Durkin Scores 23 to Lead Gophers to 87-73 Win Over UCLA

Bobby Durkin made 7-of-11 three-pointers and finished with a season-high 23 points, Langston Reynolds had 21 points and six assists, and Cade Tyson had 21 points, and Minnesota (14-15, 7-11 Big Ten) shot 58 percent and made 12-of-23 (.522) three-pointers to record a 78-73 win over UCLA (19-10, 11-7 Big Ten) at Williams Arena.

Minnesota had three players score 20 or more points for the first time since an 84-81 overtime win versus then No. 20 Michigan on Jan. 16, 2025, and Isaac Asuma also reached double-figures with 13 points. Durkin made 7-of-12 field goals and was 2-of-2 at the free throw line, while adding three assists. Tyson was 8-of-12 from the field, including 3-of-5 from distance, and Reynolds was 8-of-14 from the field, 4-of-4 at the line, and dished out six assists. Asuma was 6-of-9 from the field, with six rebounds and three assists, and Grayson Grove finished with a career-high seven assists, six rebounds, and three steals.

The Gophers only turned the ball over three times, while being credited with 24 assists. As a team, Minnesota made 29-of-50 (.580) field goals and was 8-of-9 (.889) at the free throw line. UCLA had a 30-20 advantage in rebounds, but the Gophers outscored the Bruins 28-24 in the paint.

UCLA was led by Tyler Bilodeau with 32 points and eight rebounds, while Eric Dailey Jr. had 18 points and six boards, Skyy Clark had 17 points and five assists, and Donovan Dent finished with 15 assists, five rebounds, and three points. The Bruins made 29-of-57 (.509) field goals, including 10-of-24 (.417) three-pointers, and 5-of-6 free throws.

Both teams started the game red-hot from the field, as the Gophers made 5-of-6 to start and UCLA was 4-of-5, and the Gophers led 12-10 at the first media timeout with 15:45 left. Tyson scored five of Minnesota's first seven points, Reynolds added a pair of layups, and Durkin made a three-pointer. Reynolds added a three-pointer for a 15-10 Gophers lead, but Bilodeau answered with a three to cut the lead to two points. Minnesota extended its lead to 24-15 with a 9-2 run on Tyson's second three-pointer and two more treys from Durkin. Clark and Bilodeau each made three-pointers, as the Bruins pulled within three, but Durkin's fourth three-pointer gave the Gophers a 27-21 lead with 11:00 left. At that points, Minnesota was 7-of-8 from three-point range and the Bruins were 5-of-8.

UCLA retook the lead with an 11-0 run for a 32-27 advantage with 7:03 remaining. Reynolds made a pair of free throws to pull the Gophers within three, but UCLA extended the run to 15-2 with four more points for a 36-29 advantage. Reynolds added two more at the line to cut it to 36-31, but a three-point play by Dent put the Bruins up by nine with 4:58 remaining. Minnesota responded with a 7-0 run on a pair of Asuma layups and Durkin's fifth three with 1:49 left. UCLA led 41-38, but Tyson scored in the lane to cut the halftime lead to 41-40.

Durkin led the Gophers with 15 first-half points, making 5-of-6 three-pointers, while Reynolds added 11 points and four assists, and Tyson had 10 points and three rebounds. As a team, the Gophers were 14-of-26 (.538) from the field, including 8-of-12 from behind the three-point line, and 4-of-4 at the free throw line. Bilodeau paced the Bruins with 16 points at the break, while Clark added 10, and Dailey had nine points and five boards, helping UCLA to a 15-9 edge in rebounding. The Bruins made 16-of-28 (.571) field goals, including 7-of-13 (.538) treys, and 2-of-2 free throws.

Durkin drained his sixth three to open the second half and Reynolds scored on a layup for a 45-43 lead, but the Bruins countered with a 7-0 spurt to lead 50-45 with 16:44 remaining. Asuma and Tyson scored in the paint, as the Gophers trimmed the score to 50-49 with 15:33 left, and a Reynolds layup tied the score at 51-51. After a Bilodeau layup gave the Bruins a two-point lead, Tyson connected on a corner three and Asuma drained a deep triple from the top of the key to give Minnesota a 57-55 lead with 11:39 remaining.

Asuma put the Gophers up 59-55 with a floater in the lane, but Bilodeau scored four-straight to tie the score. Grove found Reynolds for a layup and a 61-59 lead, but Bilodeau scored his 10th-straight point for the Bruins and the game was knotted at 61-61 at the third media timeout with 7:30 left. Tyson put the Gophers up with two free throws, and after Asuma added a floater in the lane and Tyson scored on a layup, the Gophers led 67-61, forcing Mick Cronin to call a timeout with 6:15 left.

Dailey cut the lead in half with a three-pointer, but Reynolds made his sixth layup of the game and Tyson hit a baseline jumper to reach 20 points and give Minnesota a 71-64 lead with 3:45 remaining. Bilodeau's three-point play cut the lead to four, but Reynolds made a jumper along the baseline for a 73-67 lead with 3:02 left. Clark hit a three-pointer to pull the Bruins within three points, but Durkin knocked down his seventh three-pointer for a 76-70 lead with 2:07 remaining. Bilodeau once again added a three-point play to cut the margin to three points, and after the Bruins got a stop on defense, they called timeout with 30 seconds left. UCLA's tying three-point attempt was off the mark and Durkin grabbed the rebound and was fouled. He made both free throw attempts to put the Gophers up by five with 12.8 seconds remaining, and Minnesota improved to 12-4 at The Barn this season.

The Gophers play their final regular season road game when they travel to Indiana on Wednesday, March 4. Tipoff from Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall is set for 5:30 p.m. CT and will be televised on Big Ten Network.

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Team Stats

Bobby Durkin

Langston Reynolds

Cade Tyson

Isaac Asuma

Players Mentioned

Isaac Asuma

Bobby Durkin

Grayson Grove

Langston Reynolds

Cade Tyson