MIKE MASOTTI / Reuters

Kentucky, champions of the SEC, entered the NCAA tournament despite having only a 31 percent graduation rate. That shouldn't be allowed, writes Mike Celizic.

NCAA spokesman Bob Williams said the NCAA wants to improve academic performance. Then came the big “but,” which is that they don’t want to do it Duncan’s way.

“What we want to do at the end of the day is change behavior so that when people come to college, they have to be prepared to do the work and institutions are prepared to support them academically,” Williams said.

It sounds good, but the nation’s institutions of higher learning have had infinity years — or close to it — to raise their standards for athletes. And still there are 11 schools in this year’s tournament that can’t graduate 40 percent of their players in six years.

The 11 and their rates, according to the AP, are: Maryland (8 percent graduation rate), California (20 percent), Arkansas-Pine Bluff (29 percent), Washington (29 percent), Tennessee (30 percent), Kentucky 31 percent, Baylor (36 percent), Missouri (36 percent), New Mexico State (36 percent), Clemson (37 percent), Georgia Tech (38 percent) and Louisville (38 percent).

There are some big programs in there, programs that make a lot of money by giving scholarships to kids who either can’t do the work or aren’t asked to. Either way, it’s gone beyond shameful.

Normally, I don’t like it when Washington meddles in sports, particularly the professional variety. But this is one time when a bureaucrat is right.

Arne Duncan knows from hoops. He played varsity ball at Harvard. He also managed to graduate. It shouldn’t be unreasonable to ask that four out of 10 athletes do the same.

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