GOLDEN, Colo. – Colorado School of Mines head men's basketball coach Pryor Orser has announced the addition of four student-athletes who will be joining the Orediggers ahead of the 2024-25 season.
 
The class includes a trio of guards and one post player with members from three states along with one international standout.
 
Will Cordonnier // 6'6" // 195 // Forward // Findlay, Ohio // Findlay HS
Hailing from the Buckeye state, Cordonnier comes to Golden from Findlay High School where he averaged 15.1 points and 6.1 rebounds per game and was a 77% career free throw shooter. During his prep career as a two-year letter winner, he was an All-Ohio Special Mention along with being a First Team Northern Lake League selection in 2024 and a Second Team Three Rivers Athletic Conference honoree in 2023. Off the court, he was named Academic All-Ohio and was a two-time recipient of the Scholar-Athlete Award. Cordonnier plans to major in Civil Engineering at Mines.
 
Coach Orser on Cordonnier: "We are thrilled to have Will join our program.  He comes from a basketball rich family. His Grandpa is a National Champion winning head basketball coach at the Division II level at Findlay. Our track record with players who come from a coaching tree is incredible and we feel Will has that basketball gene in him. He is a hard worker, loves to play, and has a really good basketball IQ. He has intangibles and plays the game how a coach wants and also just wins. He also comes from a really well coached high school program. He is a great student, terrific communicator and will be a great leader in our program. We look forward to coaching him here at Mines."
 
Ben Hammond // 6'5" // 175 // Guard // Norfolk, Neb. // Northeast Community College
A junior college transfer from nearby Northeast Community College, Hammond comes to Golden following two solid seasons in which he started 55 times in 60 games, averaging 14.1 points, 4.4 rebounds, 1.7 steals and 1.7 assists in 24.6 minutes per game. As a freshman he connected on 89 three-pointers and drained another 52 as a sophomore and is a career .341 shooter from deep. While a NECC, he was a First Team All-Academic selection, a member of the Phi theta Kappa Honors Society, a President's List honoree and two-time Dean's List selection. At the prep level, Hammond played at Norfolk Catholic High School where he also ran cross country and was a member of the track & field team. There he averaged 11.0 PPG, 3.0 RPG and 2.0 3FG per game. A standout in all three sports he plated, he led basketball to a third place finish at the state championships in 2022 and was named to the Mid-State All-Conference team and was a Second Team Norfolk Sports Class C Elite 8 honoree. In cross country he was a state champion in 2021 and led NCHS to runner-up finishes in 2018 and 2020 while posting fourth and seventh place results as an individual. Hammond also earned Academic All-State honors in each spots and was a member of the National Honor Society as well as a recipient of the Gold Standard Award and Red Honor Roll. He intends to major in Electrical Engineering at Mines.
 
Coach Orser on Hammond: "Ben comes from Northeast Community College in Norfolk, Nebraska where he was a pre-engineering student. He is our second recruit from Norfolk and Northeast CC as Travis Test played at Mines from (2004-06). Ben is another great student, hard worker, and tough competitor. We have had great luck with junior college kids who have played basketball and have taken pre-engineering classes at the community college before transferring to Mines. We think his best basketball is ahead of him, and a redshirt year will be very beneficial for him. He is a catch and shoot big wing that is also aggressive, and has two years of playing college basketball already. We have won a lot of games when our roster is older, and experienced and this is the plan for Ben as we lose six seniors next year."
 
Braydon Jacob // 6'2" // 175 // Guard // Castle Rock, Colo. // Lutheran HS
A two-sport athlete at Lutheran High School. Jacob was a three-year letter winner on the hardwood while also earning a letter on the gridiron. While at the prep level, he averaged an eye-popping 20.4 points per game while also adding 4.1 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.4 steals per night while shooting 55% from the floor, 44% from three and 84% at the line. He twice earned First Team All-State honors and was named Pikes Peak Conference Player of the Year along with a trio of All-Conference honors as he ended his career as Lutheran's all-time leader in scoring. Off the court, Jacob was a two-time First Team Academic All-State honoree and plans to major in Mechanical Engineering at Mines.
 
Coach Orser on Jacob: "We were looking for a Colorado guy and Braydon caught our attention early on. He played on a really good team at the 4A level and led the team in scoring. He is a scoring combo guard that has a bright future ahead of him. He loves to play,  is a tough competitor, and a hard worker on and off the court. We think he can play the point guard as he develops his skill set as a really solid redshirt year will be really good for him. Braydon is also an outstanding student, high character person who will thrive in the Mines environment. We could see him leaving Mines with a graduate degree as many of our great students do. We look forward to coaching Braydon and also having such a quality guy on our roster."
 
Matija Jordovic // 6'3" // 175 // Guard // Kraljevo, Serbia // Gymnasium Kraljevo
The latest in a recent wave of international talent to come to Golden, Jordovic comes to Mines from Serbia where he played at Gynasium Kraljevo and averaged 17.0 points, 6.5 assists, 4.0 rebounds and 3.0 steals per game. During the 2021-22 season, he was named one of the Top Five players in the Cadets League. Jordovic plans to major in Civil Engineering at Mines.
 
Coach Orser on Jordovic: "Our number one position to recruit was the point guard position after losing Sam (Beskind). The PG position is a hard recruit for us here for some reason. We feel we found a really good one in Matija from Serbia, where basketball is really good. He plays point guard at a high level there and does really well playing against older guys on the first level. He has good size 6'3", quickness, and a really good skill set. He can score, but is also a terrific passer and is really good with ball screens.  He is also an exceptional student and is a great fit for Mines. Mines' reputation as an elite level school sealed the deal for Matija as he had a lot of other options on the table. We can't wait to see him in a Mines uniform."
 
Fans can keep up with Mines men's basketball on X and Instagram at @minesmbb. They can also keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, X and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.