Guard Eric Gaines won’t be back at Kent State next season

While the Kent State baseball team looks to make some news in Omaha at the College World Series, head basketball coach Rob Senderoff has made a personnel decision.

Sophomore guard Eric Gaines, who averaged 4.3 points per game last season for the Golden Flashes, will not return in 2012-13 after the decision was made to not renew his scholarship.

While head coach Rob Senderoff declined comment on the decision not to bring Gaines back, sources close to the program said the move has more to do with the program’s efforts to get players to buy into making good decisions off the floor than it does with his production.

Gaines missed six games in January due to an arthroscopic procedure performed on his knee, and despite being referred to as the team’s “Energizer bunny” by Senderoff due to his defensive effort there apparently were some issues that led to this decision being made.

Gaines scored a season-high 11 points in Kent State’s second game of the season, a 77-58 victory over Alcorn State.

After returning from his knee injury Gaines played more than 20 minutes just once, and scored no more than eight points in any contest.

Kent State beat writer David Carducci says in the piece announcing Gaines’ departure that Kent State could enroll commit Earvin Morris (Memphis, TN) a year earlier than expected, but nothing is definite on that front.

Raphielle is also the assistant editor at CollegeHoops.net and can be followed on Twitter at @raphiellej.