Loyalty Pays Dividends for CS Northridge : Recruiting: Basketball team secures guard from Orange County on the first day of college signing period.

When other college coaches shied away from Ryan Martin, the Cal State Northridge basketball coaching staff remained loyal.

So when Martin regained attention by averaging 30 points a game at the Pump Discovery Classic at Fullerton College last weekend, Martin remained loyal.

Which is why Martin, a 6-foot-2 shooting guard, signed with the Matadors at 8 a.m. Wednesday, the first day of the national letter of intent signing period.

A first-team All-Sunset League selection, Martin averaged 18 points and 5.8 rebounds a game for Ocean View High in Huntington Beach.

“I think Northridge made a steal,” Ocean View Coach Jim Harris said. “After he severely sprained his ankle last summer, a lot of schools toned down their recruiting.”

According to Harris, Oregon, Cal State Long Beach, Weber State, Colorado State and the University of San Diego were interested before the ankle injury. “It affected Ryan’s reputation,” Harris said. “They thought he was slower than he was.”

The phone was ringing off the hook, however, with calls from college coaches after the Pump Discovery Classic. “Ryan felt a loyalty to Northridge, the team that stuck with him all the way,” said Martin’s father, Gene. “He thinks he’ll have a chance to play right away.”

Northridge Coach Pete Cassidy was attracted by Martin’s court sense.

“He may be a step slow, but he is about five steps smart,” Cassidy said. “He had good skills without the ball and he understands spacing. I’m impressed with how focused he is.”

Although Northridge did not sign any other players Wednesday, Cassidy expects to sign four more in the next few weeks to shore up a lineup that went 8-20 last season, the school’s first at the Division I level.

“All the kids we’re still involved with are unsigned,” Cassidy said. “We’re looking for a big man, but we can’t find one. The few that are there are really being hustled.”

James Morris, Ryan Hickman, DiJon Barnard and Jerry Dalton are among the players CSUN is considering.

Morris, a 5-8 off-guard from Imperial Valley College, is expected to visit Northridge today and the University of Cincinnati this weekend. A co-most valuable player of the Pacific Coast Conference, Morris averaged 23.7 points a game last season.

Hickman, a 6-6 forward from Fairfax High, intends to visit CSUN on Tuesday. Hickman averaged 19 points and 15 rebounds a game. Hickman said he has not visited any other schools, but he is interested in the University of San Diego and Cal State Dominguez Hills.

Barnard and Dalton of Ventura College visited Northridge last week. Barnard, a 6-4 forward who averaged 15.2 points and 6.2 rebounds, also has visited Boise State and plans to visit St. Mary’s. Dalton, a 6-1 point guard, has visited Cal State Bakersfield and is planning to visit Grambling. He averaged 10.1 points and six assists a game last season.

The only area high school athlete to sign Wednesday was volleyball player Kevin Hambly, a middle hitter from Royal High who will attend Brigham Young. Hambly, who also played for the Highlander basketball team, helped lead Royal to the Southern Section 2-A Division volleyball title last year.

Staff writer Steve Elling contributed to this story.