Hassan Martin Shows A Lot Of Promise In Only His Second Season With URI
By Will Connolly
Name: Hassan Martin - #12
University: Rhode Island
Year: Sophomore
Height: 6-7
Weight: 230 lbs.
Hometown: Staten Island, N.Y.
Position: Forward
As the second leading scorer and No. 1 rebounder at the University of Rhode Island, forward Hassan Martin has come a long ways in his sophomore season with the Rams. Almost doubling his point production from his freshman season (6.7 points per game), Martin only shows signs of getting better. In his first year at URI, he only eclipsed 10 points seven times on the season; a feat he conquered 20 different times this season. He also registered seven double-doubles on the season, a task he only accomplished four times the season prior. Maybe the most impressive of Martin's stats though is his season average of three blocks per game, which ranks sixth in the entire country.
A breakout star at Curtis High School in Staten Island, Martin garnered the 2012 Jacques Award, given to the most outstanding boys basketball player in the county. He may have garnered those same accolades in his junior year had he not been injured for the majority of the season. But upon recovering, Martin led Curtis to a 21-0 record against Staten Island competition (26-5 overall), a SIHSL Tournament championship and the Staten Island PSAL championship.
Unfortunately, Rhode Island struggled in Martin's freshman season, only putting up a measly 14 wins and making a first round exit to Massachusetts in the Atlantic 10 tournament. His second season with the team was definitely one in the right direction, as the Rams went 22-8 in the regular season, winning their first game in the NIT tournament, only to fall to Stanford in the second round. But these are all positive signs for a program that hadn't won more than 20 games since the 2010-11 season.
Earlier in the season, Martin mentioned that the Rams' goal was to reach the NCAA Tournament. And although that's not something they achieved this season, reaching a postseason tournament of any kind is something to be proud of. For the Rams had not reached the NIT in over five seasons, and haven't reached the NCAA Tournament in almost 17 years. The team did demonstrate a stream of consistency during throughout the mid-'90s though, as they reached the tournament four different times from 1993-1999, going 4-4 in that time span. They even went as far as the Elite 8 in 1998, only to fall, ironically, to Stanford.
Surely, Martin would like to see his Rams return those glory days of the '90s when Rhode Island was a powerhouse in the Atlantic 10 conference. But seeing as the team went 0-7 against tournament teams this season, its obvious that the Rams still have a lot of work to do. Luckily for them, their star player is only a sophomore and continues to climb the ladder to stardom.
