INDIANAPOLIS -- The debate over athletics versus academics is taking center court as the NCAA tournament heats up.

The U.S. Secretary of Education this week proposed barring college men's basketball teams from post-season play that fail to graduate 40 percent of players, 6News' Renee Jameson reported.

Special Section: NCAA Tournament

If the proposal was in practice now, dozens team would be ineligible to play in the NCAA tournament, including No. 1 seed University of Kentucky.

Currently, the Indianapolis-based NCAA said it takes into account an athlete's academic eligibility and progress toward graduation. Universities face sanctions if they do not reach a certain score two years in a row.

"Imposing a ban on teams for the academic performance of student athletes who entered as freshmen eight to 11 years ago is probably not the best course of action," the organization said in a statement to 6News. "Basing post-season bans on graduation rates penalizes the wrong students."

Some basketball fans were also skeptical of the idea.

"It'd be Harvard versus Yale," said Kentucky basketball fan Jeremy Huffman. "Why would you punish the whole team for a couple of people who can't study?"

"It's a very personal thing," said fellow Kentucky fan Will Phillips. "If they want to graduate, that's something that needs to be in the mindset of them."

But others said education needs to be a bigger priority, even for athletes.

"You can't play basketball forever," said Patrick Chonaiew. "Getting on TV is great, but they need to get an education and good grades."

The federal government cannot mandate minimum graduation rates for post-season play. The NCAA would have to adopt the practice to it to take effect.