SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- The NCAA announced Tuesday that 77 percent of black mens Division I basketball players who entered college in 2009 earned a degree within six years, up five points from a year earlier and a record high.That improvement helped the overall Graduation Success Rate match last years record of 86 percent of athletes graduating within six years, the NCAA said. Of all black Division I student-athletes, 74 percent graduated within six years. NCAA President Mark Emmert said in a news release the improved rates were hugely significant.Over the last 15 years, the overall Graduation Success Rate has dramatically improved, but the really good news is how college sports helps more and more minority students, especially those playing our highest-profile sport, earn a degree that will help them long after their athletics career is over, he said.The graduation rate for black basketball players is up 31 percentage points over the past 15 years, the NCAA said. Overall, all black male athletes have increased their GSR by 19 percentage points to 70 percent during that time. Black female athletes improved their rate 13 points to 84 percent over that same time.For all Division I athletes, the rate increased 12 percentage points during the past 15 years.B. David Ridpath, an associate professor of sports business and president of The Drake Group, an NCAA watchdog, said the GSR provides only a partial picture, pointing to reports of athletes at North Carolina taking courses aimed at boosting their GPAs in a department popular with athletes.Are we essentially practicing eligibility maintenance, potentially in a major with friendly faculty? he said. Are these kids graduating with a very meaningful, vital degree that can benefit them for the next 50 to 60 years of their life? In some cases, yes, this is happening. But all too often -- and I know this because I worked in college athletics -- were essentially pushing these kids through, keeping them eligible and in cases where they do graduate they might not be graduating with the requisite skills.Among The Associated Press Top 25 football teams, the only teams with a GSR 65 percent or lower were No. 25 Troy at 65 percent and No. 13 Oklahoma State at 50 percent. Among Top 25 mens basketball teams, No. 4 Oregon had a GSR of 38 percent; No. 25 California 40 percent; No. 5 North Carolina, No. 18 Syracuse and No. 24 Cincinnati all had GSRs of 50 percent; and No. 13 Michigan State had a GSR of 63 percent.The University of Connecticut mens basketball team had one of the lower graduation rates at 22 percent, according to the latest results. But those 2009 numbers were actually a big improvement over previous years. The teams GSR rose from just 8 percent in 2006, 17 percent the following year and 20 percent in 2008.School spokesman Mike Enright said the poor graduation rate reflects the same time period for which UConn was sanctioned by the NCAA and missed the 2013 postseason because of another indicator, the Academic Progress Rate, which measures whether players are in good academic standing.The school has reported perfect or near perfect APR scores since 2012-13 and is expecting similar numbers this year, Enright said. He also said all current members of the basketball team are on track to graduate.The academic achievement of our mens basketball team has been outstanding the past several years and I have a full expectation that this will continue, UConn athletic director David Benedict said. Brian Dawkins Youth Jersey . Numbers Game examines the deal that sees Michael Del Zotto and Kevin Klein switch places. The Predators Get: D Michael Del Zotto. Clayton Thorson Womens Jersey . The 29-year-old from Port Colborne, Ont., has nothing but good things to say about former U.S. marine Liz (Girlrilla) Carmouche ahead of their co-main event Wednesday on the UFCs "Fight for the Troops" televised card in Fort Campbell, Ky. http://www.eaglesrookiestore.com/Eagles-Tommy-Mcdonald-Jersey/ . -- Charline Labonte couldnt have asked for a better homecoming. Wilbert Montgomery Womens Jersey . Tracey comes to the Blue Bombers after spending over a decade with Queens University. Most recently he was the schools assistant football coach. Andre Dillard Youth Jersey . Ibaka equaled a career high with 20 rebounds, adding four blocked shots and 15 points as the Thunder smothered the Milwaukee Bucks offence in a 92-79 victory Saturday night.Australia dumped Pakistan out of the World T20 and set up a winner-takes-all clash with hosts India on Sunday courtesy of a 21-run victory in Mohali. Steve Smith (61no from 43) top scored for Australia in a total of 193-4, the skipper sharing rollicking, 38-ball stands of 62 with Glenn Maxwell (30 from 18) and an unbeaten 74 with the soon-to-retire Shane Watson (44no from 28).Spinner Adam Zampa (2-32) then accounted for the dangerous Umar Akmal (32 from 20) and Pakistan skipper Shahid Afridi (14 from seven) as the 2009 champions were restricted to 172-8, James Faulkner (5-27) firing at the death to complete the best bowling figures by an Australian in T20Is.Pakistans defeat was their third in four games in Group 2 and leaves them unable to progress to the semi-finals, with the victor of this weekends Australia-India encounter - the sides currently locked together on four points - joining table-toppers New Zealand in the last four.Usman Khawaja (21 off 16) made a brisk start in his first match against the country of his birth, before being clean bowled by a Wahab Riaz yorker in the fourth over, two balls after pulling the searing left-armer for a sumptuous six over deep backward square. Wahab Riaz (R) bowled Usman Khawaja and David Warner David Warner (nine) - up a spot to No 3 in a rejigged Australia bating line-up that saw Aaron Finch drafted in to open and Watson drop from the top of the order to No 6 - fell in similar fashion two overs later, Wahab (2-35) rattling the top of his middle stump.Finchs dismissal shortly after, the burly opener bowled by spinner Imad Wasim for 15, saw Smiths men slip to 57-3, but the skipper and Maxwell powered on, the lattter drilling a superb maximum over long-off just prior to being caught at long-on off Imad (2-31).dddddddddddd Maxwells exit didnt disrupt the scoring, with Smith reaching his second T20I fifty from 35 deliveries - his other, an effort of 90, coming against England in Cardiff last August - and Watson nailing three sixes and four fours as Australia plundered 66 runs from the final five overs.Sharjeel Khan (30 from 19) started like a train for Pakistan, much like he did against New Zealand on Wednesday when cracking 47 from 25 balls, but his opening partner, Ahmed Shehzad (one) fell cheaply, top-edging an attempted slog off the recalled Josh Hazlewood to mid-off.Sharjeels enterprising knock, which featured nine boundaries, came to an end when he chopped Faulkner onto his stumps in the sixth over, though Pakistan rebounded in the seventh with Akmal walloping Watson for 17 runs, including for six over midwicket. Sharjeel Khan powered nine fours from his opening berth Akmal, though, came unstuck against Zampa, bowled middle pole after missing an almighty heave to leg, and Pakistans hopes diminished further when Afridi - perhaps in his final T20I - was stumped having launched the leg-spinner over the ropes the ball before.Afridis men looked beaten way before Faulkner dismissed top scorer Khalid Latif (46 from 41) and Imad (0) from successive balls in the 18th and, needing 30 from Faulkners final over, could only muster eight, with Sarfraz Ahmed (two) and Wahab (0) caught out in the process.Watch highlights of Australias game with Pakistan at 6.30pm on Sky Sports 2 and then catch their crunch clash with India, in Mohali, from 1.30pm on Sunday on the same channel. ' ' '