2017-03-21

ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-SIX YEARS OF EDITORIAL FREEDOM

Tuesday, March 21, 2017

Ann Arbor, Michigan

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ADMINISTRATION

Nat. history museum to move to new science hall Artifacts will begin relocation to new Biological Science Building Dec. 31 JOSHUA HAN/Daily

2017 Central Student Government presidential and vice-presidential candidates debate campus issues and their platforms in the Student Publications Building on Monday.

Diversity, funding, sexual assault topics of discussion at CSG debate

Movement, eMerge and DAAP discuss campaign platforms at Daily-hosted event RHEA CHEETI & NISA KHAN

Daily Staff Reporter & Daily News Editor

The Michigan Daily hosted its second annual University of Michigan Central Student Government debate on Monday night, with the president and vice president candidates from eMerge, Movement and the Defend Affirmative Action Party fielding

questions from moderators and online submissions. The fourth party running, Better Than the Rest, did not attend the debate due to a scheduling conflict.

The parties began the debate with overviews of their platforms, highlighting the initiatives they felt most strongly about.

DAAP’s presidential candidate and vice presidential candidate are Art & Design senior Keysha Wall and LSA senior Lauren Kay, respectively. Both Wall and Kay stressed that their main focus was empowering undocumented

students, with an emphasis on ending the 28-month residency within high school cutoff of in-state tuition for these students.

Presidential candidate Anushka Sarkar, LSA junior, and vicepresidential candidate Nadine Jawad, Public Policy junior — who are running with eMerge — maintained that the three pillars of their campaign were voice, opportunity and momentum. They highlighted the importance of building upon the momentum the current CSG administration has built with its recent initiatives, and

making CSG proceedings more transparent.

LSA juniors Evan Rosen and Dan Sweeney, who are running for president and vice-president the Movement party respectively, responded to the recent video controversy they were facing, before Rosen departed for a hearing.

Issues of sexual misconduct, CSG experience and diversity were frequently brought up during the debate, with all six candidates proposing various initiatives to address these.

See DEBATE, Page 3

MATT HARMON & MAYA GOLDMAN Daily Staff Reporters

The University of Michigan Museum of Natural History announced plans last Friday to close its Ruthven Museums Building location. The building will officially close on Dec. 31, 2017 and the museum will permanently move to the new Biological Sciences Building in 2018.

It was announced over two years ago that the building would close once the new Biological Sciences Building was finished across the street.

According to a University press release, the museum will incorporate the biological theme of its new home into the exhibits with a display on cells, genes and molecules. Along with new exhibits, the famous mastodon couple and two prehistoric whales will be featured at the entrance of the BSB. Amy Harris, the director

of the Museum of Natural History, said the move will be a continuous process until the final opening event in the fall of 2019.

“We’ll be opening in three stages,” she said. “We’ll be closing on New Year’s of this year and then, while we’re closed to the public, we’ll be moving all of our specimens and our exhibits and our people over to the new building and getting settled into our new work spaces. We have an exhibit firm that we’ve hired to help us develop, design, fabricate and install the new exhibits and they will be doing that installation in batches.”

Harris said she has high hopes for the museum after the move and said the act of moving buildings is not new to the Natural History Museum. “(The Ruthven Building) is the third location of our museum since it was founded in 1837 with the Cabinet of Natural History,” she said. “Moving to the Biological Sciences Building, that’ll be our fourth move, so See MUSEUM, Page 3

Senate Assembly elects new SACUA Candidates A2 council for LSA SG members, discuss bathroom policy denounces

STUDENT GOVERNMENT

ANN ARBOR

summarize platforms

Assembly amends resolution to address transgender bathroom use on campus

Central goals include more involvement, furthering communication on campus

The University of Michigan Senate Assembly gathered on Monday to elect three new representatives to the Senate Advisory Committee on University Affairs and further discuss its official statement regarding the University’s views on transgender bathroom policies.

The meeting began with a presentation of the resolution SACUA drafted earlier this month that states all members of the campus community should have the right to use the bathroom that matches their gender identity.

The Assembly was given the opportunity to discuss, amend and vote on whether they wanted to support the resolution.

Assembly members brought up several changes they’d like to see made, such as a statement about visitors, and others wanted to broaden the language of the resolution.

Engineering Prof. Doug Noll spoke up, stating he was uncertain about the explicit promotion of safe spaces in the statement’s first sentence, which states: “The University faculty governance is committed to working to create a safe and inclusive space for all people. We support a policy that allows all members of our campus

ERIN DOHERTY Daily Staff Reporter

Thirteen candidates and a presidential and vice presidential nominee presented their platforms and answered questions from constituents at the University of Michigan LSA Student Government Candidates’ Forum on Monday night in the Michigan League.

The candidates addressed topics ranging from increasing student involvement in campus organizations to improving the political dialogue on campus.

The students gave speeches for 13 open representative seats, and one presidential candidate and one vice presidential candidate spoke about their platforms to an audience of about 20 people. Voting will take place on Wednesday and Thursday.

A common theme among platforms was increased communication between students and administrators. LSA freshman Kevan Casson, a candidate for representative, addressed the importance of making internship and employment opportunities more visible to students.

“We need to increase See LSA, Page 3

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MAYA GOLDMAN Daily Staff Reporter

to use bathrooms consistent with their gender identity.”

“I’m a little concerned about the first sentence,” Noll said. “You might read that to say that we’re endorsing safe spaces generically, and I’m not sure I would be in favor of creating safe spaces where you can’t have robust discussions.”

Further discussion led to the Assembly to remove

the entire first sentence of the resolution, leaving them with a statement solely about bathrooms.

The amended version of the resolution read: “The University faculty governance supports a policy that allows all members and visitors to our campus to use bathrooms consistent with their gender identity.”

It passed unanimously.

The Assembly then moved into elections of the next SACUA representatives. LSA Prof. Silke-Maria Weineck, LSA Prof. John Lehman and Pharmacy Prof. David Smith will all end their terms as SACUA representatives this April. Six faculty members were nominated from the Assembly to fill their seats, and three were elected.

See SENATE ASSEMBLY, Page 3

MATT VAILLIENCOURT/Daily

SACUA chair Bill Schultz leads discussion on a proposed resolution regarding University bathroom policy during the Senate Assembly meeting at Palmer Commons on Monday.

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INDEX

Vol. CXXVII, No. 49 ©2017 The Michigan Daily

Trump’s HUD cuts

City approves resolution to oppose President’s six million dollar budget cuts ANDREW HIYAMA Daily Staff Reporter

Ann Arbor City Council unanimously passed a resolution Monday to oppose cuts to the Department of Housing and Urban Development, which were released last week in President Donald Trump’s administration budget outline, obtained by the Washington Post.

The new budget for 2018 includes over $6 billion in cuts to HUD, stating that state and local jurisdictions are better suited to address their own needs. One of the major missions of HUD, now headed by Secretary Ben Carson, is to provide affordable housing for all residents of the United States.

Councilmember Chuck Warpehoski (D–Ward 5) opposed the cuts, saying the harm they would do to the community would be greater than the value of the dollars saved.

“I have the privilege of serving on the Urban County Steering Committee for the City, and in that role I see a couple things,” he said. “One, I see how these funds that are under attack are See CITY, Page 3

NEWS.........................2 OPINION.....................4 ARTS......................6

SUDOKU.....................2 CLASSIFIEDS...............6 SPORTS....................7

News

2 — Tuesday, March 21, 2017

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

ON THE DAILY: MILLENNIALS NOT IMPRESSED President Donald Trump’s presidency is considered illegitimate by 57 percent of young adults, according to a poll conducted by GenForward.

Among those who were surveyed, a slight majority of white voters age 18 to 30 found Trump’s presidency to be legitimate. However, within that group, 55 percent said they disapprove of his efforts as president.

The poll, administered by a research group from the University of Chicago, also found that within the group of 18 to 30 year olds polled, only 22 percent approve of the job Trump is doing as president, while 62 percent disapproved.

These numbers have been reflected on the University of Michigan’s predominantly Democratic-leaning campus.

During the election season, surveys by The Michigan Daily showed approximately 70 percent

of students supported Clinton over Trump or other thirdparty candidates. Additionally, following the election, there have been multiple protests pushing back against Trump’s presidency.

At a vigil immediately following the election, University President Mark Schlissel encouraged students to stand up against hatred.

“Ninety percent of you rejected the kind of hate and the fractiousness and the longing for some kind of idealized version of a non-existent yesterday that was expressed during the campaign,” Schlissel said in November. “So I urge you, continue your advocacy and your voices are already being heard. They are loud and clear — this is the way America changes.

It’s the way it always changes.

It’s the way it will change for the better.”

- CARLY RYAN

BOOK READING

The Black Sheep UM @BlackSheep_UM Happy first day of spring! Don’t forget ur Canada Goose!!! :-)

Andrew D. Martin @ProfADM Sun’s out, squirrels out. Happy First Day of Spring, Wolverines and friends! #SpringEquinox AARON BAKERDAILY Author Deepak Unnikrishnan discusses his new book “Temporary People” at Literati Bookstore on Monday.

CAMPUS EVENTS & NOTES Are You Linkedin?

Writer to Writer

WHAT: The University Career Center will be holding an interactive session to help students utilize LinkedIn and other professional networking tools effectively.

WHO: University Career Center WHEN: 6 p.m. to 7 p.m.

WHERE: Michigan League, Room C

WHAT: Clare Croft will be a special guest at this lecture about challenges and expectations in student writing.

Sweetland faculty and University profoessors will host the conversation.

WHO: Sweetland Center for Writing WHEN: 6 p.m. to 7 p.m.

WHERE: Literati Bookstore

Breakfast with JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Depression on College Campuses Conference

WHAT: Female, Black, Hispanic, Native American, LGBTQ students and students with disabilities will be able to network with senior leaders from JPMorgan.

WHO: University Career Center WHEN: 8:30 a.m. to 10 a.m.

WHERE: Michigan League, Hussey Room

WHAT: This conference will discuss responses and consequences to meeting the demand for mental health services on college campuses.

WHO: Depression Center WHEN: 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

WHERE: Rackham Graduate School

MDetroit Student Service Workshop WHAT: Detroit-based organizations and campus programs will host an informational session for students looking to get involved.

WHO: University of Michigan Detroit Center WHEN: 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

WHERE: Hatcher Graduate Library

LSA Major/Minor Expo WHAT: Over 65 departments from LSA and other schools will be available for students looking to explore possible interests.

WHO: LSA Newnan Academic Advising Center WHEN: 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

WHERE: Michigan Union, Rogel Ballroom

A$AP Noah @noahravede

Viewing Night in Ann Arbor

JORDYN BAKER Daily Staff Reporter

A recent press release from the University of Michigan’s Central Student Government introduced the Student Fee Advisory Committee, which was originally announced on March 8 and is co-chaired by the presidents of CSG and Rackham Student Government. In coordination with E. Royster Harper, the University’s vice president for student life, this committee of nine students will meet twice during both the fall and winter terms next year.

As stated in the press release, the committee will work to increase the participation of students in activities and organizations on campus before developing student fees and making recommendations to the

dining hall: “not so fast, we made curly fries” Coach Harbaugh @CoachJim4UM Outstanding performance by Coach Beilein and @umichbball team! Terrific individual efforts today too.

It’s great to be a Michigan Wolverine!

Asian/Pacific Islander American Summit 2017 WHAT: This campus-wide summit will discuss the climate and access to opportunities and resources.

WHO: Asian/Pacific Islander American Studies WHEN: 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.

WHERE: Michigan Union, Pendleton Room

420 Maynard St. Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1327 www.michigandaily.com

Body hopes to increase participation in campus organizations before developing fees Communications Director Joseph Shea, a Public Policy senior, said SFAC will provide students with a way to connect more directly with upper-level administration and to have a say in the impact of fees affecting both their tuition

me: “i’m going to start eating healthier”

WHAT: The Detroit Observatory will offer visitors an opportunity to look through its 1857 Fitz refractor, weather permitting.

WHO: Department of Astronomy WHEN: 9 p.m. to 10:30 p.m.

WHERE: Detroit Observatory

Student Fee Advisory Committee introduced by CSG to advise Regents University’s Board of Regents, and will also give feedback on the needs of students, specifically in relation to these fees.

By providing students with more opportunities to voice their opinions and concerns, the SFAC looks to continue encouraging the input of students. In the press release, CSG President David Schafer, LSA senior, spoke specifically of this importance.

“The elevation of student voice in as many avenues of University decision-making as possible has been one of our major goals this year,” he said.

The recommendations the committee makes will come directly from the consensus of its members. If a consensus cannot be reached, a majority recommendation will instead be used for student fee approval and allocation.

In an email interview, CSG

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and their participation in campus organizations.

“The student fee is a powerful tool: it permits the allocation of financial resources towards pressing on-campus concerns,” he wrote. “When I was a first year student, the Proppe administration increased the student fee in order to provide additional funding for student organizations. As this administration winds down, we felt it was important to have an institutionalized body that is both independent of CSG and will represent students in discussions on any student-fee related issues with the Vice President of Student Life.”

LSA sophomore Chang Yang wrote in an email she was not aware she pays for services such as CSG. “I definitely would like to hear more about this new CSG committee because any increased communication between our student body and the Regents in terms of how effectively the students’ money is spent is good,” she wrote.

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(The student fee) permits the allocation of financial resources

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DEBATE From Page 1 Diversity The candidates all stressed the importance of on-campus diversity to their platforms, and talked about the different ways they planned on approaching the issue.

Sarkar and Jawad mentioned they have a wide range of perspectives in their party, and their initiatives are based on real experiences members of their party have had. While both of them believe they can not represent people of other identities, they emphasized the importance of transcending boundaries. “eMerge believes diversity is of utmost importance when attempting to represent a wide range of ideas, backgrounds and identities on campus,” Sarkar said.

LSA From Page 1 communication between students in government and the LSA Opportunity ... Hub to better prepare students for their career,” Casson said.

LSA freshman candidate Mohsin Arsiwala also emphasized the importance of assisting LSA students in their searches for internships and careers. Arsiwala proposed improving relations with the Alumni Center, to increase available connections between students and University alumni.

Another recurring topic during the speeches was how to increase the dialogue on campus about current events, especially given the current political climate on campus.

LSA sophomore Amanda Delekta, a representative candidate, proposed hosting an event that would discuss how to translate a passion for social justice into social change. A panel would be composed of different policy experts to answer students’

MUSEUM From Page 1 this is not unprecedented.”

Museum employee Mishaal Khan, a University alum who graduated in 2016, said the schematics for the new space show a renovated and larger area compared to the Ruthven Building.

“I am super, super excited about the new changes,” Khan said. “When you look at the (museum) sketches, there’s going to be a lot more space and a lot more new exhibits … (The Ruthven Building) is like 90 years old and there’s no AC.” In December, the Regents approved a $150 million renovation project for the Ruthven Building, which will

“We are the only party running that has students from the most schools represented, as well as diversity of identities, diversity of experiences on campus and diversities of socioeconomic status.”

Jawad also touched upon her own experiences as a woman of color and the rarity of seeing her representation in student government.

Sweeney said he doesn’t know what it feels like to be a minority student, but he advocates giving students the tools to deal with lack of diversity. Movement is also in favor of making the Race and Ethnicity requirement a firstyear requirement to encourage freshmen to have important discussions about diversity as soon as they step onto campus.

Sweeney also said he believed every student belonged on campus, regardless of their political views, and that simply being on campus and exposed to

questions about implementing social change.

“I want to hold an event looking into how to change an idea for social change into tangible events,” Delekta said.

LSA sophomore Eli Rachlin talked about the importance of facilitating conversations between students with different political beliefs on campus.

Citing the responses to the 2016 presidential election, including the post-election protests, Rachlin believes it is crucial for students to be exposed to different ideas.

He proposed bringing experts to campus to demonstrate the importance of understanding different viewpoints.

“People don’t have the opportunity, nor do they want to go out of the way to find things outside of their bubble,” Rachlin said. “It would be cool to have people who have experience with expressing their opinions that may not be in line with what they have to say.”

Read more at MichiganDaily.com

add 100,000 square feet for classrooms and auditoriums and will renovate spaces for dry labs and the University’s central administrative offices, currently housed in the Fleming Building.

The Fleming Building will eventually be demolished.

LSA senior Kathryn Zoller previously worked on a project under German professor Kastin Baindt researching the history and the impact of museums at the University. She said the renovations to the Ruthven Building preserve the building’s legacy and are a much better option than destroying it.

“I’m very happy to hear that they’re not going to tear down the Ruthven Building, which was a big concern for me with the move,” she said. “I really like the historic Ruthven Building.”

ideas can help students learn and grow.

“Yes, we should look for the best candidates at this school, period,” Sweeney said. “But I believe there will be an overall increase in diversity of minds and perspectives joining CSG if we are elected, because that’s what we’re trying to do, we’re trying to get people on this campus excited about CSG.” Wall and Kay described themselves as having diverse identities and backgrounds, and highlighted the integration of their own party. They expressed frustration with the fact that administrators don’t push for data collection of other identities, such as queer populations. They also want to push administrators to adopt the Texas House Bill 588, better known as the Top 10 Percent plan, guarantees students in the top 10 percent of their high school class admissions to state universities. This however,

CITY From Page 1 used to leverage. A dollar that goes in yields a lot more than a dollar in terms of community good. But I also every now and then get to hear some of the personal stories of how these funds make a difference in people’s lives. We talk about the numbers, but there are lives behind these numbers.

These funds provide a lifeline to these people, and to threaten them is to threaten some of the best members of our community.”

Councilmember Zachary Ackerman (D–Ward 3) emphasized the real effects the cuts would have on Ann Arbor residents, specifically mentioning HUD-Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing vouchers, which provide monetary assistance to veterans in need of housing.

“As we dig deeper and ask ‘how does this affect our local

Khan is one of the employees working on the museum’s newest initiative, Museum Memories, which catalogs public submissions of photos and stories about experiences at the Ruthven Building. She said the archive celebrates the museum’s history and the University’s bicentennial.

“So far, what’s been archived and uploading to the site are some really cool memories,” she said.

“People have come to the museum for 90 years … People have really sweet memories of their kids there, too.”

Zoller said by accepting and cataloging the public’s experiences at the Ruthven, the history of the museum can be studied.

Read more at MichiganDaily.com

would conflict with the state of Michigan’s ban on race- and gender-based affirmative action prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sex, gender and socioeconomic status. “(We need) to further integrate this campus, and if you’re going to have a (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) plan, have a DEI plan that is actively working to integrate this campus,” Wall said. “That means going to Detroit schools and doing on-site admissions. Aggressively, aggressively courting students from low-income areas, from majority Black cities … These are the steps that can easily, easily be taken. This is something that’s not on the student body to fix, but is on us to set the example and the tone for the administration, for the people who would be able to do something about this.”

Read more at MichiganDaily.com

community in terms of the most vulnerable,’ we’re also looking at two to three million dollars in cuts to the Ann Arbor Housing Commission,” Ackerman said. “And these are programs that go to house veterans, the disabled, to house people of limited income simply because this society doesn’t provide enough to them. We spent the last six years in Washtenaw County fighting veteran homelessness, and in the past year got it to a functional zero. And cuts to the VASH voucher program put that entirely at risk. These cuts will put people on the street.”

Councilmember Jack Eaton (D–Ward 4) voted in favor of the resolution but said he thought the HUD cuts were just one of many problems with the new budget and the resolution on its own was not enough.

Read more at MichiganDaily.com

Tuesday, March 21, 2017 — 3

SENATE ASSEMBLY From Page 1 Four of the nominees from the Ann Arbor campus were LSA Profs. Andreas Gailus and Neil Marsh and Medical School Profs. Kathryn Eaton and Sami Malek. Business Prof. Joy Beatty was nominated from the Dearborn campus and History Prof. John Ellis was nominated from the Flint campus.

Each candidate was given time to speak to the Assembly about why they wanted to serve on SACUA. Some candidates felt their field expertise would be helpful in this new position. Beatty submitted a video with her statement, as she is on sabbatical in New Zealand. She stressed to Assembly members that she felt her organizational studies background would help make SACUA communicate better and run in a smoother fashion.

“What I like to think I can contribute, if I were elected, is that I have organizational expertise, which helps me be in tune to organizational processes,” Beatty said. “I think faculty governance is a tradition we should cherish.”

Communication was a popular theme among candidates. Ellis said his main goal if elected would be to increase communication and cooperation among all three of the University’s campuses.

“We should continue to press for more integration of Flint and Dearborn into a single University system and promote communication,” Ellis said. “A lot of times, things that happen in SACUA tend to just appear in Flint … I think in the end, we will be stronger as one faculty, in reality, than we would be as three different campuses doing the same thing.”

Malek and Gaius both shared the view that faculty governance has a duty to protect the institution of the University.

If elected, Malek promised to hold on to traditional academic

values.

“I have fundamentally stood for traditional academic behavior … and commerce and less bottom-line decisions,” Malek said.

“I think relationship-building and honesty are how you get people to listen to you, and that’s what I’m going to try to do for all of you.”

Marsh rounded out the speeches. He said he wanted to work on expanding the current work of SACUA, as well as making faculty governance more reachable to and communicative with the greater University community.

“If I am elected, I would like to be a builder,” he said. “I’d like to build on the important work that SACUA is doing. I’d like to build support, enthusiasm and better channels of communication to the broader faculty. I want to build bridges (to) the administration and bridges outside the administration. We don’t need to be building walls, and we certainly don’t need to be living in our ivory tower.”

Once all the speeches were heard, Assembly members voted for the three candidates they wanted to serve as SACUA representatives. The votes were tallied, and though it was a close election, it was announced that Beatty, Malek and Marsh had been chosen to serve. Their terms will begin this May. The meeting, which was the second-to-last Assembly meeting of the academic year, ended with SACUA President Bill Schultz, professor of mechanical engineering, welcoming the new members into the committee. He will give an official end-of-year statement at next month’s meeting, but he said a quick thanks to the body for a good year and mentioned the elections for a new president will be held soon.

“It’s been a pleasure to serve you, but it’s time to pass the torch to someone else,” Schultz said. “We hope to have that election in the not-so-distant future. That’s chosen by the present members of SACUA.”

Opinion

4 — Tuesday, March 21, 2017

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

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FROM THE DAILY

W

Vote eMerge

ith the upcoming Central Student Government elections, four parties — Movement, Better Than the Rest Party, Defend Affirmative Action Party and eMerge — vie for the CSG presidential and vice presidential positions. Of these parties, The Michigan Daily Editorial Board believes that the eMerge party candidates, LSA junior Anushka Sarkar and Public Policy junior Nadine Jawad, are the best picks for these offices.

Between their extensive involvement in CSG and other campus organizations, their concrete plans to increase diversity and inclusion on campus and their innovative plans to increase community engagement, eMerge has the strongest ideas of all the parties and possesses the skills needed to implement these plans. The Michigan Daily Editorial Board endorses eMerge presidential and vice-presidential candidates Sarkar and Jawad and is confident in their abilities to serve in the best interests of our campus community.

Both Sarkar and Jawad have immense experience that would allow them to represent the student body in a holistic way.

The candidates’ knowledge of the processes and capabilities of CSG would allow them to quickly get to work when starting their term. While serving on CSG, Sarkar has spearheaded efforts to expand the number of counselors at Counseling and Psychological Services. Jawad served as a policy adviser on CSG and has worked to support the needs of students with affordable housing. Their commitments to CSG — as well as the work they’ve done as leaders in CSG — are testaments to their preparedness for these positions and their abilities to create tangible change on campus.

The eMerge party would best represent students with marginalized identities across campus. Sarkar and Jawad have shown throughout their proposed policies that they are highly qualified to construct diverse and inclusive dialogues on campus.

For example, their critique of the limitations of the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion plan proposed by the University of Michigan earlier this academic year offers hope for those unsatisfied with the document.

We are also confident that eMerge’s platform points regarding diversity would be the most successful at impacting campus diversity. The candidates have acknowledged that their one-year terms will never be enough to fully tackle diversity across campus and in CSG, but they have put together a concrete, manageable platform that recognizes the struggles of students of underrepresented minorities and the past difficulties in addressing these issues. Platform initiatives, such as working with University Health Services to accept Medicaid health insurance or creating a specific mentorship program for non-traditional, first-generation and multilingual students, show their commitment to diversity in the long term.

The Defend Affirmative Action Party and Movement would not be as successful in representing student groups. The Defend Affirmative Action Party, which has shown an engagement with a diverse group of students on campus, fails to represent a majority of students. The

radical methodology of DAAP, such as its collaborations with the By Any Means Necessary organization, alienates a large group of students who do not see such tactics as worthwhile.

While Movement candidates have expressed care about the needs of minority students, throughout their campaign they have displayed a lack of empathy and have failed to listen to students of color. The Movement candidates have instead pandered to the campus community in an attempt to create a positive image for their campaign, without truly incorporating voices of minority students. For example, their “Divide and Prosper” initiative delegates a tangible initiative to recruit students of low socioeconomic status to students enrolled School of Education, rather than creating an initiative within the scope of Central Student Government itself.

In addition, when asked how Movement plans to represent students of color, LSA junior Dan Sweeney, Movement vice presidential candidate, mentioned that he does, in fact, listen to communities of color on campus.

However, the only example he could give was during three weeks out of the year while campaigning for CSG. We believe that engaging with students for three weeks out of the year as a campaign tactic is far from enough, and a long-term dialogue is key. We believe that eMerge bridges the ideologies of Movement and DAAP by bringing together and representing students of differing identities.

In addition to their work with CSG, the eMerge party candidates have demonstrated a significant amount of engagement with organizations across campus and within the Ann Arbor community. CSG would benefit from Sarkar and Jawad’s strong leadership experiences and their abilities to manage and organize different groups and interests.

Sarkar founded Wolverine Consulting Group as part of CSG that partners with struggling student organizations on campus, and Jawad co-founded Books for a Benefit, a non-governmental organization that advocates for the importance of literacy, which has since spread to other campuses across Michigan.

eMerge’s platform emphasizes its commitment to having a student voice in the Ann Arbor City Council, creating ties between our University and the city that houses us. The party also emphasizes the need for unity and engagement across all University of Michigan campuses, including our satellite locations in Flint and Dearborn. The willingness to work with all students, in the Ann Arbor community and at our other campuses, shows eMerge’s dedication to improving students’ experiences across all University campuses.

The lack of community engagement demonstrated by the other candidates and their platforms gives us reservations.

While Movement’s platform includes engagement initiatives, many are one-time events, such as a Thanksgiving food drive or their “Mental Health Wake Up” initiative. These initiatives don’t actively engage students on a daily basis at the University, instead delegating involvement to specific days throughout the year.

While many of DAAP’s platform points would support various marginalized communities at the University, its focus on initiatives from an activist perspective will pose problems as its tries to implement them. Furthermore, the leaders of DAAP are most certainly passionate about the issues they present, but their emphasis on national and international issues may limit the scope of students’ engagement in their platform. eMerge’s platforms parallel the positives that come with DAAP’s platforms, but are more inclusive toward students and members of the Ann Arbor community.

The Michigan Daily Editorial Board enthusiastically supports eMerge and the incredible ideas presented in its platform. The combined experience of the candidates, which would allow them to represent campus diversity, would create a culture shift that is desperately needed within CSG. We hope the goals of eMerge are accomplished and that Sarkar and Jawad can bring our campus together to support all students. Be sure to vote in CSG elections on March 22 and 23 at http://vote. umich.edu.

VOTE FOR CENTRAL STUDENT GOVERNMENT Students have the opportunity to vote for the next academic year’s representatives on Central Student Government. The Winter 2017 Central Student Government Elections will be held on March 22-23, 2017. All currently enrolled students are eligible to vote online at http://vote.umich.edu.

March Madness and good sports

M

arch Madness is Me critiquing an athlete’s about much more layup, for example, is like than 68 teams someone critiquing my playing basketball to vie for a penmanship when I take notes. stupid trophy and It’s uncalled for, and bragging rights. It’s frankly, I don’t know one of the largest what I’m talking spectacles in which about, because the the power of sports athlete has spent reveals more than thousands of hours in just athletic ability. the gym, not me.

Over the years, I’ll probably we’ve seen stories gripe to my friends of underdogs about something CHRIS overcoming going against my obstacles, CROWDER wishes during the coaches and players tournament, but I’ll try displaying the power to hold my tongue and of mentorship and, weirdly, remind myself that the people how crazy the hoopla around on the court are students and college sports has become. We amateurs. Though they may live in a country where the receive full rides, they don’t passion for college athletics is get paid. Most of them won’t intense, but sometimes goes play professionally. But they too far. have spent countless hours I was reading online the with everyone in their ears — other day about a player from parents, coaches, teammates, Vanderbilt who didn’t play die-hard fans. as well as he usually does.

For those reading this as The author posited that he — college students, you know singlehandedly — potentially how hard it is to juggle school caused his team to lose its play- and extracurricular activities. in game. It’s odd to me that we Imagine having to travel every live in a society where college week, rising early every morning students, many of them my and still having to turn all your age, are criticized and bear the work in on time. Let’s give these burden of ridicule if they don’t guys a break sometimes. perform well.

For those who are older and I’m part of it too; I’ve written critical, remember that these articles about the performance are college students trying their of athletes and how that relates best. Mistakes happen. Humans to team success, and there’s are fallible. And there are more room for that. For now, I’m things to worry about than the playing devil’s advocate by result of a game. thinking about how it would I bet the athletes who will play feel to read critiques of your face a lot of anxiety about playing ability every day. But I want to up to expectations while being remember from now on, before under the spotlight. It takes a lot I get angry over a player’s shot of guts to be able to rise above the selection, that they’re just like pressure. And criticism follows me — a 20-something year old athletes for years. Fab Five just living life. member Chris Webber still gets

patronized for calling a timeout in the NCAA Tournament when he had none, causing Michigan to lose the game.

I get that people can have huge attachments to their teams. I’ve been engrossed with sports culture my entire life, so I understand the passion. But verbally attacking an amateur, even when they can’t hear you, isn’t acceptable.

It’s essentially continuing to perpetuate the ridicule of young adults. It’s even more profound to see how much more hate is out in the open because of social media.

Instead of breaking players down, it would be great to see them be built up. The most beautiful moments in sports are when the hate tweets and death threats are overshadowed by support and thankfulness when someone messes up.

Sometimes the relationship to athletes is blurred, as some see them as characters in games instead of human beings. They have emotions and probably don’t like to see negative reactions in the news and their social media notifications, just like everyone else. It would be better for everyone if people left them alone or viewed them as someone they know and love and want to succeed.

There are many debates about how to combat the ridicule and how to compensate for the pressure and amount of time that college athletes spend practicing. I believe, at least, that college athletes should be more humanized. The coverage shouldn’t be totally revamped, but an attitude of empathy is a good start to possibly taking some of the pressure off them.

Chris Crowder can be reached at ccrowd@umich.edu.

SHOHAM GEVA | OP-ED

Movement, it’s time to get serious

D

uring my past four years on campus, as a former editor for this publication and as a student interested in campus policy, I’ve paid a lot of attention to Central Student Government elections. Each year, I can tell when campus has hit the peak of the election season — when I start seeing something from one of the parties on social media repeatedly.

This year, it looks like you, Movement, might get that honor. Over the past few days, I’ve been seeing your rap video frequently — but it’s been in an unusual way. Usually, people share CSG things because they think they’re funny, or because they’re interested in the party’s ideas. This time, I’ve been seeing it from people who think your video is offensive, myself included. In four years of these videos, I’ve yet to see one as tone-deaf or concerning.

I’m not going to spell out all the reasons why, because frankly, there are too many of them, ranging from having women only appear for five seconds to gaze adoringly at your candidate to your presidential candidate calling himself the “white George Washington Carver.”

Delegitimizing people’s lived campus experiences or calling yourself the white version of anybody shouldn’t be a part of a campaign, nor should personally attacking candidates for their educational paths. It’s a display of privilege, plain and simple.

Nonetheless, if it was just the video, I might not have felt compelled to write this.

And I want to acknowledge that after much defense of the video — including a statement from your presidential candidate that anybody who was offended shouldn’t be because it was “fun,” not serious — you did apologize during The Michigan Daily’s CSG debate. However, the point is that it’s not the just the video — there’s a similar ethos in your platform and your slate, which is notably less diverse than the other parties, that I hope you also choose to revisit and think more about in light of the feedback you’ve received.

Your “Mental Health Wake Up,” a proposal for a yearly lecture on mental health, is a key example. Combatting

mental health issues on campus is fantastic and wellneeded. But saying the way to deal with it is by broadcasting that “we all have hardships and struggles throughout our time here,” as quoted from your website, is trivializing. It’s true that many, if not all, University of Michigan students will struggle during their time here, and it’s important to recognize that. But mental health issues aren’t just a “hardship.” They’re medical facts with debilitating impacts on people’s lives.

Using your language is akin to equating sadness to depression or stress to anxiety disorders.

There’s a similar ethos in your platform and your slate, which is notably less diverse than the other parties, that I hope you choose to revisit and think more about in light of the feedback you’ve recieved.

And while a lecture is lovely, it won’t address the systemic lack of mental health resources on campus that students and the University have consistently identified as the most pressing issue in this arena.

Your “Send the Elevator” initiative also lacks awareness. Encouraging the University to do outreach in low-socioeconomic status communities is great (and in fact, it’s already doing it, though more can definitely be done). What’s troubling is your insistence that it should be “students from similar backgrounds” doing the outreach. Having lowSES students connect with people who have faced similar challenges is reasonable and likely helpful. Where it becomes

concerning is when you make it primarily their responsibility to mentor and encourage more low-SES students to come here. Everyone on this campus is accountable for this kind of work (and I’ll be the first to admit that I haven’t done nearly as much as I could), and to place it on the shoulders of low-SES students, who often are balancing more commitments with their time regardless, is problematic.

I don’t have the space to address the rest of your platform, but I want to note this — none of your specific 10 initiatives touch on ways to improve diversity, though your pillars do. Many of your initiatives instead touch on things that are only onetime events, are highly logistically challenging (such as redesigning the School of Education’s curriculum) or call for things already in place (to me, a “Committee of Student Action and Unity” sounds like what a student government is already supposed to do).

I want to give credit where it’s due — I like your proposals to improve lighting on Central Campus and increase SafeRide hours. I haven’t seen prior candidates pitch something like your “4 Years” initiative, which I think is an interesting approach to helping students succeed.

And to be clear, I don’t want anyone who runs for CSG to fail. Running for a position like this asks a lot, and I respect that you’ve put yourself out there and devoted time to something that, at its best, can make meaningful impacts on campus.

Your platform repeatedly states that your focus is “taking this campus back and giving it to the students,” as well as making sure the University lives up to its name. The thing is, your statements, your rap, your platform exemplify the reasons this campus doesn’t feel like home or like it’s living up to its potential, for me and many other students. If you truly want to represent us, please take criticism like this to heart for your platform as well. This, right now, is the time to be serious.

Shoham Geva is an LSA senior and a former Editor in Chief of the Michigan Daily.

Arts

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

Tuesday, March 21, 2017 — 5

TV REVIEW

FILM REVIEW

John Gallagher Jr. stars in new thriller “The Belko Experiment.”

ORION PICTURES

‘Belko’ puts on a pointless ‘Iron Fist’ stumbles, fails display of turgid violence to establish a new identity Interesting premise proves chilling but empty, leaving viewers Netflix’s new superhero series “Iron Fist.”

without answers to questions broached in new, violent thriller JEREMIAH VANDERHELM Daily Arts Writer

“The Belko Experiment” starts out promisingly enough.

The idea of being locked in an office and forced to kill your fellow employees is chilling, and John Gallagher Jr., after terrific supporting work in “Short Term 12” and “10 Cloverfield Lane,” gives a heroic and endearingly human central performance. The pacing is great, defined by long stretches of tension punctuated by sudden, horrifying violence to create an affecting, if familiar, portrait of human nature at its worst. The absolute high points are the interactions between the workers, though, as they try to levee their workplace relationships into positions of greater power.

“Belko” is at its best in its first half — as it soon abandons all semblance of being a smart thriller in favor of becoming a mindless gorefest. All of the shock and discomfort that accompanied the violence in earlier, better scenes is replaced by a numbness. Nothing that is portrayed on screen has any weight, and this applies most of all to the cast. The side characters that the audience has been following for the entire movie are often killed off before

they are given a chance to affect by the man behind one of the the story in any meaningful way. best and funniest comic book After the umpteenth pointless movies of the last decade, character death, one can only “Belko” stumbles in its writing wonder why writer James Gunn more than anywhere else. He (“Guardians of the Galaxy”) saw tries to inject his signature fit to introduce these characters humor wherever he can, but in the first place. Was it a the jokes, few of which land misguided attempt to make his anyway, can’t contend with the script feel like it had greater harsh, dreary atmosphere. The stakes than it does? As it is, natural questions invited by the most of them are premise cause a cannon fodder, glut of exposition, “The Belko extras of a movie as well, and Experiment” they ostensibly no matter the star in. strengths of Orion Pictures This meanthe performers, Rave Cinemas, spiritedness no one could Goodrich Quality 16 have made the takes its toll after a while, resulting clunky and “The Belko dialogue sound Experiment” natural. becomes a truly joyless slog As “The Belko Experiment” to watch. The moment a dog draws closer to its conclusion, randomly shows up, you there has been so much buildmentally brace yourself for it up to answers to the questions to die horribly, as well. By the viewers have been asking that third act, it has descended into the eventual answer can’t help violence for the sake of violence. but be disappointing. There’s It’s not fun, smart or even all a climax that, like much of the that scary. It’s just sadistic. rest of the late-film action, is Characters do outrageously completely hollow, and it ends bloody battle with slogan like with the textbook sequel“Brings the world together” baiting ending that modern painted on the walls behind horror apparently demands. It them, because director Greg starts with strong footing and McLean (“The Darkness”) ends having fallen flat on its face, thought blatant irony would reaulting in an hour-and-a-half make the proceedings more of turgid, senseless bloodshed. If bearable. It doesn’t. it was saying something unique, In fact, for a film written it might be more worthwhile.

MUSIC NOTEBOOK

Pop music, sexuality and the gay duckling Intersections of sexuality and music, and the ducks in between DANNY MADION For the Daily

When I was four years old, my parents gave each of their three sons a pet duck. You can’t do much with a pet duck, so most of the fun was deciding on a name.

For weeks, my duckling went by two different names: Elvis and Britney (Spears, of course).

Eventually, I firmly settled on Britney, and shortly thereafter she was attacked by a local clan of raccoons and put to rest (may she rest in peace).

Fast-forward 15 years: I sat my parents down in our living room, a short 100 feet away from the scene of Britney’s tragedy, and told them I was gay. Saying “the word” took me a half hour in itself.

I danced around it, using phrases like “my boyfriend” and “dating him” instead. I couldn’t decide if I wanted to articulate my sexuality or not because, just like with Britney’s name, I’d always been an indecisive kid. My parents had hours of questions that evening, but I had just as many for myself.

I remember going back to Ann Arbor for my sophomore year, looking for answers for both myself and my parents thinking, “I have absolutely no idea what I’m doing.”

It was true, I had no idea what

being openly gay meant. But I knew of someone I could ask for help: Britney. No, not Britney the duck, not even Britney Spears herself, but rather Britney as a cultural element — pop stars’ emboldening lyrics and the fan bases they draw.

I’d always lacked a community growing up, never loving sports.

Pop stars filled that space. Akin to how sports unite fans in competition, fandom was my sport. I was a “Little Monster,” which meant that I rooted for Lady Gaga to “win,” whether it was beating Katy Perry on the charts or besting Madonna in critical acclaim. As sports fans read player stats, I researched chart positions. Pop star feuds were my March Madness brackets, Pharrell Williams and Max Martin my Harbaugh.

Fandom gave me the same sense of competition and camaraderie my friends on the football team had, and I developed a love for the communities each artist fostered. When summer came around, and subsequently pop music albums were released, I pledged allegiance to a team; was I a player in Rihanna’s Navy, Beyonce’s Beyhive or even Taylor Swift’s Swifties? Regardless of whose colors I wore, in each team I experienced a culture that was inclusive, fun and, often times,

very queer.

Vibrant stan culture aside, the pop stars I fell in love with offered music that made me feel normal.

Their lyrics were empowering and loud — two adjectives I lacked as a closeted kid in a rural Midwestern town. Pop surges with strong beats, inspiring statements and bold outfits; these flooded me with a multisensory wave of distilled confidence.

I’d grown up obsessing over pop music behemoths like Michael Jackson, Lady Gaga and Prince, all artists whose grandeur and pounding synthesizers injected confidence into my self-image that it lacked on its own.

Prince’s Purple Rain — the first album I purchased when my dad gave me his old turntable — blurred the lines of sexuality and gender, and made me feel okay to be confused. In “I Would Die 4 U,” Prince, an artist both accepted by mainstream culture

NETFLIX

Yet another adaptation in Netflix’s string of superhero successes, “Iron Fist” doesn’t quite know where it is going CONNOR GRADY Daily Arts Writer

Over the past half-decade, superheroes have come to dominate Hollywood. With ten superhero films released from 2015 to 2016, and another 25 slated for release through 2020, there doesn’t appear to be an end in sight for comicbook franchises Marvel and CAPCOM. The latest entry into this superhero universe comes in the form of Netflix’s “Iron Fist,” a television adaptation of the comic-book series of the same name. Slow and lacking a clear direction, “Iron Fist” struggles to develop an identity and craft an entertaining plot capable of exciting viewers.

In the series, protagonist Danny Rand (Finn Jones, “Game of Thrones”) returns to his previous home in New York City after spending 15 years training in martial arts. There, Rand discovers that the business his father co-founded, Rand Corporation, is now ran by his father’s unscrupulous former business partner, and he sets out to regain control of his family’s legacy. “Iron Fist” is held back by its meandering storyline, which is to blame for the show’s sluggish pace.

Seemingly intent on portraying even the most granular, uninteresting details of Rand’s life, the series gives off a leisurely feel, as if it doesn’t care to condense anything. Toward the end of the show’s premiere, in one of the strongest examples of this quality, “Iron Fist” devotes a whole scene to depicting Rand meeting a homeless man named Big Al (Craig Walker, “The Cobbler”) and using his phone to read a news story covering the death of his parents 15 years

and generally deemed “straight,” opens with “I’m not a woman, I’m not a man, I am something you’ll never understand.” I replayed that introduction hundreds of time on my iPod Classic, thinking if mainstream ’80s pop music can accept these lyrics, then 21st century society has to be OK with me.

Even more influential was Lady Gaga’s Born This Way. When it was released, I was in 9th grade and finally beginning to associate the word with how I felt about guys. Songs like “Hair” preached individuality, with Gaga belting, “I just wanna be myself / And I want you to love me for who I am” — I couldn’t have said it any more directly myself. Gaga’s album exuded love, a feeling I needed during a time in my life when I felt displaced. Born This Way was monumental, both critically and on the charts, and its widespread international recognition helped me entertain the concept that

Their lyrics were empowering and loud — two adjectives I lacked as a closeted kid in a rural Midwestern town

prior. Becauase he was on the given Jones’ strong work on plane crash with his parents, “Game of Thrones.” While Jones Rand is already aware of their certainly isn’t the weakest link death, and this — coupled with of the series’s cast, he doesn’t the fact that Big Al later dies in deliver a particularly impressive the episode — makes the entire or meaningful performance, scene feel utterly unnecessary. and he does little to distinguish By subjecting audiences to these Rand among Marvel’s growing meaningless bits of Rand’s life, roster of superheroes.

“Iron Fist” reveals that it has Unfortunately, Jones’ slightly little idea of the type of show above-average interpretation that it wants to be. of Rand represents the best of Along with its lack of identity, the show’s cast, with Jessica “Iron Fist” suffers from writing Stroup (“Prom Night”) and that often spoon-feeds the plot Tom Pelphrey (“Banshee”) to viewers. Despite its gradual disappointing as a brotherpacing, the series sister antagonist constantly works duo. Even Jones’s “Iron Fist” to ensure that former “Game of its storyline is Thrones” co-star, Series Premieres clear, oftentimes Jessica Henwick becoming overly (“Star Wars: The Netflix transparent.

Force Awakens”), Ostensibly, is emotionallythe show perceives itself as restrained in her role. This cast confusing, and hopes to avoid should be better, and it will have audiences developing a similar to improve to keep audience sense. In an almost-comically members’ engaged with the bad instance of “Iron Fist” series. spoon-feeding viewers, Rand is It’s not all bad for “Iron Fist.” attacked by the same menacing The show’s cinematography is security guard, Shannon (Esau well-done and includes several Pritchett, “The Narrows”), gorgeous shots of New York who he fought earlier in the City that portray “Iron Fist” ’s episode. After disarming the diverse backdrop. Avoiding the guard, Rand loudly professes: typical cliché sweeping shots “You’re the security guard from of the Empire State Building or Rand [Corporation]” to identify the city skyline, these scenes Shannon for viewers, but then attempt to highlight the city’s asks him “Who sent you?” not underbelly and the different five-minutes later. Such lines sides of New York. It’s an effectively kill “Iron Fist” ’s interesting take, one that serves momentum and further dilute to almost revitalize and rebrand the show’s quality by preventing a city that has been featured in audiences from experiencing its countless superhero films and storyline naturally. shows alike.

Throughout its marketing While the show may be visuallymaterials for “Iron Fist,” Netflix appealing, “Iron Fist” ’s struggles made a concerted effort to with plotline and pacing highlight Jones’ role as Rand in remain, looming large over the series. As the poster-boy for a series that, in its current the show, Jones’ performance form, doesn’t inspire viewers was used as one of the selling to return beyond the poorlypoints for “Iron Fist,” especially executed pilot.

society would accept me if I was to come out; it was the catalyst for owning my sexuality.

Pop music wasn’t just an internal inspiration though — it also gave me tangible friendships.

This past summer, I packed up my brother’s red Ford Focus and drove from Michigan to L.A. I’d never set foot in the city of Los Angeles before, and the number of people I knew in Southern California could barely be counted on one hand. I was scared.

The first few weeks were lonely; I had no friends and no known avenues to meet people.

I’d come home from work, make dinner and binge-watch “Gilmore Girls” (I finished all seven seasons in less than three weeks). With “Gilmore Girls” finished, I had to stop moping and take the advice a friend of mine: To not be afraid to do things alone.

That week, I met a friend-ofa-friend for a beach concert and began chatting with some of her work friends — Katy Perry had just dropped a single right as Britney debuted “Make Me… ,” and fanbases were shocked, pitting the Britney Army against KatyCats (?!). This offensive single release tactic wasn’t new to KatyCats, as they’d fought a similar battle when Katy released “Roar” in conjunction with Lady Gaga’s “Applause” in 2013. Katy cut into

Gaga’s downloads significantly, tainting the entire album release.

When I received a text about the #drama, I let out an “ohmygosh” under my breath.

Concerned, the friend-of-afriend asked if everything was okay, so I gave him the update.

Immediately, his face flushed: “How could Katy do that to Britney? I’m SHOOK!” The stranger, named Caleb, ended up being one of my best friends for the summer. I went from watching five episodes of “Gilmore Girls” a night alone to spending every weekend on Santa Monica Blvd, where gay bars played music by the very artists that inspired me to go there in the first place. My L.A. experience completely changed because of that simple pop star interaction.

Whenever I reflect on coming out, I think of Britney (the duck).

I so badly wanted to name her Britney, but it would’ve been more socially appropriate to name her Elvis. This dilemma served as an important precursor for my life rolling forward — the notion that my love for music and my identity as a gay man are inseparable. In a way, with every new person I meet and every new workplace I enter, I make a decision. More often than not now, I choose Britney over Elvis.

Arts

6 — Tuesday, March 21, 2017

COMMUNITY CULTURE NOTEBOOK

The abyss (and other reasonable concerns)

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

MUSIC REVIEW

Writer Arya Naidu explores daily matters of life, death, tragedy and risk-taking as it relates to fear and stilted action ARYA NAIDU For the Daily

How lucky is it that, for whatever reason, every once in awhile fate and timing meld together in serendipitous chance to present opportunity?

(There’s a right answer to this: extremely lucky.)

To disregard these instances is complete nonsense, but it’s a trap I fall into sometimes — too many times. Actually, all the time.

Directed by Nick Vitale, Michael Schwartz and storywriter Tyler Nilson, “The Moped Diaries” (2014) is a heartbreakingly stunning depiction of one man’s tumultuous coming-of-age journey through all the ways love kicked him in the shin and picked him back up again.

The 11-minute narrative short film follows Levi, a young boy growing up on Colington Island right off the coast of North Carolina, through the literal and spiritual losses of his parents, his brother and his first love.

Familial love, romantic love, self-love; the story takes turns swiping each away from Levi, leaving one void to be filled by another.

At the end of his grief and the beginning of his resolution, Levi doesn’t just take a chance on his life; he takes a chance on himself. Having grown up to experience the utterly shattering, beautifully wretched sides of relationships, he takes to his moped in a moment of intense clarity. Now, an adult with nowhere to go, he finds solace in the fact that the only place to move is forward. In the last couple minutes of the short, a Wes Anderson-esque sequence of events unfolds as Nilson voices what my heart always knew and my mind was

too afraid to think: “You have to step out into the unknown and just pray the road will rise to meet you. And it will. It has to.”

For an inexcusable length of my life, I’ve pushed off applying for this or going after that with the mindset: What if the reality I’ve dreamed of attaining isn’t what I thought it would be? Or worse, what if I’m not well-suited for it?

Constantly waiting for hopes to become experiences, I have allowed flashes of outstanding

Something I have had to learn the hard way is that there’s no right time to start being the person I’ve always wanted to be

harmony to slip away into “should haves” or “what ifs.”

I’m terrified of the abyss of life because, more than just being inherently daunting, it’s intangibly promising. Of all the lessons Levi’s adventure taught me, one that sticks out most prominently is this: To let heartaches of the past or anxieties for the future dictate current choices is a miraculous misuse of the present.

The summer of 2014, I was frantically searching for something to do with myself when I was struck with a moment of not wanting to do

anything at all. I wasn’t lazy; I was scared. I had my eye on a writing program in Chicago (rather, I had my heart on a writing program in Chicago), and being the dramatic, angsty teen I was, I was stuck in a state of perpetually questioning my own abilities. If I went to this program and I was an epic, absolute, fantastic failure — well that would really suck. But for the first time in my life, I wasn’t an idiot, and I actually applied for this experience.

So, I went, and I wasn’t the worst at it. Finally ignoring the voice in my head that forever thrived on repressing my real dreams for the ones I thought were more practical, I finally hurdled into the type of world I only ever wished I could live in.

Something I have had to learn the hard way is that there’s no right time to start being the person I’ve always wanted to be. The notion that I’m waiting for some optimal moment in which I can launch my life is ridiculous. It has just been a way for me to fool myself into believing that indulging in the fear of living is somehow OK. I call bullshit on all of it.

There’s no perfect moment for anything. Perfection is strived toward and worked for, but it doesn’t actually exist. If it did, the art of risk-taking would disappear. No one in this world has ever achieved anything by sitting around and waiting for life to happen to them, and the future is only as full as you allow yourself to make it.

The greatest experiences are a result of surrendering to the wildest possibilities.

Tragedy doesn’t spare anyone, but neither does joy. I might as well stop fearing the abyss because the abyss will not cease to exist until I do. At some point, at this point, I’ve just got to strap on my helmet, get on my moped and begin.

Classifieds RELEASE DATE– Tuesday, March 21, 2017

Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle

FOR RENT

DOWN 1 Impressed with 2 Words when the blindfold comes off 3 Japanese balland-cups toy 4 Passports, e.g.

5 Enter slowly 6 Foppish neckwear 7 Besmirch 8 Summer hrs. at Yankee Stadium 9 Thumbs-down vote 10 Eva or Zsa Zsa 11 Out for a midday meal 12 The one without the patch, for Bazooka Joe 13 Dueler’s cry 18 “Puppy Love” singer Paul 22 Excel in one’s career 25 Ono from Tokyo 26 Low-__ diet 28 Mork’s planet 32 Med. condition that may involve excessive handwashing 35 Apple desktops

36 Bogotá boy 37 Glittery rock genre 38 Help 39 Refurbished 40 Protective plastic film 41 Fanatically devoted 44 Cleaver user 45 Agenda start 46 Neural transmission point

49 __ pine: paneling wood 50 Gomer of TV 52 Corn breads 53 “Les Misérables” city 54 Not clueless 60 Col. Sanders’ chain 61 __ carte 62 Atlanta-based public health org.

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COOKING VINYL

Sorority Noise’s latest combines depth and hope Third album You’re Not As ____ As You Think pushes modern emo forward as the band reaches new heights DOMINIC POLSINELLI Daily Arts Writer

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ACROSS 1 __ torch: party light 5 Gone from one’s plate 10 “Eleni” author Nicholas 14 Nailed, as a test 15 Carne __: taco filling 16 Loads (of) 17 *Home of baseball’s Royals 19 Online journal 20 Terminate 21 Sign light 22 Dutch cheese 23 Federal hushhush org.

24 *Diagonally 27 Lament 29 Clod 30 “Silk Stockings” actress Charisse 31 Wine collector’s datum 32 Gumbo vegetable 33 Laugh half 34 *Large venomous snake 39 Young fellow 42 Opposite of spicy 43 Nile wading bird 47 Here, in Haiti 48 Santa __ winds 49 GI’s mess work 51 *Hang out (with) 55 X, in old Rome 56 Cultural spirit 57 Not on base when req.

58 Org. whose awards ceremony Vince Gill hosted or co-hosted from 1992-2003 59 Indian bread 60 *Martial arts move 63 Raison d’__ 64 Exchange suggestive glances, say 65 Cub scout units 66 Marries 67 Strikeout victim of poetry, and a phonetic hint to the answers to starred clues 68 Canadian tribe

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album largely deals with death, “drinking up whiskey and but it is less depressing than it cokes,” Boucher unabashedly is thoughtful and uplifting. reveals his carefree attitude The album opener “No of the afterlife and religion, Halo” follows the story of and this nonchalance feels Boucher visiting the home of fits comfortably in the album. a friend who had committed At his most raw take on suicide a year earlier. religion, Boucher pokes fun Boucher takes this morose at circumstantial misfortune tale and gives it a hauntingly with the line “It’s been awhile human contemplation on since I’ve seen God / And I’m existentialism. “So when you not trying to lead him on / But show up to my funeral / Will he’s always trying to fuck me to you be wearing white or black?” the tune of my favorite song.” asks Boucher Boucher expertly — questions ties humor You’re Not As and sadness in whether death should be reflections, and _____ As You celebratory the lines shine Think or mournful. brightly among Boucher has the pop melodies.

Sorority Noise proved his Still, Sorority impressive Noise hasn’t Cooking Vinyl growth in turned its back his skillful on the tender, songwriting quiet tunes since the band’s debut album they’re also known for. “A Forgettable. Moving beyond the Better Sun” softly sends nods basic self-loathing associated to Boucher’s friends and with emo music, Boucher asks influences in Modern Baseball, questions about this sadness, Julien Baker and many others. forcing the listener into his In an interview with Uproxx, head to contemplate what he Boucher notes that this track contemplates. stems from his education in Boucher opens the most jazz music, showcasing his anthemic track on the record diverse, multi-faceted approach “Disappeared” with “I took to songwriting by applying some time to myself / To sort jazz principles to the acoustic out all the things that make side of his music. “Leave The me feel the way that I feel.” Fan On” is most similar to the With this track, Boucher again tense “Your Soft Blood” from asks questions by reflecting their sophomore record Joy, about the permanence of Departed. These tracks act as a death — the complete severing jarring pacemaker, reminding of a personal connection and the listener that Boucher how viscerally it can be felt. isn’t immune to the more It’s the beginning of a lightly melancholic side of existence. sung track that builds into an As You Think is an album explosive chorus: a technique that is fully on par with what that Sorority Noise has nearly we know from Sorority Noise. perfected. Boucher knows On the surface, it’s a diverse, exactly how to craft a song that fun album to listen to. But begs for deafening sing-alongs, at its core, it is a haunting a common occurrence at nearly look at the human reaction every Sorority Noise show I’ve to death. As the members of attended.

Sorority Noise continue to The album also features develop as musicians, they’ve an interestingly tongue-in- grown beyond a genre that can cheek religious undertone. easily pigeonhole artists to Multiple songs reference less prolific work. Their third Christian figures in a light- record is an exciting milestone hearted manner.

From in modern emo, and with it “shooting jumpers with Jesus, Sorority Noise has begun to Mary, and Joseph” to angels cement its place at the top.

HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT TOXIC MASCULINITY? HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT BRITNEY SPEARS’ SEMINAL CLASSIC “TOXIC”?

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The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

Sports

Tuesday, March 21, 2017 — 7

Hutchins hits 1,500-win milestone MAX MARCOVITCH Daily Sports Writer

In locking up a routine run-rule victory over Kent State, 11-3, in the first game of a doubleheader on Sunday, Michigan coach Carol Hutchins became the first college softball coach in history to reach 1,500 career wins.

But after the game, senior centerfielder Kelly Christner and junior first baseman Aidan Falk — brows raised — shared a bewildered look upon hearing the news.

“I didn’t even know,” Christner said.

“We had no clue,” Falk added.

Hutchins f lies under the radar as much as a coach with her pedigree can. The magnitude of her accomplishments can often go unnoticed, often by her own insistence.

“I just want to win the game,” Hutchins said. “The only game I care about is the game we’re playing. I don’t count wins. I don’t win any games. I’m just the coach, they win the games.”

After a momentary pause to allow for proper context, though, Christner emphasized the low-profile nature of Hutchins’ monumental accomplishment.

“The fact that none of us even knew that it was her 1,500th… I think that says a lot about her as a coach, that she’s not worried about that, she doesn’t care about that. She’s focused on the team we have right now.”

While Hutchins is quick to def lect the credit of her bigpicture feat to her players, the nitty gritty of her coaching prowess lies in the smaller details throughout each game.

With the offense sputtering in the fourth inning of the final game of the weekend in

what seemed to be another lackluster performance against Kent State ace Ronnie Ladines — who held it to just two hits in Saturday’s contest — Hutchins held a lengthy meeting with the whole team outside the dugout. Her demeanor in the huddle signaled an unhappy tone.

“I think (the meeting) was more just talking about our at-bats and how we really needed to see the ball deep and let the ball get there because we were all just early,” Falk said. “So that was the main focus, just on the offensive side. I think after that we did pick it up.”

Added Hutchins: “I know how well these kids can hit.

I watch them every day, and they’ve been tight endlessly throughout the season and trying too hard, and it’s not working for us. So they really need to just relax and believe that their swings’ good enough.”

And when she talks, the Wolverines listen.

The Michigan offense immediately responded in the bottom of the fourth inning to break the 0-0 tie. Falk keyed a 3-run rally with a slicing double down the left field line to score the first two runs of the game.

The 3-run inning would be plenty for Michigan ace Megan Betsa, who completed her second shutout of the weekend in the Wolverines’ 3-0 win.

In the first inning of the second game of the doubleheader, Christner — who, prior to the game, hadn’t had a hit in her last nine at bats — fouled off a pitch down the first base line. The lefty immediately turned her attention to the third base side, where Hutchins was flailing her body and arms in a swinging motion, as if to symbolize Christner’s imbalance at the plate.

Christner’s single in the bottom of the fourth — notably to the opposite field — was key

to the three-run Wolverine rally that would prove more than enough to extend Hutchins’ win total to 1,501.

Inarguably one of the most — if not the most — successful coaches in softball history, Hutchins’ accomplishments speak for themselves.

Thirty-three seasons and 1,501 wins. Twlelve Women’s College World Series appearances. Nineteen Big Ten titles. The winningest coach in Michigan athletic and NCAA softball history.

But to Falk and Christner, their coach means a whole lot more than just her numbers.

“It’s kind of us taking it as it goes and really embracing what we have—what we’re blessed to have — that a lot of other teams dont,” Falk said.

“I think (Hutchins is) making us better women as well.

Everyday that we come in here, I can feel myself being better — being a better person, being better overall.”

FILE PHOTO/Daily

Michigan coach Carol Hutchins became the only softball coach in NCAA history to reach 1,500 victories Sunday.

ICE HOCKEY

Kile signs pro contract Michigan’s former forward joins Rochester Americans of the AHL ORION SANG

Daily Sports Editor

On Monday, it was announced that Alex Kile of the Michigan hockey team signed a contract with the Rochester Americans of the American Hockey League for the 2017-18 season. The former Wolverine will also finish the remainder of this season with the Americans on an Amateur Tryout.

The news comes less than a week after Michigan’s 4-1 loss to No. 11 Penn State in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament.

The loss officially ended Kile’s college career — an ending that he would be the first to admit was unexpected.

As one of two captains and the team’s returning leader in points, the senior forward entered the year as the new face of the Michigan hockey team.

Expectations were thrust upon him to help carry the Wolverine offense — a unit that suffered drastic losses from NHL departures following the 201516 season.

Kile (and Michigan), though, could never quite seem to get going. He tallied just 14 points — his lowest output since his freshman year — while dealing with multiple injuries that limited his playing time.

Despite the difficulties of his senior year, there were still moments when Kile flashed signs of the player many expected him to be. Against Michigan Tech on Oct. 22, Kile recorded his first

goal of the season in a stunning fashion, deking past multiple defensemen — sliding to his knees in the process — before putting one past the goaltender.

Three of his seven goals on the year came against in-state rival Michigan State. And in a 5-3 win over then-No. 5 Minnesota on March 3, Kile turned in a masterful performance, recording one goal and two assists.

And while his career at Michigan is now over, Kile will get a chance to prove his senior season was just a fluke almost immediately with Rochester.

The Americans — an affiliate of the Buffalo Sabres — are getting a player who worked hard to improve his craft over his four years in Ann Arbor. As part of a large and impressive recruiting class, Kile flew under the radar as an undrafted player. He had to fight to find ice time in his first year, carving out a part-time role and appearing in 28 games, where he tallied four goals and two assists.

He had a breakout campaign the following year as a sophomore, recording 13 goals and assists each, before reaching career-highs of 16 goals and 18 assists as a junior, helping his team return to the NCAA Tournament.

Kile remained close with his classmates, even as some — like JT Compher, Tyler Motte and Michael Downing — chose to leave early for the NHL. Now, he’ll have a shot to join them at the next level.

“Now, he’ll have a shot to join them at the next level”

Pitching staff taking Michigan learning to win close games in WNIT shape for Wolverines

BASEBALL

NATHANIEL CLARK Daily Sports Writer

PAIGE VOEFFRAY Daily Sports Writer

After a stellar performance over spring break in California, the Michigan baseball team could feel confident in its team, especially those on the mound.

Highlights from the trip out west included the Wolverine pitching staff – led by junior right-hander Ryan Nutof – notching 12 strikeouts in the game against Southern California to tie a season high. Even in Michigan’s heartbreaking loss to UCLA, the strong effort from junior left-hander Oliver Jaskie on the mound – where he pitched six scoreless innings, struck out six batters and allowed four walks and just three hits – was a silver lining for the team.

But when the Wolverines returned to Ray Fisher Stadium for their opening weekend at home against Northern Illinois, they didn’t exit the weekend with the same confidence they entered with.

In the first inning of the series Thursday, Jaskie walked one batter in four pitches and gave up two hits and two runs.

Fortunately for Michigan, the lefty eventually pulled out the win due to an offensive surge by his teammates.

Nutof was the starter for the second game of the series Saturday and didn’t have any more success than Jaskie. He allowed eight hits and seven runs through 4.2 innings to make him 1-1 on the year.

After a sluggish start to the series, Sunday’s doubleheader returned some of the Wolverines’ optimism in the pitching staff. Twelve pitchers

saw the field and gained crucial experience going into Big Ten play this weekend.

“We got a lot of guys some opportunities,” said Michigan coach Erik Bakich. “I thought it was important to give some guys that haven’t pitched in a while, we’ve got some guys who haven’t pitched since California, spring break, that needed some innings, needed to face another jersey.

“And so to get them back out there and see them compete, I thought everyone who went in there did a good job.”

Even those players that were only in the game for an inning were still able to make a difference. Freshman righthander Karl Kauffman came in as a reliever for 1.1 innings, but only gave up one hit and earned two strikeouts.

“I thought everybody did a good job attacking the strike zone and letting their defense make plays behind them,” Bakich said.

Not every pitcher had to rely on the defense, though. Senior right-hander Mac Lozer came into the game in the seventh inning and stayed in for just 0.2 innings. Of the two batters he faced, he sent both of them back into the dugout while his team just stood by and watched.

While the relievers proved to be mostly successful, many threw only minimal pitches.

The experience was good, but most of them entered late in the game when the Wolverines had the lead as a cushion.

Entering conference play might test the relievers more and force the starters to come out focused right from the first pitch.

“I thought everyone who went in there did a good job”

In each of the past two seasons, the Michigan women’s basketball team’s stated goal of securing a berth in the NCAA Tournament was derailed by one common factor: losses in close games.

Last year, the Wolverines dropped six contests by 10 or fewer points, which ultimately relegated them to the Women’s National Invitation Tournament. While Michigan had just three similar defeats this season, a 76-75 loss at Penn State in the last game of the regular season is likely what doomed the Wolverines’ tournament hopes.

But one encouraging sign has emerged in Michigan’s WNIT wins over Kent State on Thursday and Wright State on Saturday. In both games, the Wolverines withstood a late surge by the other team and held

on for a victory.

“Survive and advance,” said Michigan coach Kim Barnes Arico. “I think in a tournament it’s a great experience to be put in this position. I think that will definitely give us confidence moving forward.”

Against the Golden Flashes, Michigan raced out to a 43-22 halftime advantage thanks in large part to its suffocating defense. Kent State converted a mere 18.8 percent of its shots in the first two quarters.

Then the Golden Flashes started making shots, which allowed them to pull within five points of the Wolverines with two minutes left in the game.

It appeared Michigan’s season might have been heading for a disastrous finish.

The Wolverines lived to play another day, though. Senior guard Siera Thompson sank four free throws and freshman guard Kysre Gondrezick made a layup in the waning minutes,

propelling Michigan to a 67-60 triumph.

The situation was even scarier for the Wolverines against the Raiders. Michigan built another 20-point lead in the first half, but Wright State fought back to take a 64-63 edge with just under five minutes left in the fourth quarter. Michigan’s season was on the line once more.

This time, it was sophomore center Hallie Thome and junior forward Jillian Dunston to the rescue for the Wolverines. The duo combined for six points down the stretch and secured a 71-66 win for Michigan.

“Fatigue is just a state of mind.

You can always push through it,” Dunston said. “I think it was just, things were going our way and then we kind of let things slip that we don’t normally.”

For now, the Wolverines’ goal is to win the WNIT. It would be a noteworthy accomplishment, as it would allow Michigan to hang its first banner in Crisler

Center.

But the WNIT games also provide the Wolverines an opportunity to think about long-term aspirations. Four of Michigan’s five starters — including all three of its All-Big Ten players — are scheduled to return next season.

Undoubtedly, securing an NCAA berth and erasing the sting from this year’s snub will be priority number one for the returning players.

If the Wolverines can learn from the experience of winning these close WNIT games, and turn contests like the Penn State loss into wins, Michigan will have a very good chance to go dancing at this time next year.

“We were put in these situations plenty of times last year and we didn’t get a single (game),” Dunston said. “This year we’ve learned to deal with it. There’s been a ton of growth from last year. Everyone is a year older.”

CLAIRE MEINGAST/Daily

Michigan coach Kim Barnes Arico and the Wolverines managed to win two games in crunch time against Kent State and Wright State in the WNIT.

Sports

8 — Tuesday, March 21, 2017

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

Breaking down the Sweet Sixteen THE MICHIGAN DAILY BASKETBALL BEAT The Michigan men’s basketball team defeated No. 2 Louisville, 73-69, on Sunday — clinching a spot in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament.

Now, the Wolverines will travel to Kansas City to take on No. 3 Oregon before potential matchups with No. 1 Kansas or a rematch with No. 4 Purdue, a team that Michigan has already beaten twice this season.

The Daily breaks down all eight games that will take place either Thursday or Friday for spots in the Elite Eight.

Midwest Region - Kansas City, Mo. No. 7 Michigan vs No. 3 Oregon If the Wolverines’ run to the Sweet 16 isn’t impressive enough, the way they have done so certainly is.

In its first-round matchup with Oklahoma State, Michigan dialed shots up from beyond the arc time and time again.

After sinking 11-of-15 from deep in the second half, the Wolverines managed to win a shootout against the Cowboys — who entered the game as the top-ranked team in adjusted offensive efficiency according to Ken Pomeroy.

And on Sunday, the Wolverines kept rolling, defeating the Cardinals at Bankers Life Fieldhouse to give John Beilein his first win against Rick Pitino since 2005.

Unlike Friday’s matchup, this time, Michigan pounded the paint. Sophomore forward Moritz Wagner finished with a game-high 26 points on 11-for14 shooting — becoming the first Wolverine to score 25 points on 75 percent shooting in the NCAA Tournament since Chris Webber did so in 1993.

Michigan keeps finding more and more ways to score, and that is far from an encouraging sign for a sputtering Oregon team.

The Ducks got into the Sweet 16 by the skin of their teeth — eking out a 75-72 win over Rhode Island with the help of Tyler Dorsey’s 3-pointer with 38 seconds left to play.

Through its first two games of the tournament, though,

EVAN AARON/Daily

The Michigan men’s basketball team has an opportunity to keep its season alive in Kansas City, Mo., as the Wolverines will face Oregon in search of a victory that would send them to the Elite Eight.

Oregon has reeled in 76 rebounds. Though 41 of those came against No. 14 seed Iona, if there’s a key to attacking the Wolverines it’s on the glass.

No. 1 Kansas vs No. 4 Purdue If Michigan can manage to get by the Ducks, it will face the winner of Kansas and Purdue in the Elite Eight.

Purdue forward Caleb Swanigan continues to show why he was the Big Ten Player of the Year, as he scored 36 points and grabbed 26 boards through the opening weekend. More notably, 20 of those points and 12 of the rebounds came against No. 5 seed Iowa State. With Isaac Haas also at the Boilmakers’ disposal, they will likely try to counteract the Jayhawks’ strong guard play.

That will be easier said than done.

“The Ducks got into the Sweet 16 by the skin of their teeth”

When it comes to Kansas, there may not be a hotter team in basketball. Between its matchups with UC Davis and Michigan State, the Jayhawks have won by an average margin of 29. Guards Frank Mason III and Josh Jackson continue to thrive, as the two are averaging 21 and 20 points per game through the opening weekend, respectively.

This one will come down to whether or not Purdue can f lip Kansas’ game plan on its head, but with the way the Jayhawks are playing, that isn’t looking likely.

East Region - New York, N.Y. No. 8 Wisconsin vs No. 4 Florida Comparing the paths these two teams took to the Big Apple almost seems unfair. Florida would have been expected to play at Madison Square Garden.

Wisconsin is lucky to have made it out of Buffalo.

After losing in the first round of the SEC Tournament, the Gators had five days of rest before their first NCAA Tournament matchup. Facing No. 13 East Tennessee State and No. 5 Virginia in its opening weekend, Florida had no trouble dispatching either opponent, toppling both by a combined 41-point margin.

Meanwhile, the Badgers needed to make five free throws in the final 37 seconds to beat No. 9 Virginia Tech, and then snuck past No. 1 overall seed Villanova off a go-ahead layup from forward Nigel Hayes with just 12 seconds left.

Both have a reasonable degree of momentum, as the Gators are on a roll and Wisconsin is used to tough contests. Whichever team can generate the most Friday night will likely stick around for another game in New York City.

No. 3 Baylor vs No. 7 South Carolina Both of these teams have faced a mixed bag of ease and adversity in their opening weekend of the tournament.

From blowing out their first opponents to outlasting their subsequent foes, Baylor and South Carolina seem to be on a similar trajectory despite being four seeds apart.

The Bears and Gamecocks posted nearly identical scores in their first round matchups, as Baylor defeated No. 14 New Mexico State, 91-73, and South Carolina beat No. 10 Marquette, 93-73.

In the second round, the Bears pulled away from No. 11 USC in the final five minutes and the Gamecocks surged past No. 2 Duke in the second half.

The major difference in that regard is South Carolina pulled off the upset while Baylor was almost upset itself.

Though both sides are ranked in the top 50 for scoring margin, the Bears have the advantage at 10.1 to the Gamecocks’ 7.9.

However, South Carolina might have another upset in store Friday.

South Region - Memphis, Tenn.

No. 1 North Carolina vs No. 4 Butler North Carolina and Butler are two teams coming off polar opposite games in the second round. The Tar Heels barely squeaked by No. 9 Arkansas in a game where they trailed by five with three minutes remaining.

But off the back of 19 points from forward Kennedy Meeks, the Tar Heels prevailed.

“South Carolina might have another upset in store Friday”

Butler, on the other hand, is coming off a relatively easy victory over No. 12 Middle Tennessee, shooting 51.1 percent in the game and 53.3 percent from behind the arc.

The Tar Heels will have the size advantage, giving them the upper hand on the boards. But if the Bulldogs continue to shoot well, as they have in the tournament so far, North Carolina could be in trouble.

No. 3 UCLA vs No. 2 Kentucky Kentucky and UCLA are both coming off tough matchups against double-digit seeds with wins over No. 10 Wichita State and No. 11 Cincinnati, respectively, in the second round. The two teams have met already once this season, with the Bruins pulling off a 97-92 upset in Lexington with UCLA forward TJ Leaf putting on a spectacular 17-point, 13-rebound performance.

Three months later, the two teams will meet again, when the stakes will be much greater than a non-conference game in December.

The Bruins are coming off a game where their star point guard Lonzo Ball had arguably his best performance in the past month, putting up a statline of 18 points and 9 assists — all of which came in the second half — to lead UCLA past the Bearcats.

Kentucky survived a nailbiter over the Shockers, in which the Wildcats’ freshmen trio of guards Malik Monk and De’Aaron Fox and forward Bam Adebayo led the team to victory.

Look for the battle between the point guards (Fox and Ball) to dictate the pace of the game.

Both teams play up tempo and score a lot of points, which was evident in their last matchup, and will make for one of the more entertaining of the eight games to watch.

West Regional - San Jose, Calif.

No. 1 Gonzaga vs. No. 4 West Virginia On paper it’s looking like Thursday’s matchup between the Bulldogs and Mountaineers is going to be a low-scoring affair. Gonzaga has the nation’s No. 1 scoring defense, while West Virginia forces opposing offenses into committing more turnovers than any other team in the country.

The Mountaineers

experienced some drama in the first weekend, pulling out a tight contest against Bucknell with a six-point win, and followed that up with a more comfortable 12-point victory over Notre Dame. Junior point guard Jevon Carter had 24 points in the later of the Mountaineers’ wins.

His matchup with Gonzaga point guard Nigel Williams-Goss promises to be entertaining and to largely shape what happens in Thursday’s game.

The Bulldogs nearly blew a 22-point lead against Northwestern over the weekend, and are hoping that close one can be a wakeup call for the team that lost just once in the regular season. Gonzaga will need more from its 7-foot1 center Przemek Karnowski, who scored just nine points versus the Wildcats. He’s expected to be the key player for the Bulldogs against an undersized West Virginia squad.

No. 2 Arizona vs. No. 11 Xavier The Musketeers are the tournament’s lowest remaining seed, but proved against No. 3 seed Florida State they are capable of taking anyone down. In one of the most onesided games of the second round, Xavier absolutely blew out the Seminoles.

Forward Trevon Bluiett led the way for the Musketeers with 29 points. That was Bluiett’s encore performance to a 21-point night in Xavier’s first round matchup with Maryland.

But the Wildcats have multiple players who have the talent and ability to put an end to Bluiett’s hot streak. Forward Rawle Alkins and guard Alonzo Trier have contained some of the Pac-12’s best small forwards all season long, and will hope to do the same with Bluiett and score some points at the same time. Forward Lauri Markkanen posted a doubledouble in Arizona’s second round game with St. Mary’s with 16 points and 11 rebounds, and will look to have another efficient day at the post.

The Musketeers do play a stretch-four, which could challenge Markkanen and the Wildcats on the perimeter. But Arizona has enough weapons to neutralize that threat, and can do so with both solid post play and outside shooting that could be too much for Xavier to overcome.

“Kentucky survived a nailbiter over the Shockers”

“Gonzaga has the nation’s No. 1 scoring defense”