Tarke Brothers Propel Coppin State to First Win of the Season

By: Aaron Robinson

Nendah Tarke scored the game’s first basket with a transition layup less than a minute into the game, and he ended it with two clutch free throws with six seconds remaining in regulation to seal an 85-80 victory for the Coppin State Eagles over the Spartans of The University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

Nendah Tarke skies for a dunk during the second half of a victory against UNCG. (Courtesy of Coppin Athletics).

His older brother, Anthony, handled everything in between. The brothers combined for 53 points, 14 rebounds, eight assists, and five blocks on the night.

Nendah, a 6-foot-4 inch freshman guard from Gaithersburg, Maryland, had tallied just 14 points in four games heading into Thursday night’s home opener against UNCG.

But on this night the younger of the Tarke tandem poured in a career- high 20 points, to go along with four rebounds, one steal and one block.

His older brother Anthony, a 6-foot-6 inch graduate transfer from the University of Texas at El Paso, was the best player on the floor to put it plainly.

The older Tarke stuffed the stat sheet, also netting a career high with 33 points, to go with 10 rebounds, eight assists, four steals and four blocks, becoming the first player since the 2010-2011 season season to post such a stat line, per college basketball reference.

Anthony Tarke slams home a dunk for two of his career high 33 points against UNCG. (Photo courtesy of Coppin Athletics).

On a night where Coppin State was without two starters, in senior point guard Dejuan Clayton, a preseason first-team All-MEAC selection, as well as freshman forward Kenan Sarvan, the Eagles were in dire need of some reinforcements.

The Tarke’s more than answered the bell.

“The Tarke’s are amazing, guys, two athletic freaks,” Coppin State head coach Juan Dixon said after the game with a smile on his face. “Very physical athletes, better young men."

Nendah and Anthony stuffed the stat sheet, but one player who had an enormous impact on Coppin State’s success was freshman point guard, Dwaine Jones Jr.

Jones started in place of Clayton and in 30 minutes of game action, facing full court pressure all night, the Neptune, New Jersey native dished out four assists to just one turnover, and really controlled the pace of the game for the Eagles.

Dwaine Jones handled the UNCG pressure all night on route to three points, four assists and just one turnover in his first career start. (Courtesy of Coppin Athletics).

“We expected our other senior to be here to run the team, unfortunately he is not here, and Dwaine had to step in, and I thought he did a solid job with the minutes that he played,” Dixon Said.

In the two games that Clayton has missed, Jones has played 54 minutes and dished out 10 assists to just three turnovers. If Clayton is to continue to miss time, the Eagles will be relying heavily on Jones to run the show.

Coppin State came into this contest losers of four straight, and in need of a win to begin to turn the tides. This became evident from the moment the ball was tipped, and continued all the way through the final buzzer.

“I wanted this game more than anybody in this arena,” Dixon said. “But I wanted our players to want it more than me, and they did, they finished the game.”

Kyle Cardaci Knocks down a corner triple in the first half where he scored nine points, all from beyond the 3pt. line. (Courtesy of Coppin Athletics).

The Eagles also got huge lifts from reserves Kyle Cardaci and Chereef Knox.

Cardaci, a 6-foot- 2 sophomore guard, came out hot, nailing three triples in the first half, finishing the game with a season-high nine points.

Knox, a 6-foot-6 transfer from St Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, did most of his damage in the second half, scoring nine of his season-high 11 points in the final frame.

“Those guys can make shots, and we need those guys to be able to stretch the floor and open it up for (Anthony Tarke), open it up for Koby,” Dixon said of Knox and Cardaci.

Chereef Knox steps back and nails a huge three during the 2nd half of Thursday night's victory. (Courtesy of Coppin Athletics).

The aforementioned Koby Thomas, another preseason 1st-team All-MEAC selection, picked up three fouls early in the first half and struggled to find his rhythm throughout the evening.

Thomas finished with seven points, seven rebounds, and two assists in 28 minutes on the night.

Thomas’s only two made field goals came on a highlight reel transition dunk, and a triple to cross the thousand point plateau for his career.

Koby Thomas skies past defenders for a highlight reel dunk in the second half of Thursday night's victory over UNCG. (Courtesy of Coppin Athletics).

Though his numbers might not have been overwhelming, Thomas’s impact was felt on the floor.

“He didn’t have crazy stats when it came to points, but his all around performance tonight was something that we needed,” Dixon Said. “If he plays like that and moves the ball like that, along with everyone else... we will continue to have success like this.”

The victory is the first of the season for Coppin State and snaps a four game skid to start the year. The Eagles will be back in the Physical Education Complex on Sunday afternoon when they host UMBC at 3pm from West Baltimore.