Colorado University Athletics
Collision Sparks Memorable Moment Of Sportsmanship Between Buffs, Cardinal
February 08, 2020 | Men's Basketball
BOULDER — Basketball took a backseat Saturday in the Colorado-Stanford game for several minutes after a hard collision between Colorado's Evan Battey and Stanford's Oscar da Silva.Â
The collision took place after a Battey steal which led to a fast break. Da Silva contested Battey as he drove to the basket and landed to the ground on his head with a great deal of force. The 6-foot-9 forward laid motionless for several minutes and was visibly bleeding from his head before being helped to the locker room. The Stanford Twitter later announced that he had suffered a head laceration that Stanford head coach Jerod Haase said likely required stitches.Â
Battey walked to the bench under his own power after a brief time lying on the ground. The sophomore was clearly distraught from the situation that had unfolded.Â
"I had my eyes closed when I went up," Battey said after the game. "I elbowed him in his face and saw his reaction and the way he landed and I just broke down."
Battey needed a few minutes in the locker room to debrief as the game continued. His mother comforted him in the locker room and assured him that he was going to be alright. After that, he re-entered the contest with somber emotion still present on his face, and played with great emotion for the rest of the game. Following the incident, the sophomore went on to score seven points and helped the Buffaloes come back to defeat Stanford, 81-74, in front of a sellout crowd.
Moments after da Silva was helped to the locker room, a rare and memorable moment came about between the two squads. Players from both programs met at center court into one huddle with their arms wrapped around each other, praying for a good outcome for da Silva.
It was a scene CU coach Tad Boyle said he had never witnessed in his long career.
"It was emotional," Boyle said. "I think the way their coaches and their players and the way our players responded was really special."
Colorado point guard McKinley Wright helped call the teams together.
"Coach Boyle wanted me to call both teams together and say a prayer with both teams," Wright. "So we got together and (Stanford coach Jerod) Haase said for both teams to keep playing hard. I said a prayer and thanked God that he was OK and he wasn't worse than what it was."
Stanford's Haase applauded the gesture.
"I think it was a great show of unity," Haase said. "I think this game represents what's right about college basketball in a concerning time for our sport."Â
 Battey went to the locker room after the collision for several minutes.
"I don't know how we played when I went into the locker room and I don't know how Stanford played," Battey stated. "But I know how I played, and I played for Oscar."
The other Colorado players played hard as well after seeing their teammate so shaken up. Shortly after the situation, Colorado went on a 16-2 run to take their first lead of the second half.Â
"Everybody came together for Evan," Colorado guard D'Shawn Shwartz said. "We were playing for something bigger than basketball at that point. It was a tough game and we knew Ev was emotional about the whole play. We wanted to get that win for him."
Concern was present in the hearts of every individual at the CU Events Center after that play. Da Silva is Stanford's leading scorer this season, and his teammates were clearly in disarray as they tried to hold themselves together. Tears could be seen streaming down the faces of players from both teams, all with the same hope that da Silva was going to be alright. The arena fell to almost complete silence until a roar of applause was unleashed as da Silva was helped up and was able to go to the locker room on his own two feet.Â
Following the game, Battey and his mother visited da Silva in the locker room to check on how he was doing.
