In between the portal flurry for Maryland basketball, head coach Kevin Willard announced his two-man class for the 2024 cycle as Malachi Palmer and Derik Queen made their commitments official.
Malachi Palmer ended a nearly year-long drought for Maryland in the high school ranks as the Pennsylvania native a three-star guard out of Mount Zion (MD) finally gave Willard good news after his Jan. 1 decision. With offers from Florida State, Oklahoma State and Seton Hall among others, assistant David Cox led the way as the Terps led in his recruitment after picking up efforts through the fall.
“We’re excited to welcome Malachi to the program,” head coach Kevin Willard said via release. “He adds good size and versatility, has the ability to get to the rim, and is a physical guard.”
A powerful guard from Pennsylvania
Introducing @malachipalmerr pic.twitter.com/ARXG2DUXkC
— Maryland Men’s Basketball (@TerrapinHoops) April 17, 2024
More via release:
Overall, Palmer is the second-ranked recruit from Maryland and the No. 119 overall recruit in the class after playing the last two seasons at Mt. Zion Prep. He started his high school career at Central Dauphin in Pennsylvania before transferring to Hillcrest Prep in Arizona. He also played on the EYBL circuit for Team Melo and NY Renaissance. At Mt. Zion, Palmer crested the 1,000 point plateau as a senior.
As a freshman, Palmer was named a MaxPreps Freshman All-American. He was also a First Team All-Elite Prep League selection as a junior.
This summer he has been selected to play in both the Capital Classic and the Iverson Classic Showcase.
In addition to Palmer, the Terps have also previously announced the additions of transfer guards Rodney Rice (Virginia Tech) and Ja’Kobi Gillespie (Belmont).
Maryland also announced the signing of five-star big man Derik Queen, giving the program their first McDonald’s All-American since Jalen Smith and highest-rated pledge since Diamond Stone.
Queen was a four-year recruitment for Maryland, but one that Kevin Willard wasted little time on after he was named head coach. With assistant Tony Skinn putting the pieces together in a recruitment that David Cox closed on, Maryland beat out Kansas, Indiana and Houston for their top overall target in the class.
The five-star big man now heads to College Park with growing buzz about his impact on next season’s roster, but now, he joins Julian Reese, Queen’s former high school teammate, in the frontcourt with Jordan Geronimo and Braden Pierce both back for their second season with the program. After giving the Terps his verbal pledge, Queen went on to post a game-high 23 points in the McDonald’s All-American game before being named co-MVP.
It's official@derikqueen1 is a Terp 👑
➡️ https://t.co/c0hSgwsCc9 pic.twitter.com/cgm8n6bDK2
— Maryland Men’s Basketball (@TerrapinHoops) April 17, 2024
“We are excited to have Derik coming home to be a Terp,” head coach Kevin Willard said via release. “Derik has a tremendous skillset on both sides of the floor. He is a player that wants to make an impact on our program and we think he can do that early in his career.”
More on Queen:
The 6-foot-10, 245-pound center has played the last three seasons at Montverde Academy in Florida after spending his freshman year at St. Frances Academy. Nationally, he ranked No. 10 overall by ESPN, No. 12 by 247Sports, and No. 15 by Rivals.
Queen led Montverde to a 33-0 record this past season where he led the Eagles with 16.4 points per game and 7.5 rebounds. He was named a MaxPreps Second Team All-American after leading Montverde to the Chipotle National Championship and earned All-Tournament honors.
Over the last two seasons, he averaged 14.3 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game. As a freshman at St. Frances, Queen was named the MaxPreps National Freshman of the Year, while as a junior in 2023 was selected to the MaxPreps Junior All-American Honorable Mention Team.
In addition to playing at Montverde, Queen also played AAU basketball for Team Thrill which he led to the Under Armour Association U-17 spring championship in 2023.
Queen was named Co-MVP of the McDonald’s All-America Game earlier this month after scoring 23 points while adding eight rebounds, five assists, three steals, and two blocks. He was the first Terp since Adrian Branch to earn MVP honors.
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