Ohio State’s men’s basketball team has had it’s fair share of shake ups and trouble this season. But the biggest blow hit the team Monday when coach Randy Ayers was released from his contract.After 14 years at OSU and with two remaining in Ayers’ current contract, OSU athletic director Andy Geiger made the announcement that Ayers would not return next season.’These are terribly difficult decisions to make,’ Geiger said in a statement. ‘Ones that I felt had to be made in the best interests of the university.’Ayers said he feels fortunate to have been a part of OSU and wishes it nothing but the best.’I have grown very fond of the players I have had over the last fourteen years, especially this current group,’ Ayers said in a statement. ‘I think that they will be a special group in years to come and I hope the university will continue to embrace them.’For now, Ayers said his priorities are with his family.Senior Don Jantonio said that while he understands how Geiger must expect the most of the athletic department at OSU, that he didn’t agree with Ayers’ firing.’You know what Ayers stands for and what he’s accomplished, and he’s not going to get a chance to follow up on the things he’s made strides on,’ Jantonio said. ‘Four or five games could have changed the whole season. You could feel it in the locker room after a close loss, we had that, we just couldn’t take it.’Ayers, 40, was 124-108 in eight years as head men’s coach. His record in the conference is 64-80. This season the men’s program limped by 10-17 with a 5-13 mark in the Big Ten. Geiger said if Ayers had pulled out a few more of the close games like the loss to Michigan Sunday 86-81, that the story might now be different. The expectations just weren’t met, he said.Despite the loses, junior forward Eric Hanna said that he thought the team made a lot of strides this year.’I agree with a lot of the things that coach has done,’ Hanna said. ‘I think that he’s worked well with the team.’Ayers did make strides in his career being selected as the national coach of the year in 1991 by the Associated Press and the Black Coaches Association. He was also named Big Ten coach of the year in 1991 and 1992.OSU made three appearances in the NCAA tournament in Ayers’ first three seasons with the Buckeyes. During the last four seasons at OSU however, Ayers’ has been plagued with off-court troubles. In January of 1993, the NCAA began investigating possible recruiting violations. OSU admitted to 17 violations and lost Damon Flint, now a star at the University of Cincinnati.The problems did not end there. In 1994, three players were charged with driving under the influence and five players were kicked off the team because of various brushes with the law.