BALTIMORE — On Sunday night, on the other side of the country, on a bank shot in 3.7 seconds, Derik Queen sent the Maryland Terrapins men's basketball team to the Sweet 16. Queen's game-ending clutch moment is currently the talk of the college sports world, and will quickly cement itself in Maryland basketball lore.
Derik Queen, as he told a reporter minutes after the layup Sunday night, is from Baltimore. As a high school freshman, Queen played on the St. Frances Academy team, coached by Nick Myles.
VIDEO: Former coach reflects on Derik Queen’s high school hoops
"It's big time, man. It's a good time to be in Baltimore, and Maryland pride is back in Baltimore," Myles, also the school's athletic director, told WMAR.
In 2021, Derik Queen earned MaxPreps National Freshman of the Year at St. Frances before transferring to nationally-renowned Montverde Academy in Florida. Then, he came back home to Maryland to be a Terp.
"Great kid, great personality. Fun to be around," Myles recalled. "He was a professional scorer from day one when he stepped into high school, and just his love and joy for basketball was contagious for all his teammates."
During Derik's year at St. Frances, he was paired alongside forward Julian Reese, younger brother of Angel Reese. The two are now teammates at UMD.
"Ju has always been a great mentor for him. Older kid, who can help Derik along the way. Very mature, I think very different personalities, but they've been great friends from day one here being at St Frances."
Queen navigated the challenges of the pandemic as a first-year high schooler.
"It was a time of uncertainty," Myles said. "So basketball was the one thing they could kind of be certain about and help them get along with that time. It was just a different time, not only in basketball, it was a different time to be a student and a person in America."
On Sunday night, back home, Queen's memorable Charm City shoutout received positive reactions on social media, including from Mayor Brandon Scott, the Ravens and the Orioles.
Myles believes Queen, Reese and the 'Crab Five' can be among the last teams standing.
"I can't wait to see them in San Antonio. I go to the Final Four every year, and I've been waiting, for the last ten years, to get a kid I've coached in the game. So this will be my first chance this year, in San Antonio."
