The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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MARCH 2016 ■ 55 BY JACEY ZEMBAL S ometimes an athlete has to go through tough times in order to enjoy the good moments. NC State sophomore twin brothers Caleb and Cody Mar- tin have experienced that saying in spades during their Wolfpack careers. The 6-7, 210-pound wings from Mocksville, N.C., have gone through ups and downs, but have started to hit their stride down the stretch of this season, hopefully creating future mo- mentum for the Pack. The injury to redshirt junior shooting guard Terry Henderson helped open the door for both players this year. Cody Martin probably didn't envision being a starter this season, but he has found his way into the starting lineup for 10 games for the 14-13 Wolfpack through Feb. 23. The twist was that he replaced his younger brother — by a minute — in the North Carolina road game Jan. 16. Head coach Mark Gottfried has found a way to feature the Martin twins in produc- tive roles, which is encouraging for the fu- ture. Caleb averaged 10.0 points per outing and shot 47.8 percent from the field in his first 10 games coming off the bench. Dur- ing that same 10-game stretch, Cody shot a robust 56.9 percent and averaged 8.8 points. "Cody's confidence is growing," Gott- fried pointed out. "When we put him in the lineup, he really took off to a different level. I also think he is doing a great job of playing his game, moving it in 15 feet and in. He's not trying to shoot the three-pointer as much. I think all of those things have helped him." Cody cracked double figures in five of the first 10 games after moving into the starting lineup. Through the ups and down, Caleb was averaging 11.0 points and 4.8 rebounds per game through the 27 contests, and was shooting 37.8 percent from the field and 35.4 percent on three-pointers. Cody was fifth on the squad with 6.9 points and 4.3 rebounds per contest, while shoot- ing 51.4 percent from the field. In Caleb's case, his bench numbers are pretty remarkable when put into the proper context. He started the first 17 games and three stretches have defined his season. Af- ter opening the year on fire from three-point land the first eight games, he went through a difficult slump for nine games and then has redefined himself in his bench role. Caleb has become more "chill" coming off the bench, and he said the two broth- ers talked about swapping places prior to Gottfried making the move. He isn't forc- ing difficult three-pointers as much and is settled into his role. "I needed to restart the process over again," Caleb said. "I needed to get back to the beginning of the season when I was shooting well. Then I went through that slump, and I needed to come off the bench and restart everything." Caleb was hunting his shot too much during that slump, and it took a toll on his spirit. He hit rock bottom after going 2 of 13 from the field and 1 of 10 on three-pointers in the 85-78 home loss versus Florida State Jan. 13. "I was looking at tape and saw that I was rushing my shot," Caleb said. "I just kind of chilled out and let shots come to me." Gottfried figures it might have lessened the blow of moving to the bench in knowing Cody would be getting his chance. "I'm sure it was hard for Caleb," Gott- fried said. "Caleb has really played well coming in off the bench. He had that eight games to start the year, he played really, really well, and then he had a stretch in the middle where he didn't play as well. He has picked it up." Caleb has never lacked confidence and has a shooter's mentality. His stubbornness is another trait to marvel at, though it still needs to be channeled in the right direc- tion. After he fouled out having scored just two points in 10 minutes of playing time at Duke, the Cameron Crazies were ready to give him the "Sit Down" chant when he got to the bench. Caleb never sat down though and stood the rest of the game, even if at times he was the only NCSU player doing so. The Cameron Crazies never let up either until the final buzzer of the Blue Devils' 88-80 win Feb. 6. "I think I'm one of the nicest people," Ca- leb said. "But I can get heated real quickly." Caleb enjoyed a remarkable start to the season, scoring at least 11 points in the first eight contests. He averaged 16.8 points per game and shot 43.7 percent from the field and 41.5 percent on three-pointers during that stretch. Then it came crashing down. He lost his jumper during the next nine games, shooting 23.3 percent from the field and 21.3 percent beyond the arc en route to 7.1 points per game, leading up to him com- ing in off the bench at UNC. Cody was a Swiss army knife, backing up at point guard, small forward and power forward to start the season. He needed to find his niche and rebuild his own confi- dence after a difficult freshman year. He was the odd man out in the rotation and played in just 19 of 36 games last sea- son. No player wants to rack up "did not play — coaches decision," but Cody only played in two of the last 11 games. He was frustrated but just increased his time in the gym, even after games. "Last year, I didn't play as much, so I know how it feels to sit there and watch other people play," Cody said. "It doesn't feel good. That is why I work out every day and after practice, so I can play well and keep playing." Cody has slowly regained the form that led to him being ranked No. 81 overall in the country in the class of 2014 by Rivals. com. He is attempting and making shots that he wouldn't have probably tried in the past. His confidence was evident when he calmly sank his third three-pointer of the season during the 77-74 win over Clemson Feb. 20. "The crazy thing is that as soon as he shot it, I felt it and knew it was going in," Caleb said. "He doesn't shoot it much, but that is something he has been working after practice in case the time comes. "He is ready for it and is not afraid to shoot it. He is just better at putting it on the floor and driving." Cody has always prided himself on do- ing the dirty work and being a defensive stopper. Now that he's able to hit some dif- ficult floaters and mid-range jumpers, he's becoming an all-around threat. "I'm not a knockdown shooter or any- thing, but I think my strongest suit is get- ting to the rack and working 15 feet and SWAPPING SPOTS Identical Twin Brothers Caleb And Cody Martin Thrive In New Roles In his first 10 games coming off the bench, Caleb Martin averaged 10.0 points per contest and shot 47.8 percent from the field. PHOTO BY KEN MARTIN