In front of nearly 50 scouts with all but seven NBA teams represented with a trio of former five-stars in action, it’d be Derik Queen who shined brightest on Sunday afternoon after fueling Maryland to a 90-81 win vs. Rutgers.
Queen finished with a career-high 29 points and game-high 15 rebounds, one of four starters in double figures. His 29 points not only marked his eighth 20-point game of the season, but also the most by a Maryland freshman since Diamond Stone finished with 39 vs. Penn State on Dec. 30, 2015.
Rodney Rice added 19 points after hitting three triples, the third time he's done that in the last four games, while Selton Miguel and Ja'Kobi Gillespie added 17 and 14 points, respectively.
Rutgers opened the game on a 4-0 run before Rodney Rice broke the seal for Maryland with the team’s first bucket. 90 seconds later, Maryland had its first lead of the day after Derik Queen connected with Julian Reese for a full-court pass for an and-one opportunity.
Rutgers answered with a 7-0 run highlighted by a pair of Dylan Harper layups, doubling up Maryland on the scoreboard with a 14-7 advantage seven minutes into the game, before back-to-back threes from Selton Miguel and Ja’Kobi Gillespie sparked a 16-4 run that would give the Terps the lead for the final 10:40 of the first half and by as many as 15 points.
A big part of that first-half surge was Derik Queen as he poured in a double-double (13 points, ten rebounds) in his first 15 minutes, while Selton Miguel added four of his five made threes in the opening 20 minutes.
Miguel opened the second half with his fifth three to push Maryland ahead, 52-38, before Rutgers stormed back on a 10-2 run to make it a six-point game. Rutgers would then trim it to a one-possession game two times before seven consecutive points, including a four-point play, from Rodney Rice pushed Maryland closer to a double-digit lead.
Rutgers trimmed Maryland's lead to five twice midway through the second half, but it'd be the closest they'd get after Derik Queen jump started a 6-0 run to push Maryland ahead by double digits again as they led by at least seven points over the final 8:50.
Maryland’s depth would be tested on Sunday and it loomed larger through the second half when Julian Reese and Derik Queen picked up their third fouls minutes in, while Jordan Geronimo was sidelined mid-game after losing a tooth on the defensive end of the floor. Maryland was also without Tafara Gapare (illness) on Sunday. DeShawn Harris-Smith would be the one to step up to fill the void after playing 11 minutes in the second half, scoring his only field goal attempt despite missing all three free-throw attempts, while the starters combined to score 83 of the team’s 90 points in the win.
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