Georgia State men's basketball coach Rod Barnes has been relieved of his duties effective immediately. Per a GSU Sports Release, assistant coach Paul Graham will lead the team into the CAA Tournament beginning on Friday in Richmond, Virginia.
"After careful evaluation, we have made the decision to seek new leadership for our men's basketball program," said Georgia State Director of Athletic Cheryl Levick. "The win-loss record simply does not reflect where we want to be for Georgia State men's basketball. We felt it was in the best interest of the program to make this change now and begin moving forward immediately."
"I thank Coach Barnes for his service to Georgia State and our student-athletes and wish him success in his future endeavors," continued Levick.
Barnes finished with a 44-79 record overall and 24-48 in CAA play. The program has not had a winning season since 2003-04 and just broke its four-year streak of losing 20 games per season. The basketball attendance had also slipped considerably as Georgia State finished last in the conference in home attendance with just over 900 fans per contest.
Rod Barnes did graduate every senior, and cleaned up an embarassing academic record. A national search for a replacement will begin immediately.