Gophers transfer Both Gach granted eligibility for 2020-21 season
Utah Utes guard Both Gach (11) drives to the basket during the first round game of the men's Pac-12 Tournament between the Oregon State Beavers and the Utah Utes on March 11, 2020, at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, NV. ((Photo by Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images))
MINNEAPOLIS - Austin native and Utah transfer Both Gach got the news he was hoping for from the NCAA Monday morning: He’s immediately eligible to play for Richard Pitino and the Gophers for the 2020-21 season.
Gach spent two seasons at Utah, and was second in scoring for the Utes last season at 10.2 points per game. He added 3.6 rebounds and 2.9 assists in 25 starts. He scored in double figures 12 times, and shot nearly 40 percent from the field.
"We are grateful the NCAA made the right decision in granting Both immediate eligibility," coach Richard Pitino said. "We are also thankful for the hard work our compliance office did in putting together this waiver.”
As a freshman at Utah, Gach averaged 7.7 points, 2.1 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 29 games, including 14 starts. Gach led Austin to the 2017 Class 3A state championship with a 29-3 record.
Earlier this offseason, center and Drake transfer Liam Robbins was granted immediate eligibility. Late last week, Robbins was named to the preseason watch list for the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Award. He’s one of 20 centers on the list.
Robbins led the Bulldogs last year with 14.1 points, 7.1 rebounds and 2.9 blocks per game. He started all 34 games and was named Second Team All-Missouri Valley Conference. He set a Drake single-season school record with 99 blocked shots, which was also third in conference history and fifth in the nation last year. Robbins had seven double-doubles last year.
Also Monday, point guard Marcus Carr was named to the preseason All-Big Ten Team. He was a Third Team All-Big Ten pick last year after being second on the Gophers in scoring at 15.4 points per game, and set a school record with 207 assists. He scored in double figures in 24 games, and had four double-doubles.
Carr led the Big Ten last year in minutes played, and started every game for Minnesota.
He’s the first Gophers player to make the preseason All-Big Ten Tea since Jordan Murphy in 2018. He’s the first guard since Amir Coffey and Nate Mason, both in 2017.