4. Luke Martinez – Wyoming
The story of Martinez is a story of what could have been had some things happened differently for him. A 6’4 guard from Bismarck, he starred at the junior college before arriving at Wyoming way back in 2010. An injury forced a redshirt season, but he was then an important piece and a force for the Cowboys. Unfortunately, he was injured and later suspended after an incident off-campus, ending his collegiate career after a year and a half starring at Wyoming.
Martinez had two fantastic seasons at Williston State but was pretty solid at Wyoming as well. When he finally got on the court for the Cowboys, he averaged 11.8 points and 4.0 rebounds per game in his junior season. He helped the Cowboys to a 21-win season and a bid in the CBI. Martinez only played twelve games as a senior, averaging 14.5 points per game during that stretch, including a career-high 25 points in a win over Denver. Before Martinez was suspended, Wyoming was 12-0, taking care of business against their non-conference foes.
He had a tremendous impact as a junior college transfer, leading the Mountain West in 3-pointers and ranking among the conference leaders in steals and defensive ratings. The result from his off-campus fight was quite the black eye on his career, but he was still a very solid piece when he was playing actual basketball at Wyoming. He’s spent significant time playing internationally in recent years.