Bobby Durkin had been quiet all night. Then he changed everything in one swing.
With Minnesota trailing late and the game hanging in the balance, Isaac Asuma pushed the ball ahead to Durkin, who buried his only 3-pointer of the night with 0.4 seconds left to lift the Gophers past Cincinnati 63-61. Minnesota had spent much of the second half chasing, but the final possession flipped the whole thing and kept the Gophers unbeaten at 3-0.
Kyan Evans carried the offense for long stretches and finished with 26 points, 10 rebounds and five assists. He was the one steady source of production for Minnesota while Cincinnati made life difficult for everyone else. But the last shot belonged to Durkin, who had just two points and was 0-for-5 from deep before the biggest make of the game.
Minnesota opened fast and looked in control over the first 10 minutes, but Cincinnati gradually took over the tempo. The Bearcats defended well, forced turnovers and kept the Gophers from finding much rhythm beyond Evans. That pressure led to plenty of empty trips for Minnesota and helped Cincinnati build control of the game as the second half unfolded.
The Bearcats also turned Minnesota mistakes into points, but the Gophers answered with extra chances of their own. Cincinnati forced 17 turnovers and scored 16 points off them, while Minnesota grabbed 13 offensive rebounds and turned those into 11 second-chance points. In a tight game like this, those extra possessions mattered.
The finish was especially cruel for Cincinnati. With 17 seconds left, the Bearcats had a 79% chance to win. Then MJ Collins missed the front end of a 1-and-1, and Asuma found Durkin for the dagger.
For Minnesota, the result goes beyond a simple early-season win. It counts as a Quad 1 victory and stands as the program’s best non-conference win since beating North Carolina and West Virginia in back-to-back games in 2011. That kind of result can carry real weight as the Gophers try to get back to the NCAA Tournament.
Evans earned a double-double and his first big scoring night as a Gopher, but the game ball conversation was simple. Bobby Buckets got the final word.
Cincinnati’s Tylen Riley was the hottest scorer on the floor. He had entered the game with 11 points on the season, then went 8-for-17 overall and 6-for-9 from three to finish with 25 points.
In Other News...
Minnesota Just Got A Brutal Reality Check In The CFP Race
Week 10s ranked-vs.-ranked chaos did Minnesota no favors in the wider College Football Playoff picture, and the Gophers are now watching the bracket conversation from an increasingly uncomfortable distance. Across seven major matchups, the weekend helped clarify which contenders still have a path, which ones can afford a stumble and which teams have already put themselves in position to survive the committees scrutiny.
For Minnesota, the sting is less about one result than the way the board has shifted around it. The expanded playoff coming next season would change the math for plenty of programs, but this years race is still unforgiving, and every outcome involving the sports top-ranked teams tightens the margin for anyone trying to break through. The Gophers can keep score from here, but the latest round of results made their climb look even steeper. [Read more 🡒]
Gophers Face A Brutal Test As Momentum Starts To Slip
Minnesotas latest setback came in painful fashion, with UCLA slipping away on two late touchdown passes and handing the Gophers their second straight loss to a top-five opponent. The timing makes the defeat sting even more, because the season still has a clear checkpoint ahead and the margin for error is shrinking as the schedule tightens.
The next step is a daunting one against Penn State, and Minnesota is trying to steady itself while dealing with injuries up front on defense. At 5-4, the Gophers are still in position to reach bowl eligibility, but the recent slide has made the path feel much less comfortable than it did a few weeks ago. [Read more 🡒]
Bobby Durkin Just Delivered A Gophers Road Win Fans Needed
Minnesota got the kind of road win that can steady a team early, and it came in a tense finish at Fifth Third Arena. The Gophers slipped past Cincinnati 63-61 behind a clutch night from Kyan Evans, who led Minnesota with 26 points, while Tylen Riley answered with 25 for the Bearcats in a game that stayed tight all the way down the stretch.
Bobby Durkin ended up with the shot Minnesota will remember, drilling the decisive three after Isaac Asuma helped set up the final possession following a Cincinnati miss at the line. It was the sort of finish that can change the mood around a team in a hurry, especially on the road, and it gave the Gophers a result they badly needed after a game that could have gone the other way in an instant. [Read more 🡒]