Penn State men’s basketball leading scorer Kanye Clary is no longer with the program, coach Mike Rhoades told reporters on Monday.
Rhoades said the dismissal was a “coach’s decision,” but did not provide a specific reason for the separation.
“We’re just going to move on and focus on the task at hand with our team now,” Rhoades said.
Clary did not make the trip this past weekend to Nebraska for Penn State’s eventual loss to the Cornhuskers and was listed as ‘out’ on the official conference pregame availability report. A program spokesperson told StateCollege.com at the time that there was no additional news, and Rhoades did not elaborate on Clary’s absence postgame either.
The sophomore guard leaves Penn State having averaged 16.7 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game in 23 games, starting in 20 of those games prior to an injury that he suffered late against Minnesota on Jan. 27. Clary missed the following two games before returning in a win against Iowa in early February. In all three games following his return from injury, Clary came off the bench, scoring a total of 16 points in the process.
Clary was one of the three scholarship holdovers from the Micah Shrewsberry era and was seen as a cornerstone piece alongside fellow guard Ace Baldwin Jr. The duo had largely been productive on the court together, although there were the occasional signs of friction along the way.
Baldwin came to Penn State by way of VCU having played under Rhoades at his previous coaching stop. It remains to be seen where Clary will end up, a largely overlooked prospect as a member of the 2022 recruiting cycle.
