a long tenure as an assistant at Nansemond River, is 114-48 overall in seven seasons at the helm of the Bruins. That includes three trips to the VHSL Class 6 State Tournament Final.
Due to COVID-19 concerns, Chesapeake Public Schools elected not to participate in winter sports. That kept Western Branch from being able to compete for a VHSL State Championship. However, CPS decided to run a shortened six-game regular season league of schools from within the city, beginning in May and concluding the first week of June with a tournament to decide the Champion.
Both the Western Branch boys and girls teams won Championships in the City League. The league featured two 20-minute halves for games, as opposed to the normal four 8-minute periods teams are accustomed to in High School Basketball across Virginia.
For Hall's Bruins, they were led by the 1-2 punch of Bobby Johnson (19 points) and Cam Edmonds (16 points). They helped them erase an eight-point first half deficit to knot the score at 17-all at intermission, then close on a 20-7 spurt after falling behind by nine points in the second half.
Johnson and Edmonds, proved clutch at the free-throw line, combining to make 19-of-21 while the Grizzlies shot just 40% (4-of-10) there. Those two along with fellow senior Ty Harrell, provided steady veteran leadership.
Other contributions for Western Branch were provided from Kylin Manns, Jayson Vaughan, Jahzari Priester, JaShaun Fraizer and Quinton Dowell, among others for a squad that featured nine new players on the varsity roster. Even with all the new faces, Western Branch managed to go a perfect 8-0 in the Chesapeake City League.
Hall discusses the experience from the league, the highs and lows from the past year, plus the outlook for the squad as they gear up for the 2021-22 campaign where they are slated to have a full 22-game regular season.
