Bobby Durkin scored 19 points on 7-for-12 shooting, and Minnesota pulled away for a 60-43 win over Fairleigh Dickinson on Monday night in Minneapolis.
Jaylen Crocker-Johnson added 17 points and seven rebounds for Minnesota (8-5), which won its first game after an eight-day winter break. Cade Tyson added 12 points on 5-for-10 shooting.
Eric Parnell scored 17 points on 6-for-14 shooting, including 5-for-10 shooting from beyond the arc, to lead Fairleigh Dickinson (3-10). David Jevtic scored nine points, and Joey Niesman contributed eight points to go along with eight rebounds.
Minnesota shot 38.6% (22 of 57) overall and 31.3% (10 of 32) from 3-point range. The Knights shot 26.9% (14 of 52) from the field and 26.9% (7 of 26) from deep.
The Golden Gophers opened the second half on a 9-0 run. Durkin made a 3-pointer, Crocker-Johnson converted a three-point play and Durkin hit another 3-pointer to give Minnesota a 41-29 lead with 15:04 to play.
Cyril Martynov made one of two free throws to pull the Knights within 41-30 with 14:41 left.
Minnesota scored the next 10 points to put the score out of reach. Durkin made a jump shot, Crocker-Johnson made a layup and a 3-pointer, and Kai Shinholster made a 3-pointer to give the Golden Gophers a 51-30 lead with 9:34 remaining.
Fairleigh Dickinson trailed by double digits the rest of the way.
Minnesota led 32-29 at the half.
The Golden Gophers jumped to a 7-2 lead to start the game. Crocker-Johnson buried a 3-pointer, and Tyson followed with a jump shot and a layup in the early scoring run.
The Knights responded with a 7-0 run to grab a 9-7 advantage. Niesman made two layups during the run, which also included a 3-pointer by Parnell.
Fairleigh Dickinson added an 8-0 run later in the first half to turn a 22-17 deficit into a 25-22 advantage. Niesman made two free throws to start the rally, and Parnell drained back-to-back 3-pointers to give the Knights a five-point lead.
