Bobby Durkin silenced Fifth Third Arena on Monday night.

Durkin drilled the first great buzzer-beater of the 2026-27 college basketball season on Monday, lifting Minnesota to a wild 63-61 win over Cincinnati. With the Gophers down by a single point in the final seconds, Durkin caught a perfect pass from Isaac Asuma, dribbled once and fired.

That sparked a huge celebration from the Minnesota bench, while Cincinnati fans could only look on in disbelief.

BOBBY DURKIN 🤯🤯#TeamTogetherpic.twitter.com/hdxvCigEzq

— Minnesota Men's Basketball (@GopherMBB) November 10, 2026

The field goal was only the second that Durkin had made all night. He finished with five points and shot just 1-of-6 from the 3-point line. Durkin averaged 10.2 points and 3.2 rebounds per game last season, his first with the Gophers after spending two seasons at Davidson.

"Obviously I didn't think I was playing my best tonight, so I was just happy I was able to pull through for the team," he said on the floor after the win.

Kyan Evans led Minnesota on Monday night with 26 points and 10 rebounds, and Jaylen Crocker-Johnson added 11 points. Tylen Riley led Cincinnati with 25 points and five rebounds, and Tyler Tejada finished with 10 points. They were the only two Bearcats to hit double figures. Cincinnati now sits at 2-1.

Minnesota went just 15-18 last season, the first under head coach Niko Medved. The program hasn't been to the NCAA tournament since 2019 when Richard Pitino was in charge, and it’s had only a single winning season since then.

While they still have a long way to go, the Gophers are now a perfect 3-0 with a key early win under their belt. And that's all thanks to Durkin.

Source: Yahoo Sports