Carlik Jones
Marty Gordon
At least one former Radford University basketball player will be in the spotlight during this summer’s Olympics.
Carlik Jones, who played both at RU and Louisville, before signing as a free agent with the NBA’s Dalla Mavericks. He played in the NBA G-League before sticking for several months with the Chicago Bulls. He was the Most Valuable Player of the G-League during the 2022-2023 season.
Following his release, a former RU teammate reached out and asked if he wanted to play for the South Sudan Nationals team.
In the 2023 FIBA World Cup, Jones averaged over 20 points and 10 assists per game in leading South Sudan to their first ever Olympic Basketball appearance.
Copeland 247Sports rising star
Virginia Tech’s Defensive lineman Kemari Copeland is emerging as one of the ACC’s brightest stars for the upcoming season, following his transfer from Iowa Western Community College. Hailed as one of the Hokies’ most impressive newcomers, the junior earned a coveted spot on 247Sports’ list of ACC Spring Football’s Rising Stars. Rivals also recognized his potential, ranking him as the No. 10 junior college player nationally for the 2024 class, while 247Sports places him at No. 12 among junior college recruits.
Standing at 6-foot-3 and 280 pounds, Copeland had a notable 2023 season, playing in 13 games and recording 38 tackles, including nine tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, a fumble recovery and a pass breakup. The defensive powerhouse’s performance ultimately helped the Reivers claim the NJCAA Division 1 National Championship victory.
The Virginia Beach, Virginia native’s high school career was equally impressive. As a senior at Floyd Kellam, he earned All-Beach District and Beach District Defensive Player of the Year honors, along with All-Tidewater recognition. During his junior year, the defensive lineman tallied 108 tackles, garnering First Team All-Beach and Second Team All-Region accolades.
Following high school, Copeland spent a developmental year in 2022 at Army West Point, where he appeared in seven games and made two tackles. His impressive strength was evident with a 650-pound deadlift, a 675-pound squat, and a 400-pound bench press. At Virginia Tech, he continued to push limits, recently breaking the all-time program squat record with 605 pounds for 10 reps.
Pry lands another big fish
This past week, the Virginia Tech football program continued to add several big fish from the Commonweatlh.
Portsmouth (Va.) I.C. Norcom four-star athlete Matthew Outten has committed to Virginia Tech. He chose the Hokies over Maryland, Penn State and Syracuse.
He is listed as a receiver/athlete in the 2025 cycle and is the 14th commitment for the group. Outten is ranked in Top-5 in the state and 47th in the nation in several scouting circles.
Basketball adds big man
Also, this past week, the Virginia Tech basketball team landed a big man. 6-9 Christian Gurdak says he will bring his talent to Blacksburg. The rising senior at Gonzaga High School (DC) picked Virginia Tech over the Irish, Maryland, Iowa, Clemson and others.
New RU assistant
The Radford University women’s basketball program announced Tuesday morning that Ben Edelburg has joined the team as an assistant coach for the upcoming 2024-25 season.
Edelburg joins the Highlanders after spending last season with the Morehead State women’s basketball program where he served as a graduate assistant. Edelburg also has deep and extensive experience with developmental programs in the basketball coaching scene.
While at Morehead State, Edelburg completed full scouts on multiple conference and nonconference opponents assisting in every scout throughout the season. He also coordinated team travel for all conference games, participated in all recruiting efforts including portal tracking, JUCO, International and high school evaluations while also developing practice plans and skill development sessions.
Prior to his time at Morehead State, Edelburg spent six years in Wisconsin coaching in various areas including assisting in multiple NBA training sessions that included Brad Beal, Jayson Tatum, Joel Embiid, and Zack Lavine. He also ran multiple basketball skill development camps with Pure Sweat Basketball and consulted on multiple off season instruction for multiple state tournament teams.
