BREAKING: Maryland's Derik Queen joins elite company, named Big Ten Freshman of the Year

Maryland standout freshman center Derik Queen has been named Big Ten Freshman of the Year.

Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images

Maryland standout freshman center Derik Queen has added another impressive title to his resume: Big Ten Freshman of the Year. Queen joins Buck Williams (1978-79) and Joe Smith (1993-94) as the only Terrapins to win league Freshman of the Year awards.

Serving as the center piece for Maryland's "Crab Five," Queen has led the way in scoring with 15.7 points per game. He's also averaging 9.2 rebounds per game, second only to senior forward Julian Reese (9.3).

The former five-star recruit (and Baltimore native) wanted to make an impact close to home, choosing the Terrapins over other programs like Kansas, Indiana, Georgetown, and Arizona. Given his production this season, along with the success it helped create for the Maryland basketball program, it would seem that he's gone a long way toward accomplishing that goal.

But before he heads off to the NBA, there's still two titles Queen wants to add to his resume: Big Ten Conference tournament champion, and NCAA champion.

Derik Queen, Big Ten Freshman of the YEar | Maryland Basketball

Freshman season highlights, courtesy of UMTerps.com:

• Racked up 10 points, 10 rebounds, two blocks, and one assist in a win over Northwestern, marking his 15th game rebounding in the double digits (3/8).
• Put up a double double against #17 Michigan, with 17 points, and 12 rebounds. He also added two steals, one block, and one assist (3/5).
• Marked his tenth game scoring 20+ in a game against Penn State, in which he dropped 23 points, six rebounds, four steals, two blocks, and one assist (3/1).
• Recorded his fifth double double in a row, posting 10 points, 10 rebounds, one block, and one assist in a game against #8 Michigan St. (2/26).
• Posted his tenth double double of the season in a win over USC, in which he put up 13 points, 17 rebounds, three assists, and one block (2/20).
• Named B1G Ten Freshman of the Week. This is his 5th time receiving this award this season (2/17).
• Finished with 18 points, 13 rebounds, and one assist in a win over Iowa (2/16).
• Named to the Naismith Trophy Men's College Player of the Year Midseason Team (2/14).
• Contributed yet another double-double, marking his third out of his last four appearances, scoring 24 points, and grabbing 11 rebounds in a road win over Nebraska (2/13).
• Named B1G Ten Freshman of the Week (2/10).
• Recorded a season-high 29 points in a win over Rutgers, along with 15 rebounds, five assists, one steal, and one block (2/9).
• Put up 13 points, eight rebounds, two blocks, two assists, and one steal in 36 minutes of playing time against Ohio State (2/6).
• Marked his sixth double-double of the season against #17 Wisconsin contributing 12 points, 12 rebounds, two blocks, two assists, and one steal (1/29).
• Named B1G Ten Freshman of the Week (1/27).
• Posted seven points along with 11 rebounds, three assists, two blocks, and one steal in a road win over Indiana (1/26). 
• Finished with 25 points, six rebounds, four assists, and three steals against #17 Illinois (1/23).
• Scored three points in addition to grabbing seven rebounds in a win at home over Nebraska (1/19).
• Grabbed 14 rebounds marking his sixth game rebounding in the double digits. Also added nine points, one assist, and one block in an away game against Northwestern (1/16).
• Contributed 27 points marking a new season high, along with seven rebounds, a pair of assists, one steal, and one block against Minnesota (1/13).
• Dropped eight points in a win over #22 UCLA along with five rebounds and one assist (1/10).
• Played a productive game against #9 Oregon racking up 17 points, five rebounds, two steals, two blocks, and two assists (1/5).
• Added four points, 1 rebound, 1 steal, and 1 block in a game against Washington (1/2).
• Posted his fifth double-double of the season, racking up 18 points and 14 rebounds alongside a pair of steals and an assist against UMES (12/28).
• Put up 11 points along with eight rebounds, three assists, two steals, and one block in a win over Syracuse (12/21).
• Racked up 15 points, five rebounds, and a block against Saint Francis (12/17).
• Named B1G Ten Freshman of the Week (12/9).
• Along with his season-high 26 points, contributed 12 rebounds, two blocks, and a steal against #8 Purdue. This game marked his fifth game scoring 20+ for the Terps (12/8).
• Posted his third double-double of the season with 17 points and 11 rebounds alongside two steals against Ohio State (12/4).
• Scored 20 points with nine rebounds, four assists, two blocks and a steals against Alcorn State (12/1).
• Put up 15 points, eight rebounds, and two assists along a season high in steals with three against Bucknell (11/27).
• Named B1G Ten Freshman of the Week (11/25).
• Finished with a double-double scoring 22 points along with 11 rebounds. Set his season-high in assists with five in a win over Villanova (11/24).
• Added 10 points and six rebounds in a game against Canisius (11/19).
• Tied for the team lead with 24 points while pulling down seven boards, adding three assists, and two blocks against #15 Marquette (11/15).
• Contributed 11 points, three assists, two blocks, and two steals against Florida A&M (11/11).
• Posted eight points, three assists, and two steals against Mount St. Mary’s (11/8).
• Led the game in points and rebounds with 22 and 20, while also contributing two blocks and one steal in Maryland debut against Manhattan (11/4).
• Posted the first 20-point, 20-rebound game by a Maryland player since Joe Smith had 31 points and 21 rebounds against Texas in the NCAA Tournament in 1995.
• The second player in college basketball since 1996–97 to post a 20-20 game in his freshman debut.

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