The Gophers men’s basketball team closed out the nonconference portion of their schedule by relying on defense to pull away in the second half for a 60-43 victory over Fairleigh Dickinson.
The Dec. 29 game drew a crowd of 7,638 to Williams Arena.
The Gophers (8-5) led by three at halftime before outscoring the Knights 20-1 over the first 10 minutes of the second half. The victory was the third straight (and fourth in the past five games) for the Gophers, who were playing for the first time since Dec. 21.
They have won all eight of their home games.
Bobby Durkin scored a season-high 19 points, and Jaylen Crocker-Johnson added 17 points to pace the Gophers.
Cade Tyson, who went into the game leading the Big Ten and fourth in the nation in scoring average (22.8 points per game) added 12 points for the Gophers. The 12 points were a season-low for Tyson, who sat out much of the second half after picking up his third and fourth fouls in a 26-second span in the first three minutes of the second half.
The Gophers limited the Knights to four field goals in the second half as they outscored the Knights 28-14 after the intermission. After missing their first 10 field-goal attempts of the second half, the Knights got their first basket of the second half with 9:03 remaining in the game. The Knights were 4-for-25 from the field in the final 20 minutes.
The Gophers led 32-29 at halftime after a back-and-forth first half, which featured five lead changes and six ties.
