Jett Washington takes over down the stretch, leads Bishop Gorman basketball to state title

Bishop Gorman Gaels wing Jett Washington (2) shoots against Mohave Rattlers forward Isaiah Trotter (10) during the second half of the Class 5A boys championship basketball game at the Cox Pavilion Friday, Feb. 21, 2025. Photo by Steve Marcus

Jett Washington has a knack for making big plays for Bishop Gorman High.

Take the state championship football game last fall against Arbor View when Washington — a junior safety and one of the nation’s top college recruits — had an interception in the endzone to swing the game’s momentum on the way to a blowout win.

And take Friday night, when Washington — now playing for the Gaels basketball team — went off for 21 points in a 71-59 victory over Mojave for a second consecutive state title.

The game was tied at 35-all a few minutes into the third quarter and Mojave had plenty of momentum after erasing a six-point halftime deficit. 

That’s when Washington rifled off nine straight points, using his football frame in muscling to the basket for easy points and then draining a nothing-but-net 3-pointer to extend the Gorman advantage to double digits.

Washington said the third quarter dominance was a more impressive championship-game feat, but only because he returned the football interception about 70 yards — and short of a touchdown.

“When the games get close you have to make big plays, and I stepped up,” said Washington, the nephew of basketball legend Kobe Bryant.

It was Gorman coaching great Grant Rice’s 15th overall championship. Earlier in the playoffs he hit a milestone of 600 wins.

Along the way he’s coached NBA players like CJ Watson, Shabazz Muhammad, Stephen Zimmerman and Zach Collins. He’s also coached a NFL player in Ronnie Stanley of the Baltimore Ravens.

He also coached elite two-sport star Johnathan Loyd, who went on to become the winningest player in Oregon basketball history and later was on Oregon football’s Rose Bowl champion team.

You can argue, however, that Washington is a generational talent — a bluechip football recruit who could also play Division I basketball. And, if he played basketball year-round, the sky’s the limit.

“His strength and athleticism in getting to the rim is what separated him tonight,” Rice said. 

Gorman finished with a 24-5 record — but it could have been better because Washington missed 10 games while nursing an injury. With him in the lineup, the Gaels lost just once — and it was to a nationally-ranked Roosevelt of California.

“Jett had that sprained ankle for about a month and missed about 10 games,” Rice said. “I think it made us better. The other guys had to step up.”

Washington wasn’t the only Gorman player who had a strong game.

Sophomore guard Ty Johnson, who was voted by coaches as the city’s the top defender, helped keep Mojave guard CJ Shaw from taking over the game. Shaw scored 19 points — but Johnson, Rice says, deserves credit for limiting the damage.

“CJ is a competitor. He never quit, even when he got (into foul trouble),” Rice said.

Sophomore Ilan Nikolov buried a 3-pointer in the final minutes to thwart one last Mojave comeback, center Chris Baudreau had at least three blocks in defending the rim and point guard Nick Jefferson had a pair of perfectly placed Alley-oop passes for dunks.

Jefferson, the senior captain, said he took great pride in helping Gorman repeat. He took ever greater pride in setting the table for future graduating classes with the Gaels’ program loaded with talented freshmen and sophomores.

“I am happy I got a chance to set the young guys up to get four in a row,” Jefferson said. “It’s not about me. It’s about the coaches, the players, and everyone in the program.”