Derik Queen gave the Maryland Terrapins men’s basketball program something to cheer about on Sunday night when his buzzer-beating bank shot won their March Madness game against the Colorado State Rams.
Queen’s fadeaway jumper gave the Terrapins the 72-71 win as time expired. It’s the first time the Terrapins have made it to the Sweet 16 since 2016 and the first time under head coach Kevin Willard.
The drive to the left side of the floor and the subsequent pro hop gave Queen the best opportunity to put the ball in the basket. However, the step in the lane became a source of controversy on social media.
College basketball fans believed Queen got away with a walk.
Queen had 17 points in the win.
“When coach drew up the play, he trusted me and my teammates trusted me,” Queen said. “I was a little bit nervous, but I was due for one, and I had to, had to make this.”
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Willard said Queen wanted the ball and he drew up a play for him.
“Sometimes, you can draw something up for a guy that maybe doesn’t want the basketball,” Willard said. “So once he said that, it was a pretty simple decision, and I could see everyone’s body language kind of perk up a little bit, because he was so confident that he wanted the basketball.
“It was just a simple zipper: Give him the basketball and let him go to work.”
No. 4 Maryland will now play No.1 Florida in the West Regional semifinals. The game is set for Thursday night, tentatively at 7:39 p.m. ET.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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