Player of the Week: Conner Martin (2017)
The biggest scoring games compiled throughout a given season rarely begin when a game tips off. They come much earlier, in empty gyms, at the end of practices, when coaches push players through their tired legs to prepare them for big moments.
Such was the case for Conner Martin of Strasburg last week, when he exploded for scoring outputs of 28 and 44 points in consecutive games.
“Coach (Kyle) Bollers had us working on a lot of partner shooting drills,” Martin said. “At the beginning the year we were shooting that well, but since the break we’ve been a much better shooting team. We’re just getting a lot more shots up during practice, and that just really helped with my jump shot. It is usually right after or right before we shoot our free throws, at the end of practice. We’ll usually have eight minutes on the clock and we’ll rebound while the other person shoots, then switch it up.”
Martin was voted Prep Hoops Colorado Player of the Week on Thursday after a record 36,570 votes were tallied. Grandview’s LeChaun Duhart finished a close second.
Martin nailed eight 3-pointers in an 80-77 overtime loss to top-10 3A program Eaton. For the season, the 6-foot-1 junior is averaging 23.9 points per game, putting him among the state’s leaders. Martin is a strong perimeter shooting, hitting 44 percent (29-of-66) from 3-point range this season. But he’s worked hard this season on becoming a stronger attacker, and back-to-back 12-of-14 performances from the free-throw line illustrate the benefits of his newfound attacking ability.
Martin played with the Colorado Chaos the past spring and summer, the first time he had played club ball since seventh grade. The travel gave him a glimpse at competition he doesn’t often see during the 3A season, and Martin said he became a much better player because of it.
“Out at Strasburg I had always kind of been the scoring guy,” Martin said. “Then I got in with Chaos, and there were a lot of talented scorers, so I figured out other ways to get the ball – rebounding, defending. The speed of the game there is probably the biggest thing that helped me out. I am not turning the ball over nearly as much as I did last year.”