Junior guard Derrick Walton Jr. had 22 points and six rebounds as Michigan held off pesky Minnesota 74-69 on Wednesday in Big Ten play at Ann Arbor, Mich.

Junior forward Zak Irvin contributed 19 points and a season-best 11 rebounds as the Wolverines (14-5, 4-2) improved to 10-1 at home. Michigan played without leading scorer Caris LeVert as the senior guard missed his fifth straight contest due to a lower-leg injury.

Sophomore guard Nate Mason scored a career-high 25 points for the Golden Gophers (6-13, 0-7), who dropped their eighth consecutive game. Senior guard Carlos Morris had 14 points and nine rebounds and freshman forward Jordan Murphy added 13 points and eight rebounds.

The Golden Gophers recovered from a 15-point first-half deficit and were within 52-49 on a basket by Morris with 10:33 left in the contest. But sophomore guard Aubrey Dawkins and Walton connected on back-to-back 3-pointers to give the Wolverines a nine-point lead.

Minnesota's deficit was seven after Mason's jumper with 1:04 to play. Walton made eight of nine free throws in the final minute and sophomore guard Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman made all four of his attempts as the Wolverines closed out their eighth straight victory over the Golden Gophers.

Michigan never trailed and quickly opened up a 22-9 lead as a basket by freshman forward Moritz Wagner culminated a 9-0 burst with 8:59 left in the first half. The Golden Gophers were within eight points after a dunk by sophomore center Bakary Konate with 4:34 left before Irvin scored seven points during a 9-2 surge as Michigan took a 37-22 lead with 1:56 to play.

Minnesota closed the half with eight consecutive points to trail 37-30 at the break. Mason's jumper to open the second half got the Golden Gophers within five before Irvin scored four points during a 7-2 run that gave Michigan a 44-34 advantage with 17:31 left in the contest.