Maryland Student Radio’s Call of Derik Queen’s NCAA Buzzer-Beater Was Absolutely Electric

"Maryland is headed to the Sweet 16 for the second time in 22 years!"
Maryland Terrapins center Derik Queen (25) celebrates with teammates after scoring the game-winning shot against the Colorado State Rams at Climate Pledge Arena.
Maryland Terrapins center Derik Queen (25) celebrates with teammates after scoring the game-winning shot against the Colorado State Rams at Climate Pledge Arena. / Stephen Brashear-Imagn Images

No. 4 Maryland and No. 12 Colorado State played perhaps the game of the 2025 men's NCAA tournament so far in Sunday's round of 32, with Baltimore native Derik Queen winding up the home state hero for the Terrapins.

Maryland trailed for much of the game, but traded the lead with CSU through the final few minutes. Down 71–70 with just 3.7 seconds left, the Terps called Queen's number, inbounding to the 6' 10" freshman who drove to the hoop and scored on a one-handed floater off the glass to win the game at the buzzer.

It was a huge moment for Maryland fans everywhere, and especially for UMD senior Tyler Lochte, the sports co-director for campus radio station WMUC, who was on the call for Queen's incredible shot.

He had the foresight to turn his phone camera on for the moment, just in case the program pulled off something miraculous.

Whether or not he actually traveled on the play, Queen's shot helped elevate a program that, despite its national brand, has had a relative lack of recent NCAA tournament success.

As Lochte pointed out, the Terrapins have now made the Sweet 16 for just the second time in 22 years—and the third time since 2002, when the team won its first and only national championship. The program last made the Sweet 16 in 2016, but hasn't advanced farther than the regional semifinal since '02.

To do so this year, they'll next have to get through No. 1-seed Florida. Their game in San Francisco tips off at 7:39 p.m. ET on Thursday, March 27.


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Dan Lyons
DAN LYONS

Dan Lyons is a staff writer and editor on Sports Illustrated's Breaking and Trending News team. He joined SI for his second stint in November 2024 after a stint as a senior college football writer at Athlon Sports, and a previous run with SI spanning multiple years as a writer and editor. Outside of sports, you can find Dan at an indie concert venue or movie theater.