Maryland takes its basketball seriously. And there’s no better example than in College Park where the University of Maryland Terrapins have captured both men’s (2002) and women’s (2006) national titles along with a whole lot of NCAA tournament bids over the years. But there’s something special this week to find both teams are the talk of March Madness for their clutch play — the men for advancing to the Sweet 16 on a dramatic buzzer-beater by Baltimore’s Derik Queen on Sunday and the women for their thrilling double-overtime victory against Alabama on Monday.

And if all this excitement can be distilled into one thought, let it be that of freshman Queen, 20, the Baltimore native and first-team All-Big Ten power forward who when asked after the 72-71 victory over Colorado State about his game-winning shot and how he could be so confident with so much on the line replied, in part, “I’m from Baltimore, that’s why.” He meant, of course, that he was battle-tested and had played a lot of competitive ball. But what a great example for a city and state facing all kinds of challenges these days. Expect t-shirts with the “I’m from Baltimore, that’s why” slogan to quickly become playground staples.

The Old Line State could sure use all the toughness and resiliency it can muster these days. Whether it’s hearing the president belittle Baltimore’s student test scores or the recent Moody’s Ratings report suggesting Maryland is at heightened risk of economic recession because of the impact of federal budget cuts, it would be easy to despair. Or maybe, just maybe, we’ll be more like Queen (or maybe like Shyanne Sellers, the three-time All-Big Ten point guard and WNBA prospect who scored a season-high 28 points in Monday’s win over Alabama) and do what’s necessary to advance to a “sweeter” opportunity just ahead.

We don’t know how far these Terps can go in the NCAA Tournament. The men face the daunting challenge of regional top-seed Florida at their Thursday night game in San Francisco, the women get top-seeded South Carolina on Friday at the Legacy Arena in Birmingham. But we would put money on hard-fought games with Maryland players ready to do what it takes to rise to the challenge. And isn’t that the best any fan can expect? A standard to which any Marylander can aspire?

“Give yourself a chance,” said Muggsy Bogues who overcame his short 5-foot, 3-inch stature to have a 14-season career in the National Basketball Association. Oh, and did we mention this against-all-odds hoops all-star is from Baltimore?