Jahmari Johnson leads Gateway Charter to wild comeback playoff wins

Johnson scored 27 in the fourth quarter and OT to leadGriffins past FBA; VIDEO here

FORT MYERS, FLORIDA – Jahmari Johnson was spent.

Physically and emotionally drained, the Gateway Charter senior leaned against lockers in a back hallway, trying to process what happened Thursday night in his school's gym.

Johnson had just led Gateway Charter's basketball team to a rousing come-from-behind victory in the Class 3A-Region 3 quarterfinals. TheGriffins' 76-67 win over First Baptist Academy in overtime was their first state tournament victory in program history.

"I don't even know what to say," Johnson said. "I'm just... I'm just... Hyped."

Johnson was at a loss for words because there was a lot to take in.

Not only had he scored 38 points, but he guided a 17-point comeback and even forced overtime with his last-second 3-pointer (video below).

It gets even better. 

Gateway Charter (23-5) trailed by 10 points with 70 seconds to play, and the Griffins were down eight with 20 seconds left.

After trailing 20-8 to end the first quarter and scoring just 18 points in the first half, Gateway Charter piled up a preposterous 45 points in the fourth quarter and overtime (12 minutes of game time).

Johnson scored 27 of those points in the fourth and OT, none bigger than his 3-pointer as time expired in regulation to tie the game 58-58.

"I just didn't want our season to end," Johnson said. "I'm a senior, so this is it. Emotion just kicked in.

"This was the third game in three weeks between district rivals. First Baptist won at Gateway Charter in the regular season, then the Griffins won two weeks later to claim their first district championship.

Gateway Charter players and fans enjoyed the aftermath of their come-from-behind overtime playoff win over First Baptist Academy / Photo by Adam Fisher

Early on Thursday, it looked like FBA (18-8) was on its way to another playoff win. The Lions have made the FHSAA regionals 11 of the past 12seasons and are 9-1 in first round games the past 10 years.

Gateway Charter, on the other hand, was making its first trip to regionals ever.

The Lions raced out to a 20-8 lead. They led by 17 points in the second quarter and again early in the third. But after the big first period, FBA scored just 47 points in the final 28 minutes of action.

Gateway Charter slowly chipped away. The Griffins were down 56-46 with 1:10 to go. Then they got big 3-pointers from Johnson and Arroningtn Nau, who came off the bench to hit three 3s in the fourth quarter.

With 9.2 seconds left and FBA up 57-55, Lions senior Latrell Davis went to the free throw line. He made the first, but FBA was called for a violation before he even attempted the second. A Lions player moved out of position after Davis was handed the ball, giving GatewayCharter possession down 58-55.

Johnson took the inbounds pass from the far baseline, drove the length of the court, pump-faked his defender, then drained the game-tying 3-pointer. It also was his third triple of the final period.

Gateway Charter senior Jahmari Johnson had a night to remember. He scored 38 points, which included a game-tying three-pointer at the end of regulation to pull the Griffins even. Remarkably, Johnson scored 27 of his points in the fourth quarter and overtime / Photo by Adam Fisher

"Amazing," Griffins coach R.J. Jones said about Johnson's game. "He's played with a chip on his shoulder all year. ... He's always found away to keep chipping away, keep earning respect. At the end of year, it's nice to see that coming out of him."

Davis, a senior, led FBA with 21 points. Fellow senior Yohandry Ortiz and freshman Jayden Petit each scored 17 for the Lions.