Hugo new theme should generate enough default templating to render basic content

Ok. Can you please tell me what is the content of the file under /themes/materialize/layouts/_default/list.html ?

If it is a blank file then you need to write those templates.

The Docs state that when using the command hugo new theme:

New theme is a skeleton

It would be easier for you to clone an existing Hugo theme like Ananke or use any other theme from https://themes.gohugo.io