Darren Washington has played just one half of a high school basketball season in Washtenaw County, but the Father Gabriel Richard center has committed to stick around after his senior season.

The 6-foot-9, 225-pound Washington gave Eastern Michigan University basketball coach Charles E. Ramsey a verbal commitment to join his 2011 recruiting class earlier this week.

Washington said he had narrowed his options to two favorites: EMU and Cleveland State. When Cleveland State withdrew its scholarship offer, the decision was made.

“Originally I wanted to have my decision made before the school year started, but I was able to get it out of the way now and have nothing to worry about,” Washington said. “My mom really wanted me to stay close to home so she can see the majority of the games, and my dad is five minutes away. Everybody is pretty happy.”

Following his sophomore year at Detroit Southeastern, Washington moved in with his father, Les Washington, in Belleville and transferred to Gabriel Richard. After sitting out the first half of the season according to MHSAA transfer rules, Washington averaged 8.8 points, 6.5 rebounds and 1.3 blocked shots in 12 games for the Fighting Irish.

Washington says he believes he’ll be a strong rebounder and defender in the post for the Eagles and that he’ll continue to work on his offensive productivity at the college level.

Gabriel Richard coach Pete Schoch says Washington is short-changing himself.

“You have to love that answer out of a kid. Too many kids think they’re going to come in and set the world on fire,” Schoch said. “What they’re getting from Darren is an excellent defender that can run the floor and has good fundamental skills in the post. He’s going to get better and he’s going to score points. They’re not just getting a defender.

“Darren’s best basketball is certainly ahead of him. He’s still growing, still getting taller, which is part of the reason it’s been hard to get weight on him. He works hard to improve and plays hard on both ends. I think people will be surprised how effective he’ll be at the next level.”

Les Washington, a retired Detroit police officer, is a Western Michigan University graduate. But he says he already has a green ‘E’ flag hanging inside his home. He took a photo of himself in front of the flag and emailed it to Ramsey.

Les and his wife, Lisa, once had a light-hearted rivalry. She has undergraduate and graduate degrees from Eastern Michigan.

“But I’ll be wearing green and white next winter,” Les Washington said with a laugh. “The bottom line is, it’s like they wrote me a big check. I don’t have to pay for tuition.”

Washington cannot sign a letter of intent until the NCAA’s early signing period, Nov. 10-17. Until he signs, Eastern Michigan coaches cannot comment on him.