Colonials Mourn Loss of Yinka Dare, 31
1/12/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 12, 2004
The George Washington University community and the GW Department of Athletics is deeply saddened by the sudden death of one of its greatest men's basketball players, Yinka Dare. Below is an article that appeared in the Jan. 12 edition of The Washington Post.
By Kathy Orton
Special to The Washington Post
Monday, January 12, 2004; Page D07
Former George Washington basketball standout Yinka Dare, who died Friday morning after collapsing in his home in Englewood, N.J., was remembered as a "gentle giant" by the people who knew him. Dare was 31.
"He was a nice, kind, considerate person," former GW coach Mike Jarvis said. "He was just a good person. I don't remember him ever having a bad word to say about anybody."
According to Adama Kah, Dare's best friend and former college roommate, Dare, a 7-foot-1, 270-pound center from Nigeria, had returned from a morning run and was making breakfast when he collapsed. Dare's younger brother, Michael, performed CPR until paramedics arrived.
Kah said Dare died from a heart attack.
"He's had a history of arrhythmia going back to his days at George Washington University," Kah said. "He's also had very bad asthma. . . . It looks like the combination of that and, the word we get from the medical examiner, it looks like he had an enlarged heart."
According to Kah, Dare was treated on a couple of occasions with electrical stimulation to restore his heart to its normal rhythm.
"He was never told not to play basketball to my knowledge," Kah said. "I'm pretty sure if they did [tell him not to play] he would not."
Robert Chernak, GW's senior vice president for student and academic support services, recalled that Dare was examined by a cardiologist at GW after experiencing discomfort during his sophomore season.
"He was diagnosed with some type of heart murmur," Chernak said. "I can't remember all the details. He checked into the hospital to see what was going on. It was some type of murmur."
Chernak said that the doctor cleared Dare to play, and he did not miss a game or practice because of the incident.
GW experienced its greatest basketball achievement with Dare. As a freshman in 1992-93, he led the Colonials to the NCAA tournament round of 16 -- the farthest they had advanced in the postseason -- where they lost, 72-64, to Michigan. His sophomore season, GW lost in the NCAA tournament's second round to Connecticut, 75-63. He left school after two seasons and was a first-round draft pick (14th overall) by the New Jersey Nets in 1994.
"He led to the resurrection of a program that had been in a slumber for four decades," Chernak said. "He helped us turn things around. He was a dominant college player."
Former teammate Sonni Holland, who was a senior Dare's freshman year and was his host for his recruiting visit to GW, recalled his intimidating presence on the court.
"He was chiseled like a Greek god," Holland said. "I think a lot of times opponents were at a disadvantage when he walked into the gym and took off his sweat jacket because he was such an imposing figure."
Although he was very athletic, Dare lacked basketball fundamentals. He had played the sport only a few years before arriving at GW. As a result, he tended to be a better defensive than offensive player. He averaged 12.2 points and 10.3 rebounds his freshman season and 15.4 points and 10.3 rebounds his sophomore season. He surprised everyone when he decided to leave school early for the pros.
After an unproductive and short-lived stint in the NBA, Dare bounced around the CBA, USBL and NBDL. He never achieved the success he had at GW.
Dare is most remembered for being kind and considerate to those he knew.
Dare is survived by his former wife, Rachel, his father, Gabriel, his mother, Joan, his sisters, Christina and Tobi, and his brother, Michael. The funeral is Wednesday at Barrett Funeral Home in Tenafly, N.J.
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Attention alumni, fans and former teammates:
Visitation hours at Barrett Funeral Home will be Wednesday, Jan. 14 from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. There will be a memorial service at 8 p.m. Donations to the America Heart Association have been requested by the Dare family.
The address of Barrett Funeral Home is 148 Dean Drive, Tenafly, NJ 07670. Phone number is 201-568-8043.
Directions to the funeral home can be found at the following website: www.barrettfuneralhome.net