Remy Martin will ‘always remember’ KU win over Mizzou: ‘Crowd showed so much love’
Kansas “super senior” guard Remy Martin says he thoroughly enjoyed experiencing what appeared to be the best Allen Fieldhouse has to offer a Jayhawks men’s basketball player Saturday afternoon.
A crowd of 16,300 — one described as “amped” by coach Bill Self — arrived early and, with sunlight pouring through the windows of the upper deck, stayed until the very end of the Jayhawks’ 102-65 Border War victory over Missouri.
Suffice it to say those on hand made a lot of noise in cheering No. 7-ranked KU’s eighth victory in nine games. MU dropped to 5-5.
“It’s something I will always remember because the crowd, even when (Chris) Teahan made that three to get to 102 … the crowd showed so much love,” Martin, who played at Arizona State the past four seasons, said of the Border War experience Saturday afternoon on the Jayhawk Sports Network’s postgame radio show.
Senior walk-on guard Teahan hit a three-pointer with 1:08 left to put KU over the century mark in points against the Tigers, who were playing the Jayhawks for the first time in 10 seasons.
“The crowd just showed so much love. It just shows what they’re about. And it just makes me feel good to be able to be able to play at KU in front of these fans because they give us so much energy,” said Martin, who scored 10 points, dished five assists and grabbed three rebounds in 29 minutes.
“Sometimes they are like a second defender or another defender so it means a lot. I’ve never taken it for granted. I love when they come out and show love and you know they’re consistent with it. I’m just honored to be able to play here,” Martin added.
Martin acknowledged he gained a lot of knowledge about the KU-Missouri rivalry in days leading up to Saturday’s game. Former KU players Sherron Collins and Jamari Traylor briefly spoke to the team about KU-MU in the T-Mobile Center locker room after the Jayhawks’ 78-52 win over UTEP on Dec. 7 in Kansas City.
The Jayhawks also watched some highlights of past Border War clashes leading up to Saturday’s 2:15 p.m. tipoff.
“I just learned that a lot of people love KU and a lot of people ride and die (with the Jayhawks) and it’s just the fact that KU is a culture and you want to wear it on your sleeve at all times,” said Martin, a 6-0, 175-pound native of Burbank, Caifornia. “I’ve learned that just the culture and wanting to win (exists at KU), not only against Missouri, but just in general. The way we carry ourselves, the way we attack and the way we want to win just makes me want to play as much as I can and play as hard as I can,” Martin added.
Martin took just three shots Saturday, hitting two .He was 1-of-2 from three and 5-of-6 from the line.
In his first nine games as a Jayhawk, Martin ranks third on the team in scoring at 10.4 points a game. He’ s made 32 of 61 shots for 52.5%, including 10 of 26 threes for 38.5%. He’s cashed 20 of 25 free throws for 80%. Martin is second on the team in assists with 28, seven behind Dajuan Harris.
“Just to be able to control the game,” Martin said, asked what he hopes to bring to the team. “Whenever the guys need me I want to be able to produce for them. Every game it could be different, but it’s the same mentality, always be aggressive.”
Martin said Self has stressed being aggressive at all times.
“Coach is great with me,” Martin said. “You don’t have to be aggressive to score. You’ve got to be aggressive to try to get somebody else a shot. That’s what I tried to do (versus MU), always attack and attack the paint and just take what the defense gives. If I’m open and I have the layup take the layup. If not, kick it out to C.B. (Christian Braun 13 points vs. MU) and ‘Och’ (Agbaji, 21 points). They are amazing right now. So that’s always my mindset, to always be aggressive no matter what.”
Martin said he realizes he’s “blessed with being a little guy and having speed. So I’d be wrong if I didn’t use it. I want to use everything to my advantage and speed is one of those (things). I shifted into (different) gears and that’s hard to guard because I’ve got guys that are just as fast, just as quick. The stop and go is very hard to guard so I just try to make myself hard to guard because that gives us the best opportunity to win.”
KU senior forward Mitch Lightfoot, who provided a spark off the bench against the Tigers with nine points, two rebounds and two blocks in 12 minutes, said Martin provided a huge spark in the 37-point victory.
“Remy wants to make sure the team is having fun. He really brings energy to the group on the court and off the court,” Lightfoot said. “He is going to make sure everybody around him is having a good time. I really appreciate his energy on this team. He gives us such energy. It’s so tangible. When Remy is playing with energy the rest of us are playing with energy. It’s great to have him on the team. I’m super excited how well he’s playing and what the rest of the year looks like with him,” Lightfoot added.
Of Martin, Self said: “ I love the kid. He has a great personality. He’s unselfish to a fault a lot of times. Sometimes he has in (his) mind, ‘I’ll show everybody I can pass it and run the team.’ He’s still got to take what they give us. He’s a guy that gives energy and he plays with personality, so he’s going to be a big bonus for us in that regard.. But if he can get 15 (points) a game the way we play, it’s going to be a huge, huge bonus for us.”
KU, which has started finals week, will meet Stephen F. Austin at 7 p.m. Saturday at Allen Fieldhouse, then meet Colorado at 8 p.m. Central time Tuesday in Boulder, Colorado.
This story was originally published December 14, 2021 at 9:42 AM.
