BOULDER, Colo. (AP) — Julian Hammond III scored a season-high 23 points as Colorado earned an 81-70 nonconference victory over South Dakota State to remain undefeated at home Friday night.
Colorado (8-2) is 7-0 at home and its only losses came at the Maui Invitational. The Jackrabbits lost for the third time in their last four games.
Matthew Mors scored a field goal midway through the second half to give South Dakota a 56-55 lead, but Elijah Malone and Hammond made consecutive 3-pointers to restart a 12-2 run that put the Buffaloes firmly in control. Hammond scored eight of Colorado’s final 10 points in the final 2:24 to put the game out of reach.
Hammond was 8 of 14 from the field and a perfect 5 of 5 from the free throw line while dishing out six assists to lead Colorado, which shot 50 percent from the field as a team (28 of 56) and had 18 years. of 19 from the free throw line. Malone finished with 15 points and nine rebounds and RJ Smith added 11 points with four assists.
Joe Sayler led South Dakota State (8-5) with 16 points and three steals. Kalen Garry went 3 of 4 from beyond the arc and added 12 points, four rebounds and two steals.
___
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Register here. AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll And https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball
