Roman Martinez walked up The Pit ramp on Saturday with the smile he always wears after a UNM men’s basketball victory.
This time, however, was a little different for Martinez.
His 10-year-old brother, Carlos, was at the game and waited to give him a hug and a high-five after the Lobos swept the season series against in-state rival New Mexico State. Being a big brother, though, is just another day on the job for Martinez.
The Lobos’ lone senior is always the older brother for the nine underclassmen and two juniors on the men’s team. He is UNM’s go-to guy when his younger teammates need guidance.
UNM sophomore forward A.J. Hardeman said there is no substitute for Martinez’s leadership on and off the court.
“He talks to everybody and gets everybody involved,” Hardeman said. “Will (Brown) was down a little bit, and Ro has been talking to him. In the second half, Will came out and played big for us. He got a couple of rebounds, and that was because Ro talked to him in the locker room and coming down the ramp after the first half.”
And yet again Martinez dominated NMSU, the school at which his grandfather, Francisco Martinez, was an all-league player and built a basketball reputation.
For the third time in his career against the Aggies, Martinez scored more than 20 points.
Down south on Nov. 17, Martinez tied a career-high with 24 points and nabbed nine rebounds against the Aggies.
Martinez put up similar numbers against NMSU on Saturday at The Pit. He scored 21 points and grabbed eight boards.
“It’s a big-time rivalry, and every game is competitive,” Martinez said. “It’s not a game where everything is given to you. It’s always a gritty, hard-fought game, and I think that’s a huge accomplishment for me to go 4-2 against this team.”
Against NMSU at The Pit on Saturday, Martinez even had the presence of mind late in the game with four personal fouls not to commit a fifth and foul out of the game.
“He is the best player on the floor,” said UNM head coach Steve Alford. “And I am glad the best player on the floor is on my team. He does everything. You know, he’ll miss a shot and steal the ball twice. He just does everything. He guards and dives on the floor. I played him way too much in the second half, but the flow of the game was so bad in the second half, and I couldn’t get him off the court. He has just been terrific for us in a lot of ways, and I am glad he came up huge again.”
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Although the Lobos lost their concentration and some intensity in the second half, Martinez said the team members learned a lot about themselves, and they were lucky to pull out another big win.
“It’s important for (my teammates) to gets stops (on defense), focus and make smart plays,” Martinez said. “In the second half we struggled a lot, but I think it has to do with us being young.”
Nonetheless, those younglings have big brother Martinez to look out for them.
