deadspin
In the season opener for both programs on Monday night in Minneapolis, Minnesota dominated North Dakota by a final score of 85-50. Bobby Durkin led the Golden Gophers with 16 points, connecting on 5-of-6 shots from the field.
Jaylen Crocker-Johnson added 15 points for Minnesota (1-0), which held a double-digit lead for the majority of the contest. Isaac Asuma contributed a well-rounded stat line of 13 points, six rebounds, and six assists, while Malick Kordel chipped in 13 points in just 16 minutes off the bench.
North Dakota (0-1) was paced by Jayden Moore, who scored 13 points as a reserve. Andrija Radojevic also came off the bench to add 10 points, and Zack Parks made an impact on the defensive end with six rebounds and three steals.
The Golden Gophers shot an efficient 54.8% (34-of-62) from the floor and 40% (10-of-25) from beyond the arc. In contrast, the Fighting Hawks struggled offensively, making only 28.8% (17-of-59) of their field goal attempts and a mere 10.7% (3-of-28) from 3-point range.
North Dakota kept the game close for the first nine minutes. After Radojevic made two free throws, Moore hit a pull-up jumper to trim the deficit to 15-9 with 11:20 remaining in the first half. However, Minnesota took control from that point. Crocker-Johnson drilled a 3-pointer to make it 18-9, and Grayson Grove followed with an alley-oop dunk off a pass from Kyan Evans to extend the lead to 20-9 with 10:06 left in the half.
By halftime, the Golden Gophers held a comfortable 41-25 advantage. Crocker-Johnson's layup put Minnesota up by 20 with 1:36 remaining in the half, but Moore scored back-to-back layups to bring the Fighting Hawks within 16 at the break.
Minnesota put the game out of reach early in the second half with an 18-0 run. North Dakota's Samuel Hincapie opened the scoring in the second half to cut the deficit to 41-27, but the Golden Gophers responded with consecutive 3-pointers from Evans and Crocker-Johnson. Durkin then threw down a dunk, and Kordel capped the surge with another dunk to make it 59-27 with 14:40 to play.
Key Analysis
Minnesota's balanced scoring and efficient shooting proved too much for North Dakota, which struggled to find its rhythm offensively. The Golden Gophers' decisive second-half run demonstrated their ability to pull away when needed, while the Fighting Hawks will look to improve their shooting percentages in upcoming games.
Originally reported by deadspin.