The University of Connecticut is the lone school from a major conference, but one of 15 total, that will be forced to sit out post-season play as a result of subpar academic performance, according to the latest Academic Progress Rate report released Wednesday by the NCAA.
The ninth annual report found that 15 teams in four sports, including 10 in men's basketball, failed to score 930 or above on the NCAA's 1,000-point scale and had an ineligible player leave school. The national average APR was 948 in football, 950 in men's basketball and 973 in all sports - up from 970 a year ago.
UConn's men's basketball program, owner of three national championships, will not participate in March Madness next season after posting an APR of 889 during the four-year period from 2007-08 through 2010-11 and losing an earlier reinstatement appeal. Teams with four-year APRs below 900 were spared postseason bans if their scores for the two most recent years included in the report was at least 930, but the Huskies' two-year score flunked that test, as well, at 902.
Other men's basketball teams declared ineligible for the 2012-13 NCAA tournament were Arkansas-Pine Bluff, California-Riverside, Cal State Bakersfield, Jacksonville State, Mississippi Valley State, North Carolina-Wilmington, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, Toledo and Towson. Cal State Bakersfield's data is under review.
Postseason bans may also extend to conference tournaments, creating potential bracketing challenges. The Big East and Mid-American are two conferences that already have in place policies stating that teams that receive postseason bans from the NCAA are also ineligible for conference tournaments.
Three FCS football programs - Hampton, North Carolina A&T State and Texas Southern - were declared ineligible for post-season play.
According to ESPN's Andy Katz, all banned teams face additional sanctions, including the loss of four hours minimum of practice time per week that must be replaced by academic activities.
