Minnesota gets emotional win after death of Dupree McBrayer's mother

On Monday, Minnesota guard Dupree McBrayer's mother, Tayra McFarlane, lost her battle with cancer.

On Wednesday, McBrayer wiped tears from his eyes after he hit a crucial 3-pointer in his team's come-from-behind win over No. 24 Nebraska in Minneapolis.

Minnesota was down double digits in the second half to Nebraska, which wore "RIP Tayra" warm-up shirts before the game, but the Gophers made a late charge. McBrayer's 3-pointer with 4:40 to play cut Nebraska's lead to three points, 71-68. It was a key moment that encouraged Minnesota's 19-7 run and eventual 85-78 victory.

After the win, McBrayer wept with a towel over his head as his teammates surrounded him. Nebraska coach Tim Miles hugged him.

"I'm proud of him," said Minnesota coach Richard Pitino, as he fought back tears after the game. "To do that when you lose your mom at this age, that's really, really hard, so I'm proud of him."

Amir Coffey, who scored a game-high 32 points, said the team thought about McBrayer and his mother throughout the night.

"Obviously, the team's going through a tough time with the loss of Dupree's mom," he said after the win. "That was in the back of our minds all game. ... We just fought for him."

Per the Star Tribune, McBrayer credited McFarlane, a single mother and correctional officer, with introducing him to basketball and sacrificing so he and his siblings could enjoy extracurricular activities.

McFarlane, 58, was diagnosed with cancer in the fall, months after retiring. Last month, McBrayer, a New York native, hopped a train from Boston to see his mother before his team's matchup at Boston College in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. McBrayer shared his feelings about his "best friend" on social media following her death on Monday.

Boston Celtics star Marcus Smart, who lost his mother to cancer in September, reached out to McBrayer on Twitter and expressed his condolences.

"The gas was off and the electric was off," McBrayer told the Star Tribune about McFarlane earlier this season. "But she would try to earn enough to get it back on. She did the best she could to put me through the best life. I couldn't be more thankful to her."