Field of 64: Basketball vs. Class
By
The Associated Press
SAN ANTONIO — The NCAA tournament always seems to raise questions of
academics and whether players sacrifice classroom learning for glory on the
court.
Later this month, the NCAA will consider a final vote on an incentive and
punishment approach to improving graduation rates, president Myles Brand
said Thursday.
``That holds the institutions and the teams accountable in a way that was
never true in the past,'' Brand said.
If approved, schools could lose scholarships for a year if a player flunks
out. Further sanctions, such as keeping a team out of the NCAA tournament
because of poor academic records and graduations rates, would take longer to
develop, Brand said.
Oklahoma's Kelvin Sampson, president of the National Association of
Basketball Coaches, said coaches are committed to academics.
``I don't know of any coach who's against academics,'' he said. ``We want
our kids to graduate. But at the same time, we're paid to coach
basketball.''
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The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be
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02/23/2007 11:03:03 AM
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