LSU signs West Virginia transfer Esmery Martinez
BATON ROUGE – Esmery Martinez, a 6-2 guard/forward combo from the Dominican Republic who was previously a First-Team All-Big 12 selection, has signed with Coach Kim Mulkey and the LSU Women’s Basketball program as a transfer from West Virginia.
“Having played against West Virginia in the Big 12, I am very familiar with Esmery’s game,” Coach Mulkey said. “She is a versatile player that can play a multitude of positions. Esmery is also a tenacious rebounder and defender and will fit right into our system in Baton Rouge!”’
Martinez joins an elite class of that includes nation’s No. 26 player and McDonald’s All-American Flaujae Johnson (Marietta, Ga.), the NJCAA First Team All-American Last-Tear Poa (Melbourne, Australia), the Dallas Morning News Player of the Year Sa’Myah Smith (Desoto, Tx.) and the All-Texas guard/forward combo Alisa Williams (Little Elm, Texas). The Tigers have also recently added additional transfers Jasmine Carson, a teammate of Martinez’ at West Virginia, and LaDhazia Williams from Missouri.
Playing for three seasons at West Virginia, Martinez recorded 25 double-doubles to rank fifth on the program’s all-time list of most career double-doubles. She averaged 10.1 points and 9.0 rebounds during her career as a Mountaineer. She played in 87 games and earned 57 starts in three seasons.
As a junior during the 2021-22 season, Martinez started 28 games. She ranked No. 2 on the team with 11.3 points per game and she led West Virginia with 8.8 rebounds per game. Martinez was second on the squad with 46 steals and 27 blocks and improved her perimeter shooting to make 40 percent of her 50 3-point attempts. She scored in double figures in 18 games and had 10 double-doubles.
Martinez enjoyed her most successful season at West Virginia during her sophomore campaign where she earned First Team All-Big 12 honors. Starting every game for West Virginia, Martinez averaged 13.6 points and 11.6 rebounds, the latter of which ranked No. 11 nationally. She hauled in 335 rebounds throughout the season for the best rebounding season at West Virginia since 1986 and the fifth-best all-time. Martinez stuffed the stat sheet as a sophomore, also recording 56 steals and 32 blocks while shooting nearly 50-percent from the field and better than 75-percent at the free throw line.
Martinez was also a key contributor as a freshman where she averaged 5.4 points and 6.8 rebounds over 17.5 minutes per game.
After growing up in the Dominican Republic, Martinez prepped at Hamilton Heights Christian Academy in Chattanooga, Tennessee where she averaged 18.3 points, 14.3 rebounds and 5.9 blocks throughout her career. She Helped the program finish as the runner-up at the 2018 Geico High School Nationals Tournament, earning all-tournament team honors for her performance.