The Maryland Terrapins advanced to the Sweet 16 on Sunday in what has been the most thrilling game of the tournament so far – a buzzer-beating bank shot from freshman sensation and hometown kid Derik Queen sent the Terps past a tremendous Colorado State Rams team. After the dramatic victory, head coach Kevin Willard revealed what Queen told him in the huddle right before the iconic shot.
Maryland Terrapins Still Dancing After Dramatic Buzzer-Beater
When the 4-seed Maryland Terrapins tipped off their game against the 12-seed Colorado State Rams in Seattle, they were probably hoping for a much more straightforward victory. Instead, CSU led for most of the game and looked to have secured victory when guard Jalen Lake made a go-ahead three-pointer from the right wing with around 6 seconds left in the game.
JALEN LAKE IN HIS 124TH GAME 🤯
Colorado State leads! pic.twitter.com/jGWeVoNAoG
— College Basketball Content (@CBBcontent) March 24, 2025
As the crowd, the majority of which was favoring Colorado State, erupted, Maryland quickly inbounded the ball and advanced it into the frontcourt, where they called timeout with under 4 seconds left. With the score 71-70, head coach Kevin Willard had the task of drawing up one final play to give his team a shot at the game-winning basket.
His team has several big-time players that would be more than capable of creating the necessary magic. All five starters, which have recently been operating under the nickname the “Crab Five” (an ode to Michigan’s iconic Fab Five and the state of Maryland’s iconic seafood), had played excellent games so far. Julian Reese had a 15-point, 11-rebound double-double. Ja’Kobi Gillespie had 11 points and 7 assists. Selton Miguel and Rodney Rice had both hit three triples in the game.
Yet, as we all know, it was freshman sensation Derik Queen who got the ball, and made an all-time moment happen in front of 17,000 fans standing on their feet in the Pacific Northwest. His bank shot gave Maryland the win.
Maryland Coach Kevin Willard Reveals What Derik Queen Said in the Huddle
After the game, Coach Willard was asked “what did you call?” on the final play, and the coach admitted that it was not so much his call as it was Queen’s. The freshman had spoken up and had his mind set on getting the ball for the last shot.
“I asked everybody, I said ‘who wants the ball?’ and he said ‘give me the mf ball!’ And I said ‘alright, you’re getting it!'”
In reality, there was no specific play called. While many coaches would have run a certain screen or catch-and-shoot sequence, Willard was comfortable with giving Queen the ball and letting him go to work. The freshman is not the best perimeter shooter, particularly off the dribble, but with around 4 seconds to work with, he had enough time to drive the ball towards the basket and make something happen.
While Willard didn’t draw up anything specific, he did have some general instructions for Queen before he sent the players back onto the court:
“I said ‘don’t mess around, go after it and do it.'”
Queen did exactly that.
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