Martin Full of Healthy Performances

Teammates razz him mercilessly every time they hit the local fast-food joint and he politely declines to sample the fare. Perhaps it has something to do with the image attached to the health-food faithful.

Tie-dyed shirts.

Open-toed sandals.

Manic about organics.

Drives a flowered microbus.

Plain. No frills.

Brandon Martin, Cleveland High’s superlative swingman, does not fit this description. Yet he nonetheless eschews chewing anything but the healthiest of grub. This stands in stark contrast to many of his teammates, who believe garbage time starts before the game.

“The other guys are eating chips and drinking Cokes before we play,” Cleveland Coach Kevin Crider said. “Brandon doesn’t go for that. He’s a health nut to a degree.”

It seems that Martin’s idea of the ideal drive-through window is finding a hole in someone’s zone defense, whereupon he zips in for the basket. This is his idea of fast take-out.

“He won’t eat hot dogs or anything like that,” Crider said. “He’s real conscious about his body.”

Ahhh, now we’re talking. He’s totally into the raised consciousness thing. An unconscionable ability to shred opponents on the basketball court is the result.

“I eat a lot of vegetables, lots of chicken and things like that,” said Martin, a 6-foot-4, 190-pound junior. “They tease me about it all the time.”

For breakfast, Martin says he often eats yogurt. For lunch, he usually settles for a chicken or tuna sandwich.

And dinner?

Last week he had San Fernando as the main dish and Reseda for dessert. Martin combined for 67 points against the two, though he barely played in the second half against the Tigers, against whom he scored a career-high 39 points.

San Fernando Coach Dick Crowell admits he had vegged out after watching a few minutes of his team’s lopsided loss. At one point, the Tigers trailed, 20-0.

“When it was over, someone said, ‘Brandon scored 39,’ ” Crowell said, joking. “And I said, ‘Which one was he?’ ”

Crowell soon figured it out. And after he took another look at the scoreboard, which flashed a 102-39 victory for Cleveland, something else became evident, too.

“He had 39 points,” Crowell said. “The same as our whole team.”

Martin is averaging 25.8 points a game and has banged out 12 consecutive performances of 20 points or better, breaking the 30-point plateau three times over that stretch.

In 17 games, he has been held under 20 points twice, but only once by the opposition: In Cleveland’s second game, Martin was held to a season-low 14 points in a loss to Fairfax. Two weeks later, Martin scored 19 points in a blowout of Jefferson, a game in which he did not play in the second half.

In Cleveland’s 98-85 victory over Reseda last Friday, Martin scored 28 points on an array of shots, including five dunks, two perimeter jump shots and a potpourri of drives and put-backs.

It didn’t take long for Crider, a first-year coach, to learn of Martin’s mealtime preferences. Martin’s father, Earl, may have tipped Crider to Brandon’s healthful inclinations early in the season.

A few months back, Crider said Earl entered the gym with Brandon in tow. The pair approached Crider a few minutes before tip-off.

Said the elder Martin, with a smile: “Coach, your mule is here.”

Was Martin’s dad looking for a hee-haw from Crider or just spouting the truth? Probably a little of both, because his kid has proven he can carry the weight when called upon. But a mule? Earl was half right. More like a horse.

“He does it all,” Taft Coach Jim Woodard said. “He is a big -time player.”

Martin averaged 13.6 points a game last season, the best average among returning players in the Northwest Valley Conference.

Martin was the lone underclassman selected to the All-North Valley League first team last season--the remaining five were seniors.

And no, there was little resistance from coaches regarding Martin’s inclusion on the first team. In terms of ability, Martin’s play resembles that of former Santa Clara High guard Shon Tarver, now a freshman at UCLA. Martin is perhaps less fluid, but more physical.

Several times this season, Martin has played point guard. Last season he started at forward.

“I think he’s the best player in the Valley,” Woodard said. “He can play inside or outside, he’s quick and he’s strong.”

Martin is popular with coaches outside the area, to be sure, and is loved even more by the phone company. Calls from college coaches and recruiters started coming Martin’s way with regularity last season. It seems just about everybody has his number.

Talk about a hot line.

“Quite a few people have it,” said Martin, who has a grade-point average of 3.2. “I had to get a service. I kept missing calls.”

When contacted at home on Monday night, Martin was talking to an assistant from Cal.

A few minutes later, a coach from Brigham Young rang him up.

If it seems that Martin is more organized, more disciplined than the average hardwood terror, it’s because he is. Crider said Martin is never satisfied with his performance.

That’s correct: never .

“He could get 50 and he’d still point to something that needs improvement,” Crider said. “We spend time talking about lots of things that people never discuss critically.

“He has professional tools and he works like a professional. He gets frustrated when he knows he’s not being pushed.”

Martin pushes himself hardest of all. “If I score 39, I will work harder,” he said. “I will not allow myself to get comfortable.”

Crider said Martin’s work ethic comes--what else--naturally. No artificial additives needed.

“He’s a perfectionist,” Crider said. “That’s just the way he is.”

Plain and simple.