Last-second 3-pointer from Tyler Tejada pushes Towson past UNC Wilmington
By Jake Shindel, men’s basketball reporter, and Waindim Tufoin, contributing writer
Tyler Tejada hit one of the biggest shots of his career on Saturday against UNC Wilmington. Twice.
Forward Charles Thomspon set a pick at the top of the arc with six seconds left in the game. Guard Dylan Williamson drove down the left side of the paint, drawing the defense in. He looked to his right and passed the ball to Tejada wide open in the corner. Tejada nailed the 3-point shot with .4 seconds left.
“It’s up there, definitely top two,” Tejada said of the big moment.
Tejada made two 3-pointers in the game’s final two minutes to give Towson the lead, one in the last second. His corner 3-pointer gave Towson (8-7, 1-1 CAA) a 67-64 win over UNCW (9-5, 0-2 CAA).
“He made good plays, he’s a good player,” Skerry said. “We have to continue to find ways to get him on the floor more.”
The win gave Towson its first conference win of the season after losing at Monmouth on Thursday and improved their record at home to 6-0. UNC Wilmington dropped its third-straight game as the Seahawks remain winless in conference play after losing at Drexel on Thursday. Towson has won eight of the last nine meetings between the two teams.
Both teams struggled shooting from the floor to start the game, with Towson starting 1-for-8 from the field. Towson and UNCW improved as the half progressed, with the Seahawks finishing at 48.1% shooting from the field and the Tigers finishing at 46.4%.
Towson held a 35-33 lead at halftime after guard Christian May hit a jump shot to beat the buzzer. Tarke led Towson with 10 points at the break, followed closely by Thompson with nine. It was a welcomed sight for the duo, who scored more in the first half on Saturday than during the team’s last time out against Monmouth, a 51-43 loss on Thursday.
White led all scorers with 19 points at halftime off an efficient 7-for-11 shooting. He finished the game with 33 points on 13-for-22 shooting.
The Tigers utilized a balanced scoring attack, with Tarke’s 15 points leading the team and four players scoring in double figures.
Tarke’s scoring output is a new season high for the Coppin State transfer.
“He’s doing a good job,” Skerry said. “He came into this game with eight assists to one turnover. He had one tonight, but he made some big shots; he’s rounding into rhythm. He’s a key piece for us.”.
Tarke played in his fifth game of the season after waiting and eventually getting a waiver approved by the NCAA.
The second half was back and forth as the teams went over six minutes without being separated by more than two points.
Towson reached a seven-point lead, 57-50, with less than six minutes remaining. UNCW hit a 3-pointer, and on Towson’s next possession, an inadvertent whistle during a loose ball gave UNCW (with the possession arrow) the ball again. The Seahawks hit another 3-pointer to cut the deficit to one point.
UNCW and Towson traded points back and forth across the game’s last five minutes, but the late game heroics from Tejada gave Towson the win.
Jake Shindel
Jake Shindel has been a member of The Towerlight since the fall of 2020. He has served as a writer, associate editor, Editor-in-Chief, Sports Editor, and now Deputy Sports Editor. He has also held internships with The Daily Record and Baltimore Fishbowl, as well as PressBox Online, the Baltimore Blast, and Towson Sports Network.
