MBB: Tyrese Martin named to Big East’s All-Tournament Team
Though the Connecticut Huskies were denied a trophy hoist at the most recent Big East Men’s Basketball Tournament in Manhattan, Tyrese Martin was able to leave New York with a unique souvenir.
The senior guard/forward was part of the conference’s All-Tournament team unveiled on Sunday, commemorating his efforts in UConn’s second straight semifinal run. Connecticut has now had a representative on both tournament teams named since its return to the Big East, with then-freshman Adama Sanogo appearing on last year’s team.
Martin led the third-seeded Huskies in scoring in each of their two postseason showings at Madison Square Garden, tying with R.J Cole in the quarterfinal victory over Seton Hall. He also had a game-high four assists (tied with teammate Andre Jackson) in the win over the Pirates and was one of the biggest contributors toward the Huskies’ shutdown defensive effort. Seton Hall shot only 36 percent from the field while Martin held top Pirate scorer Jared Rhoden to seven points of 2-of-13 shooting.
Though the Huskies’ quest for a Big East championship was stopped in the semifinal round by eventual champion Villanova, Martin still earned respectable numbers, pacing UConn with 19 points and pulling down seven rebounds with two steals. The Rhode Island transfer is expected to be a big part of Connecticut’s NCAA Tournament fortunes as the Huskies seek their first win on the bracket since 2016.
“Tyrese, in the last two matchups with Rhoden, he's really done a great job against him,” head coach Dan Hurley said after the quarterfinal win. Rhoden had previously scored 13 points but lost three turnovers with Martin on him in the teams’ last regular season meeting on Feb. 16, a 70-65 UConn win.
“He means a lot to us,” Sanogo said after the semifinal bout with Villanova. “We all know what Tyrese can do and what he can bring to this team now…we were able to stay in the (semifinal) game because of him. He means the team to us.”
Martin was joined on the team by Collin Gillespie (the tournament’s overall Most Outstanding Player) and Justin Moore of the champion Wildcats while Ryan Kalkbrenner and Arthur Kaluma represented runner-up Creighton. Al Durham of top-seeded Providence rounded out the five.
UConn (23-9) will learn its NCAA Tournament fate and placement on Sunday evening (6 p.m. ET, CBS).
Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags
