Tarpey Makes Early Pick
Terry Tarpey put an end to his recruitment on Tuesday, making a verbal commitment to the College of William and Mary.
“It seemed like the perfect fit both athletically and academically,” Tarpey told the New England Recruiting Report. “The Colonial [Athletic Association] is a great conference and William & Mary is a great academic school.”
As for the timing of his decision, Tarpey acknowledged that it was probably earlier than many expected but said he saw no reason to wait.
“I wanted to be able to have fun this summer with my AAU teammates,” he said, “and even if other schools had jumped in I still think this would have been the best fit athletically and academically.”
Tarpey was one of the breakout performers of last summer’s live period, making a name for himself early in July and continuing to attract more suitors throughout the course of the month.
“I think all of my hard work leading up to that point finally paid off,” Tarpey reflected on Tuesday. “I anticipated interest from college coaches but not having these types of options.”
The talented junior took his first unofficial visits last August, traveling to William & Mary, Siena, Vermont, Stony Brook, Yale, and Princeton.
He took another set of unofficial visits in recent weeks, taking a look at Davidson, Lafayette, and Lehigh before making the decision to commit to William & Mary.
With his recruitment now out of the way, Tarpey is free to enjoy the summer with his AAU teammates and focus on leading Fairfield Prep to a state championship next season, having brought the team all the way to the state finals this year.
Tarpey is an athletic six-foot-four swingman who produces on both ends of the court. A slashing scorer, versatile defender, and terrific perimeter rebounder, he was one of the most improved players in Connecticut this year, nearly doubling his scoring average to 18 points per game while also grabbing 10 rebounds and 5 assists.
Terry Tarpey