Harden does like projections in ‘Academic’ NCAA Tournament

Chancellor Harden couldn’t resist the opportunity Friday to refer Phoenix fans to what is arguably one of the more important of the hypothetical NCAA Tournament brackets. This one is done annually by the online publication Inside Higher Ed, and it plays out the tournament determining winners as if academics were the deciding factor. (The primary measure is your program’s score on the NCAA’s Academic Progress Rate, with the Graduation Success Rate as a tiebreaker.)

“In that one, we’re an Elite Eight team,” Harden says, “and rightfully so.” In this mockup, UW-Green Bay tops Iowa State and then outpoints the University of Kentucky and Gonzaga University in succession before falling short in the national quarterfinals vs. Ivy League entrant Princeton University. The UW-Green Bay women’s team scores consistently well on measures of team GPA and  graduation rates, and senior Julie Wojta, an Accounting major, is an NCAA Division I Academic All-America selection. To see the Insider Higher Ed bracket, click on the second link within the story.