Derik Queen performed like a king Thursday night time.
When the freshman heart leads his No. 25 Maryland Terrapins right into a Large Ten Convention recreation in opposition to Iowa in Faculty Park, Md., on Sunday, he figures to be on prime of the Hawkeyes’ scouting report.
Queen is coming off a monster efficiency in an 83-75 win at Nebraska, pounding the Cornhuskers for a game-high 24 factors and 11 rebounds. No freshman this yr in Division I has extra 20-10 performances than Queen’s 5, an inventory that features nationwide Participant of the Yr candidate Cooper Flagg of Duke and Ace Bailey of Rutgers.
“There have undoubtedly been some video games the place I struggled loads and my numbers and performances weren’t nice,” Queen mentioned. “However now since my coaches and my teammates are getting on me and telling me that I am higher than this after which me simply watching movie of myself, simply preserve constructing and (study) what errors to not make once more.”
Queen (15.9 factors, 8.6 rebounds per recreation) and Julian Reese (13.7 ppg, 9.1 rpg) give the Terrapins (19-6, 9-5 Large Ten) a robust frontcourt. It would not damage to have Ja’Kobi Gillespie (14.3 ppg, 4.7 assists), Rodney Rice (13.2 ppg) and Selton Miguel (11.8 ppg) bombing away on the perimeter to maintain opponents trustworthy.
Gillespie and Miguel every hit 3 of 5 3-point makes an attempt at Nebraska.
“When you might have Selton Miguel, Rodney Rice and Ja’Kobi Gillespie on the market taking pictures threes, it makes your life loads simpler,” Maryland coach Kevin Willard mentioned.
That quintet presently includes one in every of faculty basketball’s best lineups. All 5 have reached double-figure scoring in the identical recreation 4 instances, together with Thursday night time. Solely Kentucky can boast extra, with all 5 starters doing it 5 instances.
Whereas the Terrapins are rolling towards an NCAA Event berth, the Hawkeyes (14-10, 5-8) are scrapping simply to make the Large Ten tourney. An 84-73 win at Rutgers on Wednesday, simply Iowa’s second triumph in eight video games, was an enormous step in the correct route.
It was the Hawkeyes’ first win with out main scorer Owen Freeman (16.7 ppg), out for the season after finger surgical procedure. Iowa did it behind a mixed 46 factors from Josh Dix and Payton Sandfort, and the Hawkeyes outscored the Scarlet Knights 51-31 within the second half.
“We had been locked in on each offense and protection in that second half,” Iowa coach Fran McCaffery mentioned. “I am actually pleased with that. Particularly once you’re on the street in opposition to a very good crew, you need to keep linked, and we did.”
Even with out Freeman, the Hawkeyes have sufficient firepower to beat anybody. They enter the weekend eleventh in Division I in scoring at 84.5 ppg, though they rely extra on exterior taking pictures with Sandfort (16.1 ppg), Dix (14.4) and Drew Thelwell (10.5).
It was not identified if Thelwell, who sat out at Rutgers because of an ankle harm, would be capable of return on Sunday. Though McCaffery mentioned Thelwell was nearer to returning, the coach additionally mentioned that Brock Harding, who began and supply 13 factors and 7 assists in opposition to the Scarlet Knights, could be on the ground loads no matter whether or not Thelwell returns.
Maryland owns a 9-8 lead within the all-time sequence, together with two victories final season. The Sunday contest is the groups’ solely scheduled assembly this season.
–Discipline Degree Media
