Liam Robbins transferring from Minnesota to Vanderbilt, not Iowa

Liam Robbins, a 7-footer from Davenport who had proved he can effectively play Big Ten men’s basketball, will not be transferring to Iowa.

Robbins is instead transferring from Minnesota to Vanderbilt for his senior season, per his Monday announcement on Instagram. He is going there after one season at Minnesota that followed two years at Drake. He averaged 11.7 points, 6.6 rebounds and 24.7 minutes in 23 games with the Gophers. He was 10th in the nation in blocked shots with 2.7 per game.

Robbins missed the last six games of the season with an ankle injury. The 14-15 Gophers were 1-5 in those games without him. He was involved in five wins over ranked opponents, including one over Iowa in Minneapolis last Dec. 25.

Robbins played high school ball at Davenport Assumption, then spent a season at Sunrise Christian Academy in Wichita, Kan. He committed to Drake in April 2018. He averaged 14.1 points in his sophomore season there, then transferred to Minnesota where his uncle, Ed Conroy, was the associate head coach on Richard Pitino’s staff.

After Pitino was fired in March, seven Gophers players entered the NCAA’s transfer portal. Included was All-Big Ten guard Marcus Carr. Another, guard Gabe Kalscheur, transferred to Iowa State.

In two games against the Hawkeyes, Robbins averaged 14 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.0 blocked shots.

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