The new co-captain of the men’s basketball team brings Rutgers an Ivy League title and proven leadership skills

Among the freshmen who have created buzz on the men’s basketball team this year, Zach Martini stands out in his own right with a unique resume.

He is already a college graduate, having graduated from Princeton University, where he majored in English. And although he barely knew his new teammates since official practices began in June, the fifth-grader was named co-captain last month. He brings leadership skills that he developed during his senior year at Princeton, when he was captain of the Ivy League championship team.

It didn’t take long for head coach Steve Pikiell to realize the program would have an experienced leader.

“He talked about it in the recruiting process,” Pikiell said from his office. “No one in the recruiting process talks to you about your leadership skills. Nothing. Being here with our boys since training camp on June 9, he has already contacted the freshmen. So he not only talked, but also walked. On and off the field, he exemplifies what Rutgers University should want. And he really likes our business program.”

Martini’s basketball career playing the game he loved almost ended his junior year when a collision in a preseason game resulted in a collapsed lung. He would miss six weeks of training, returning to the lineup in December.

“It was crazy,” he said. “A lot of pain. It was the scariest thing I’ve ever been through.”

The 23-year-old, who grew up in Warren, New Jersey, still loves plenty of things, including movies and football. His work from his junior and senior years showed his interests off the field.

During his junior season at Princeton, he wrote about dystopian literature.

“It’s about a mixed-up society and a very autonomous lifestyle,” he explained at the time. “I was kind of drawn to amazing movies and books. My 12th grade teacher introduced me to 1920s writer (writer) Franz Kafka. There are strange scenarios, dreamlike people interacting with strange people.

His thesis was: “A similar strange landscape, I would say. I wrote about a phenomenon called “The Uncanny.” This is Sigmund Freud’s concept; when something familiar seems unfamiliar. It can be a face, surroundings. Like deja vu. Sometimes you feel like you’ve been there before; It looks familiar, but there is something strange about it.”

He is currently working on a master’s degree in finance at Rutgers Business School.

Although no thesis is required, he has challenging coursework: a 3-hour class in investment analysis, a 3-hour introductory class in quantitative research and methods, as well as a class in corporate finance and two classes in economic analysis.

So why Rutgers?

“It made sense,” Martini said, relaxing in a plush chair in the film room at the RWJBarnabas Health Athletic Performance Center. “Coach was the first person to contact me in the transfer portal and that meant a lot to me.

“I got to meet everyone, including football coach Greg Schiano, and see this amazing facility. Another thing is that it will be a highly anticipated season with freshmen and returning players. “Being the leader of this team is an incredible opportunity,” he said. “Too good to miss.”

The same can be said about Pikiell’s decision.

“He is the best cutter on the team; he’s running at full speed, he’s blocking, he’s setting great screens that aren’t sexy stats. His leadership, cutting, boxing, finding loose balls – these are all things that don’t show up in the stats. He makes free throws, three-pointers and can rebound.

“People ask me to possibly describe him. I say he’s a Navy Seal. He can do anything,” Pikiell said. “You can drop him anywhere and he will survive. Put him in the game and if he has to guard a 7-footer, he will guard a 7-footer. It solves problems, survives and thrives.”

Martini certainly thrived at Princeton, where the Tigers not only won three Ivy League regular-season championships, but also reached the Sweet Sixteen in his junior year.

Rutgers hasn’t been to the Sweet Sixteen in 45 years.

“What’s really exciting is that I have this experience,” Martini said of advancing in the NCAA Tournament. “We have talent, work ethic and we are doing great for guys who met two or three months ago. It’s not every day you get to play two lottery picks (NBA).

“But just trying to teach them what I know is a great opportunity. Even though I’m a new face, I can bring a lot of things from Princeton. I know what I’m doing. I know how to win. I know what sacrifices you have to make to win.

Martini, a 6-foot-10, 235-pounder, attended his first two home football games and couldn’t get past the crowds. Accustomed to watching Ivy League home games in front of about 7,000 people, he was amazed to see more than 40,000 people at SHI Stadium.

“There were so many people, so many students,” said Martini, whose brother plays on the Cornell football team his senior year. “It’s not what I’m used to and it’s really exciting.”

He expects Big Ten games at Jersey Mike’s Arena to be exciting as well, as will trips to places like Purdue, Indiana, Michigan, Oregon, Ohio State and Nebraska.

“How cool is that?” he said with a big smile. “That means I’ll never make it to Nebraska again!”

There is no telling where he will go with his master.

Martini likely won’t get drafted into the NBA, but he envisions playing in Europe for a few years. He would also like to live in London, a city he has visited several times.

“There is something familiar and yet strange about it. It fascinates me,” he said. “It was pretty constantly on my mind. What I would do there, I don’t know.

Whatever he does, there is a chance he will be a leader.