Colorado rules out Cody Williams and Julian Hammond ahead of Stanford game due to injuries

The Colorado Buffaloes will be without two critical players ahead of Sunday night’s matchup with the Stanford Cardinal. Cody Williams (ankle injury) and Julian Hammond (undisclosed) are both not expected to play on Sunday evening vs. Stanford, according to a school spokesperson. Williams has averaged 13.7 points per game this year and Hammond has averaged 7.4 points per game.

Williams, a 6-foot-8 freshman, has been tabbed as a potential No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft. But he’s missed 11 games this year with a number of different injuries.

Colorado had no problems at all with Stanford, cruising to a 81-71 victory. The final score was closer than the game was in reality. Tristan da Silva and KJ Simpson combined for 10 three-pointers in the win. Tristan da Silva stuffed the stat sheet with 27 points and 11 rebounds, while Simpson stuffed the stat box with 22 points and seven assists.

The Buffaloes drained 33 of their 62 shots from the field (53.2%), including 11 of 25 (44%) from beyond-the-arc.

Colorado broke the game open in the second half, thanks to a three-pointer from Tristan da Silva. He drilled one with 7:43 in the second half to make the score 76-56 and while Stanford would cut the margin by 10 points in garbage time, the Buffaloes were never truly threatened.

Maxime Raynaud led the way for the Cardinal on Sunday, stuffing the stat sheet with 26 points and 12 rebounds, while also blocking three shots. Not only that, he drilled 10 of his 13 field goals in 28 minutes of work, including both of his three-pointers. Raynaud didn’t miss a free throw, connecting on all four of his shots.

Stanford has now lost six games in a row and eight of their last nine. Colorado improved to 20-9 overall. They currently sit at 11-7 in the Pac-12 Conference, ranking them third in the conference. The Buffaloes have now rattled off four straight wins after losing to UCLA, 64-60.

Colorado will finish their 2023-2024 regular season off with both teams from the state of Oregon. First up, they’ll face the Oregon Ducks (March 7th) and then they’ll face the Oregon State Beavers (March 9th). The Oregon game will be nationally televised on ESPN2 and the OSU game will be televised on the Pac-12 Network.

Stanford has one game left on their schedule: the Cal Golden Bears. That one will be on March 7th. The game will be nationally televised on ESPN2.