BREAKING: Minnesota Gophers get another star player from San Jose State in transfer portal

The transfer forwards keep coming this week, and here’s Robert Vaihola from San Jose State University. As Niko Medved continues to build his roster, he secured his second big man of the week in Vaihola.

Robert Vaihola
Height: 6’8″
Weight: 260 lbs
Hometown: San Mateo, CA

Medved is well-acquainted with Vaihola, having coached against him in two of the last three seasons in the Mountain West. Vaihola began his college career at Fresno State, where he played just 7 minutes per game as a freshman, averaging 1.5 points and 2 rebounds.

He transferred to San Jose State the following year. As a sophomore, he appeared in all 35 games, averaging 7.6 points and 6.5 rebounds. After sitting out a redshirt season (the reason for which is unclear), he returned for his junior year, starting 31 games and posting 7.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per game.

Vaihola has one season of eligibility remaining and has decided to join Medved and the Gophers.

With his size, Vaihola is expected to play both center and power forward. If Medved uses a 4-out, 1-in offense, Vaihola will likely be stationed inside. The expectation is that his physical play and rebounding will translate well to the Big Ten. A fair comparison for Vaihola could be Frank Mitchell.