After a summer competing internationally for France, 2016 William & Mary graduate Terry Tarpey inked his first professional contract with ASC Denain Voltaire in the French Pro B league. Along with fellow 2016 graduate Sean Sheldon, it marks the 10th-straight season in which a recent Tribe men’s basketball graduate signed a professional contract. In total, 14 W&M players under head coach Tony Shaver have signed and played professionally.
Tarpey, who was born in Poissy, France, just outside of Paris, competed for the French A National Team during July. He helped The Blues to the 2016 Stankovic Continental Cup Championship on July 9 in China. After going 3-0 in pool play, France downed Argentina, 70-57, in the title game, and Tarpey tallied five points, three rebounds, three assists, a blocked shot and a steal. He turned in a pair of nice games Sino-European Men’s Basketball Championship. Tarpey finished with eight points, four rebounds, four steals and three assists in a win over Germany on July 15, before enjoying his best game with France, scoring 12 points to go with five rebounds, three assists and a steal vs. Montenegro. Unfortunately, the Blues lost in the title game to the host’s Olympic Team, China. In total, Tarpey played in nine games from the French A National Team in July, helping the squad to a 7-2 record.
ASC Denain Voltaire competes in the second division of France and is based in Denain, located in the Nord department in northern France. The organization placed fourth in Pro B, while being Leaders Cup Semifinalists and Playoff Finalists in 2015. Tarpey will look to help Denain rebound from a 2016 campaign that saw the team place 13th in Pro B at 15-19.
During his Tribe tenure, Tarpey helped lead the Green and Gold to three-straight 20-win seasons, starting 93 of 94 games over his final three years. He became the fifth player in Colonial Athletic Association history to be named the league defensive player of the year on two occasions, taking home the award in 2015 and 2016. Tarpey was a two-time Second-Team All-CAA and NABC All-District 10 selection. He became the first player in W&M history to record a triple double with 18 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists against James Madison in 2015. Tarpey capped his career ranked third in W&M history in career steals (171) and blocked shots (119), while ranking fifth in career rebounds (807) and games played (124). He averaged double figures in his final two campaigns with the Tribe, scoring 946 career points. He scored at an 11.8 points-per-game clip as a junior, before finishing at 10.4 per contest in 2016. Tarpey led the CAA in steals each of the last two seasons and finished among the league’s top rebounders both years as well at 8.4 per game in 2015 and 7.8 in 2016.
Tarpey joins Adam Hess ’04, Zeb Cope ’04, Adam Payton ’07, Laimis Kisielius ’08, Alex Smith ’09, David Schneider ’10, Danny Sumner ’10, Marcus Kitts ’11, Quinn McDowell ’12, Matt Rum ’13, Brandon Britt ’14, Marcus Thornton ’15 and Sheldon as players who signed professional contracts during Shaver’s tenure. He is the fifth Tribe player to play professionally in France and the second to play for ASC Denain Voltaire. Cope played four seasons in France from 2006-10, Kitts competed during three campaigns, including one with Denain in 2012-13, and Payton spent two years in France. Hess was the other Tribe player to play in France, competing during the 2007-08 season.
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