Basketball players cited in connection to 40-member brawl

Five people have been cited for disorderly conduct in connection to a Sept. 26 fight at Campus Pointe, Portage County Sheriff David Doak said Friday.

Among those cited are members of the Kent State men’s basketball team, he said.

The 40-person fight, which occurred around 2 a.m. Sept. 26, was not originally expected to yield any results, Doak said, but the surveillance tape at the apartment complex clearly identified the five individuals. No one else could be identified well enough to press charges.

“They have been 100 percent cooperative,” Doak said about the basketball coach and players involved. “They didn’t minimize anything.”

Portage County records indicate basketball members Eric Gaines, Robert Johnson and Darius Leonard were charged Nov. 8 for disorderly conduct, a fourth-degree misdemeanor, in regard to an incident that occurred Sept. 26.

The Portage County Sheriff’s Department was not available Friday afternoon to confirm those citations were in relation to the Campus Pointe fight.

Leonard, 19, and Johnson, 19, are freshmen forwards, and Gaines, 19, is a freshman point guard.

Department of Athletics officials were unavailable for comment.

Check back to KentWired.com and read the Daily Kent Stater on Monday for updates.