Gophers transfer center Robbins granted immediate eligibility by NCAA

MINNEAPOLIS  — Minnesota transfer center Liam Robbins was granted immediate eligibility by the NCAA, the university announced Wednesday.

Robbins made the switch in April after two seasons at Drake. The 7-foot, 235-pound Robbins will have two years of eligibility remaining with the Gophers.

As a sophomore in 2019-20, Robbins led the Bulldogs with 14.1 points, 7.1 rebounds and 2.9 blocks per game, landing on the All-Missouri Valley Conference second team. His 99 blocks were fifth in the country and a program record.

Robbins is a nephew of Gophers assistant coach Ed Conroy and a cousin of rising senior Hunt Conroy, a reserve guard, a family connection that certainly helped his case with the NCAA. He’s from Davenport, Iowa, which is about a 5 1/2-hour drive from Minneapolis.

Power forward Brandon Johnson, a graduate transfer from Western Michigan, will also factor prominently into the rotation whenever the 2020-21 season begins. The Gophers are waiting on an NCAA ruling on another transfer waiver request from guard Both Gach, a native of Austin, Minnesota, who played his first two years at Utah.

The Gophers will lose star center Daniel Oturu, who turned pro after his sophomore season, and shooting guard Payton Willis is transferring to Charleston. But point guard Marcus Carr pulled his name out of the draft and returned to the program for his junior year.