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Friday, March 13, 2015
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ROTNOFSKY/MANDALAPU
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STATE
Legislature to prioritize education this session By Eleanor Dearman @EllyDearman
Marshall Tidrick | Daily Texan Staff
Supporters of the Rotnofsky-Mandalapu campaign lift up Student Government president-elect Xavier Rotnofsky after the runoff election results were announced Thursday evening. Rotnofsky and vice president-elect Rohit Mandalapu received 59.2 percent of the vote.
President-elect: ‘We need a baby to kiss’ By Samantha Ketterer @sam_kett
Xavier Rotnofsky and Rohit Mandalapu won the Student Government executive alliance race Thursday with 59.2 percent of the vote after three weeks of intense campaigning against Braydon Jones and Kimia Dargahi. Rotnofsky and Mandalapu, whose platform was largely satirical in nature, ran the most successful humor campaign
the University has seen in decades. Their platform included items such as asking that SG officers wear all-cellophane outfits — to increase transparency — and a promise to open up an on-campus Chili’s. “It’s a bizarre feeling, but it’s so validating,” Rotnofsky said. The race between JonesDargahi and Rotnofsky-Mandalapu generated significant student interest. In the runnoff election, 9,445 students cast votes, besting last spring’s
overall election turnout by about 1,600 votes. Jones said he and Dargahi ran a strong campaign, and said he looks forward to seeing what the pair will accomplish in office. “I’m so proud of everything we did in this campaign,” Jones said. “I know [Rotnofsky and Mandalapu] have a big learning curve, but they’ll do great.” Although most of their campaign materials were humorous in nature, the cam-
paign became more serious as it gained momentum, and Rotnofsky and Mandalapu gave substantive answers to certain questions. “We strongly oppose Campus Carry and would work with students and administrators to show that the university is strongly opposed to such legislation,” the team wrote in a University Democrats questionnaire.
RUNOFF page 2
RESEARCH
BY THE NUMBERS 9,445 total votes 1,623 more than 2014 59.2% voted for Rotnofsky–Mandalapu
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As last-minute bills rush in before the 6:00 p.m. filing deadline Friday, House and Senate committee chairs said they consider higher education funding to be this session’s legislative priority. Members are allowed to file bills through the first 60 days of the legislative session. After those 60 days are up, the session becomes more fast-paced, Rep. John Zerwas (R-Richmond) said. Bills go in and out of committees and can come up for a vote on the Senate or House floors. Zerwas, who is chair of the House higher education committee, said there is typically an increase in the number of bills filed in the legislature as the deadline nears. “The deadline always brings a flurry of activity,” Zerwas said. “There are interest groups out there that realize, all of the sudden, that they don’t have anything and they come in desperately asking to get something in.” While the number of bills filed is increasing, Zerwas said he does not anticipate the filing of any major new pieces of legislation. “I think we have seen most everything that is kind of highprofile or a high-priority issue among the members of the house,” Zerwas said. Sen. Kel Seliger (R-Amarillo) said his committee is not looking to take on any more higher
BILLS page 2
STATE
Worms aid in anti-alcoholism research By Sebastian Herrera @SebasAHerrera
A team of UT neuroscience researchers found a way to create mutant worms that can resist the effects of alcohol, a discovery that might one day lead to improved treatment for people who suffer from alcoholism. Neuroscience assistant professor Jon Pierce-Shimomura discussed the research, which was published online in July, earlier this week in a podcast for The Academic Minute. In the podcast, PierceShimomura, who oversaw the project, said his team found a way to mutate a worm’s molecules so that alcohol that usually sticks to a molecule on a brain cell is blocked. This means when the mutated worm is later given alcohol, it won’t show effects of intoxication. While the research is still in the testing phase and it will be many years before it can be applied for practical use, it might eventually lead to a drug that counteracts the addictive and intoxicating affects of alcohol, Pierce-Shimomura said.
Anybody that works in research on nonhumans — there are going to be problems and obstacles.
Andy Nguyen | Daily Texan Staff
Government junior Rachel Osterloh was appointed as the president of the Senate of College councils on Thursday night.
—Sarah Nordquist, Neuroscience graduate student
The research for the project began about five years ago and has involved rigorous testing, according to Luisa Scott, a University research associate who worked on the project with Pierce-Shimomura. “Alcohol has a lot of protein targets, and we’re interested in understanding how some of those targets contribute to intoxication, with an overall goal of being able to treat people with alcohol abuse,” Scott said. “A better understanding of how these proteins work can enable us to design a drug or some other variety of manipulation that would be able to prevent people from getting intoxicated.”
Illustration by Victoria Smith | Daily Texan Staff
Scott said if a drug one day exists that combats the effects of alcohol, people might be able to drink without getting drunk. Scott said medication that can better assist alcoholics in this manner is still years away. Worms are useful for medical research, because structures of the relevant molecules are identical across all organisms, according to Sarah Nordquist, a neuroscience graduate student who witnessed the study. Still, more research on the factors that impact an individual’s reaction to alcohol — a person’s tolerance level, for example, or the way they
deal with cravings — will ultimately be necessary for the research to have practical medical applications. “Anybody that works in research on non-humans — there are going to be problems and obstacles,” Nordquist said. If the research eventually leads to a medication that helps alcoholics, that would be a major scientific development, biology and psychology sophomore Kalisi Logan said. “Though we’ve mapped the human genome, if we’re able to transfer a mutation from a worm to a human to treat a disease, that would be great,” Logan said.
Senate elects members to next executive board By Vinesh Kovelamudi @trippyvinnie3
Following a few weeks of campaigning within the Senate of College Councils, the Senate appointed members to the 2015–2016 executive board Thursday night. Rachel Osterloh won the presidential race; Meagan Abel was elected vice president; Grace Zhang was elected financial director. Osterloh, a government junior who is currently
NEWS
OPINION
SPORTS
LIFE&ARTS
ONLINE
Computing project will be the largest in America. ONLINE
SG should not give an opinion on Israel. PAGE 3
Basketball falls to Iowa State on last-second shot. PAGE 5
Austin hostels are at fulloccupancy for SXSW. PAGE 6
ClickHole editor and Onion writer speaks on reporting.
Former governor donates papers to Briscoe Center. ONLINE
Jefferson Davis statue is not a symbol of racism. PAGE 3
Women’s track and field set for shot at redemption. PAGE 5
Media label Raw Paw represents Austin artists. PAGE 6
Students learn languages through roleplay. dailytexanonline.com
president of the Liberal Arts Council, was elected president with 10 votes out of a total 14 votes cast. Three voting members abstained. Osterloh said she hopes to reach out to students across the University during her time as president. “I want to ensure that all students have the opportunity to be heard by Senate and know that they have advocates that will fight for them and their interests,” Osterloh said.
SENATE page 2
REASON TO PARTY
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Volume 115, Issue 119
CONTACT US Main Telephone (512) 471-4591 Editor-in-Chief Riley Brands (512) 232-2212 editor@dailytexanonline.com Managing Editor Jordan Rudner (512) 232-2217 managingeditor@ dailytexanonline.com News Office (512) 232-2207 news@dailytexanonline.com Multimedia Office (512) 471-7835 dailytexanmultimedia@ gmail.com Sports Office (512) 232-2210 sports@dailytexanonline.com Life & Arts Office (512) 232-2209 dtlifeandarts@gmail.com Retail Advertising (512) 475—6719 advertise@texasstudentmedia.com
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Lil Freeman kneels down and prays outside of a club on Fourth Street on Thursday afternoon. Freeman was praying in hopes of a better life.
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continues from page 1 The Texan strives to present all information fairly, accurately and completely. If we have made an error, let us know about it. Call (512) 232-2217 or e-mail managingeditor@ dailytexanonline.com.
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There’s probably red dye in that.
The Rotnofsky-Mandalapu platform also included a bill the pair already introduced to SG, calling for the removal of the Jefferson Davis statue on-campus. The statue’s presence became one of the most talked-about issues of the election season. “To put him on a pedestal, quite literally, is wrong,” Rotnofsky told the Texan. They also took some questions slightly less than seriously: When asked how they would establish a strong relationship with the next UT president, Rotnofsky suggested they would invite the president for brunch and mimosas — but clarified the mimosas would have to wait until he turns 21, the legal drinking age, in June. At the SG debate, Mandalapu said the biggest issue SG faces is “being relevant to 90 percent of the school” and reaching out to smaller student groups. “You would be wrong if you said Student Government wasn’t heavily [composed of]
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spirit groups and Greek life — that’s a big demographic group,” Mandalapu said. “I feel like there are times when certain minority groups aren’t reached out to, and they don’t get full representation in Student Government.” Over the course of the campaign, the alliance maintained an active, vocal presence on social media. They released footage of themselves courting endorsements from fast-food restaurants and produced an attack ad against themselves. Yik Yak, an anonymous social media app, played a significant role in Rotnofsky and Mandalapu’s victory, according to Chris Gilman, Texas Travesty editor-in-chief. “In the past couple days, Xavier and Rohit have barely actually gone out and campaigned themselves — it’s literally just been people we don’t even know going and vouching for them,” Gilman said. Arjun Mocherla, who was an agent on the Jones-Dargahi campaign, said he was pleased with the increase in voter turnout. “I think Xavier and Rohit proved that you can’t just do the same old thing and do it better — you have to do something really different,” said Mocherla, who is also vice president of the Texas Student Media Board. Biochemistry sophomore Kamia Rathore said she thinks Rotnofsky and Mandalapu’s humor and enthusiasm will change students’ perceptions of SG. “They made campus excited about elections, which is something that’s really rare to see,” Rathore said. “They have fresh and exciting ideas, and they show that they can have a good time while they’re talking about them, too.”
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continues from page 1 education bills. “We pretty much have everything we can do a good job on this legislative session,” Seliger said. “You have to keep in mind there are bills that we have filed, and there will be a good number of bills that we will carry once they pass the House of Representatives.” One of the House committee’s goals, the Hazlewood Act, addresses tuition exemptions for state military veterans. At the end of January, a U.S. district court judge ruled that veterans who served in the military as non-Texas residents would be eligible for the tuition exemptions available to native Texas veterans if they established residency in the state. Other priority initiatives for the House committee include improving student graduation rates, which will save students money in the long-term,
SENATE
continues from page 1 Osterloh’s goals include fostering conversations regarding gender equity, making transcripts more easily accessible online and updating the registrar. Abel, an English senior and this year’s administrative director, said she hopes to make a real impact on campus as vice president. “Let’s cut the bullshit; let’s get to work,” Abel said. “I truly believe that this year we can do some real good for this campus.” Abel said one of her platform points is making
HIGHER EDUCATION BILLS
Zerwas said. Some proposed methods include making it easier for students to get college credit through transfer courses and lowering the bar for Advanced Placement scores acceptable for credit. Rep. Donna Howard (DAustin), vice chair of the Senate Higher Education Committee, said some of the most publicized issues the legislature is facing — the renewal of the Texas Dream Act and Campus Carry — will not be discussed within the higher education committee, since they have such broad implications relevant to a number of other committees. “[The speaker of the house makes] determinations, probably from a variety of standpoints, [about which committee hears which bill] … but there are also, what you could call political reasons, and certainly more global reasons that it might go elsewhere,” Howard said. Howard said she cannot
fully predict whether the Campus Carry bill or Dream Act bill will pass at this point. According to Seliger, Senate priorities include allocating tuition revenue bonds, which are bonds to build buildings that are funded partially from the state and partially from tuition, as well as research funding. Seliger said, to a certain extent, the committee receives their priorities and sets them according to the needs voiced by universities. “The priorities, the importance is set by the people in higher education for whom we make laws and policies, as well as legislative appropriations,” Seliger said.
undergraduate research a more viable possibility for students. She also said she wants to form more connections between the other legislative student organizations, SG and Graduate Student Assembly. “In the past couple of years, the LSOs haven’t done a lot together,” Abel said. “I’d really like to sit down … and see how all of our interests intersect and see how we can further our goals.” The position of financial director went to Grace Zhang, a freshman currently serving as Fine Arts Council’s development coordinator. Zhang’s freshman status prompted questions about her ability to
serve as financial director. Fine Arts financial director Dan Molina said although Zhang lacks substantive experience, he believes Zhang will be effective in her position. “She shows a lot of potential,” Molina said in the meeting. “She shows she can do the work and put in the work. Whether or not she’s actually qualified, that’s up to [the voters] to decide. But at the end of the day, if she’s not qualified now, by the end of the summer, she has three months to grasp [her] position … She shows all the signs of being a good financial director.” Zhang was voted financial director with 13 votes.
Senate: 101 out of 2,060 total bills House: 221 out of 5,001 total bills
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RILEY BRANDS, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF / @TexanEditorial Friday, March 13, 2015
EDITORIAL
COLUMN
SG should not speak on Israel A letter to Powers concerning Fiji At some point last week, SG Representative Meredith Rotwein was rumored to be proposing a resolution promoting the relationship between the University and the State of Israel. It flew in the face of precedent for SG to wade into a foreign policy issue with little relevance to them and was subsequently withdrawn before the agenda for Tuesday’s meeting was sent out. However, in a breach of decorum, the rules were then suspended at the meeting, and representatives voted to send it to the Student Affairs Committee. Unlike typical resolutions, this idea was never sent out by the SG Clerk on a public agenda for examination and scrutiny by the University community and the general public. Absent our opinion on the underlying quandary, this is not a mature or responsible way to handle such a controversial issue. If Rotwein and the resolution’s other sponsors cannot pass this measure honestly, they shouldn’t suspend the rules to pass it otherwise. On the more central question of the content of the resolution, we similarly think the proposal is an incorrect course of action. The University’s Student Government should stay out of foreign policy squabbles as much as possible, including the ostensible diplomatic missions of the University. More than any specific problem with the
resolution’s contents itself, which praises the work UT does with pertinent institutes of higher education in Israel, this is our main disagreement. The only precedent at all in recent history is a resolution from last semester that urged the administration to divest from the genocidal regime in the Republic of Sudan. Admittedly, we endorsed that resolution. But in that instance, the University of Texas Investment Management Company was continuing to invest in energy companies doing business in Sudan. That is, the resolution’s aim was to remove a stain from UT’s reputation. This legislation, on the other hand, would achieve nothing of the sort. Until that changes, there is absolutely no reason for SG to get involved. There are a plethora of valid opinions regarding this country’s relationship with Israel, as well as the overarching IsraeliPalestinian conflict. Many people on the 40 Acres, including the resolution’s sponsors and other supporters, have such opinions. But SG simply is the wrong place to voice them. And trying to push through the measure with limited opportunity for campus community members to review it is definitely not the way to voice them. SG should vote down this unfortunate resolution.
FIRING LINE
Davis statue not a racist symbol As someone who has followed the Six Pack statue controversy since the late 1980s, I feel obligated to respond to the current advocacy by two SG presidential tickets and the Daily Texan Editorial Board to remove the statue of Jefferson Davis. Contrary to current conventional wisdom, the statue of Davis was not erected in 1933 to glorify white supremacy. Instead, the Davis statue, along with the other five Six Pack statues and the Littlefield Fountain, together form one complete work of art intended to memorialize the 97 Longhorns killed in World War I and to acknowledge that WWI had finally reunited the American North and South, 50 years after our Civil War. Hence, the statue of Davis, president of the Confederacy, sits on the west side of the Main Mall, and the statue of Woodrow Wilson, US president during WWI, sits on
Contrary to current conventional wisdom, the statue of Davis was not erected in 1933 to glorify white supremacy.
the east side. Sculptor Pompeo Coppini and architect Paul Cret did not make these choices randomly. Due to a lack of funds, the statue of George Washington was not completed by Coppini until 1955. Far from being a glorification of white privilege, the Littlefield Memorial Entrance Gate, consisting of the fountain and six statues, was created as a conciliatory acknowledgement that the wounds from the Civil War were finally beginning to heal. Also, efforts were undertaken by UT students in the early 1990s to remove the Davis statue as well as the statues of Confederate generals Robert E. Lee and Albert Sidney Johnston. A few years later, the game plan changed. Instead of removing statues, attempts were made to build a more diverse set of statues. Hence, the unveiling of the MLK statue on the UT campus in 1999, the statue of Cesar Chavez in 2007 and the statue of Barbara Jordan in 2009. This second strategy is far more sound. Instead of removing statues and memorials that ably served their purpose in the world of the 1930s, we should simply add more statues to reflect the current worldview. — Clark Patterson, UT alumnus, in response to the Tuesday editorial titled “Jefferson Davis statue removal legislation offers us hope for future of SG.”
Lauren Ussery | Daily Texan File Photo
The Fiji house just north of campus.
By Mauricio Garcia Guest Columnist
Mr. President, Earlier this week, University of Oklahoma President David Boren made national and international headlines by denouncing a fraternity’s chant that singled out and discriminated against African-Americans. The moment Boren found out about the chant, he was quick to call out the individuals involved and threatened disciplinary action. Not long after, he kicked the Sigma Alpha Epsilon chapter off campus and ordered the members living there to remove their belongings. A day later, he expelled two students charged with leadership roles in the racist chant. Boren acted quickly and boldly to draw a line in the sand against discrimination at his university. On Feb. 7, the Phi Gamma Delta chapter at UT Austin held a party that mocked Mexican culture. While the Fiji house is not on campus, unlike the SAE house at OU, you could have set a precedent by condemning the “border patrol” party. Instead, you sent other administration officials to address the issue and left it to the student leaders on campus to decry the event. A studentwritten letter of concern with over 1,000 signatures was not enough for your administration to take action. A rally with over 200 students was held and still, no action. Earlier this week, a forum regarding the party was hosted by the Center for Mexican American Studies and the overall consensus was clear: a lack of your administration’s support. On Tuesday, you released a statement saying
On Feb. 7, the Phi Gamma Delta chapter at UT Austin held a party that mocked Mexican culture.
that you “deplore this behavior, which is contrary to the core values of The University of Texas at Austin.” I completely agree with you, Mr. President. These types of events shouldn’t occur and like you, I deplore this behavior. The problem then comes with your statement: pure talk and no action. The core values are unimportant if there is no one to defend them. As UT’s top administrative official, you should safeguard these core principles and take action to make sure that students observe them. Today is March 13. It took you 33 days to even make a comment about a discriminatory event just off campus. Thirty-three days! It took Boren just hours to make a single comment about the events at his university. The Latino community at UT did not ask for any of the Fiji students to be expelled, but we didn’t ask for silence, either. The fact that you are commenting 33 days after such an issue goes to show how much you care, understand the pain of those offended and how unimportant you think such discriminatory events are to your diversity agenda. Yes, Mr. President, you are a lame duck president, but you could have left an even stronger legacy by taking action — and yet you didn’t. You could have held a town hall asking the UT community how they felt about this — and yet you didn’t. You could have made sure that your administration was the one reaching out to students and not the other way around. You could have done so many things — and yet you didn’t. I invite you to participate and communicate with us, to take action, to do something about the injustices we face on your campus — our campus! Mr. President, on behalf of the underrepresented groups on campus, I must say that you have failed us. Your inability to act will only pave the way for further racially discriminatory events at UT, and as always, I am sure your response will be that your hands are tied. Shame on you, Mr. President. García is a government, history, international relations and Latin American studies senior from Brownsville.
COLUMN
Planned Urban Oufitters expansion would make Austin less weird By Lauren Ferguson Daily Texan Columnist @LaurenFerg2
In late February the Texan reported that Austin’s Urban Outfitters, located on a central part of Guadalupe Street across from the University, purchased the leases of five buildings in order to expand its store. The clothing store is planning to add two restaurants and more shopping space, which it hopes will be completed in the fall. However, the lease takeover negatively affected the two of the leases, which are still in business: Manju’s and Mellow Mushroom. The stores were not able to renew their leases due to the buyout. The Drag, the lovingly nicknamed spot on Guadalupe Street across from the Univer-
[Urban Outfitters] is planning to add two restaurants and more shopping space, which it hopes will be completed in the fall.
sity, has been in decline since the 1980s and beloved sites have been disappearing, in particular Tower Records and Raul’s. Over the past decade the street has become more and more decorated by corporate shops, such as Einstein’s Bagels, American Apparel and, of course, Urban Outfitters. While the expansion may be a good thing for some shoppers, it goes directly against Austin’s famous slogan, “Keep Austin Weird”, meaning support local businesses. Urban Outfitters’ expansion is eliminating Manju’s, a business that has been a staple of the Drag for almost four decades. With the expansion of Urban Outfitters, students are given more limited options on clothing shopping, forcing them to support corporations rather than small Austin businesses. Manju’s employee Natalie Tiner wasn’t optimistic about the buyout, either. “[The buyout] is definitely going to make the Drag more corporate,” Tiner noted. “Our owner has had this store for 37 years and sold directly to the students of UT. It’s been a very personal exchange, and with a corporate store coming in, it’s going to be less personal.” Another employee, Lucie Rincones, expressed similar concerns of depersonalization. “We’ve had moms come in with their daughters saying that they had shopped here when they were in college...and they can’t do that anymore,” Rincones said. With the closing of Manju’s, the University community is losing a familiar staple on the Drag. Urban Outfitters’ expansion is a troubling
LEGALESE | Opinions expressed in The Daily Texan are those of the editor, the Editorial Board or the writer of the article. They are not necessarily those of the UT administration, the Board of Regents or the Texas Student Media Board of Operating Trustees.
Marshall Tidrick | Daily Texan File Photo
Urban Outfitters on the Drag is panning to expand by adding more two restaurants.
event for Austin’s slowly dwindling small-business community. Unfortunately, high rent and corporations have been pushing out small businesses in favor of corporations. The beloved Toy Joy was pushed out of Guadalupe Street in 2013 after the owners noted in an open letter that the “neighborhood was becoming more expensive to do business in.” The store was replaced by corporate Langford Market. Urban Outfitters’ expansion may not come as much of a surprise, but it is still troubling for a city that prides itself
SUBMIT A FIRING LINE OR GUEST COLUMN | E-mail your Firing Lines and guest columns to editor@dailytexanonline.com. Letters must be between 100 and 300 words and guest columns between 500 and 1,000. The Texan reserves the right to edit all submissions for brevity, clarity and liability.
on its small businesses. Ultimately, the expansion is a sign of the times in Austin. As the city grows, it is losing the ability to be weird. The expansion may be seen as a good thing because it will clean up the block, but unfortunately it comes at a price. As Tiner said, “[The expansion] can construed as progress, but for the community and the people that have been here for years, it’s not. It’s destructive.” Ferguson is an English and art history junior from Austin.
RECYCLE | Please recycle this copy of The Daily Texan. Place the paper in one of the recycling bins on campus or back in the burnt-orange newsstand where you found it. EDITORIAL TWITTER | Follow The Daily Texan Editorial Board on Twitter (@TexanEditorial) and receive updates on our latest editorials and columns.
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GARRETT CALLAHAN, SPORTS EDITOR | @texansports Friday, March 13, 2015
MEN’S BASKETBALL | TEXAS 67 – IOWA STATE 69
Bummer buzzer-beater sinks Texas By Evan Berkowitz @Evan_Berkowitz
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Texas had it in the bag. And then, just like that, Iowa State’s Monte Morris’ step-back buzzer-beater sunk Texas and gave Iowa State the 69–67 win in the Big 12 tournament quarterfinals Thursday. “What an unbelievable game — still not sure how we won,” Iowa State head coach Fred Hoiberg said. “Monte Morris just made a heck of an individual play.” Texas hadn’t trailed a single second of the game, leading by a comfortable margin throughout. But as the clock began to dwindle, so did Texas. Junior forward Connor Lammert gave it right to Iowa State on an inbounds pass. Sophomore guard Isaiah Taylor nonchalantly walked into a 10-second backcourt violation. And, all of a sudden, with just over a minute left, Iowa State tied it up with a 10–0 run. “It’s tough losing the way we did because just the turnovers in the last four minutes, really,” Texas head coach Rick Barnes said. “We made a few careless plays at the wrong time.” Texas still had a chance, though. An offensive rebound gave Texas the opportunity to hold for the last shot as the score was knotted at 67, but, instead, junior guard Javan Felix cranked a three that clanked off the back rim and gave Iowa State the last chance. “I can understand you
would like to hold the ball there for that last shot if you could,” Barnes said. “But I could understand Javan shooting it with the rhythm he was into.” The Cyclones made the most of their last opportunity. Morris, a sophomore guard, was isolated and hit a step-back jumper over junior guard Demarcus Holland as the buzzer went off to eliminate the Longhorns in the Big 12 tournament in Kansas City, Missouri. The Sprint Center, which was filled by Iowa State faithfuls, erupted. “I tried as hard as I could to stop him from getting to the basket,” Holland said. “He made a great move; I tried to contest it, and he made the shot.” The Longhorns beat Texas Tech on Wednesday night by pounding it inside in a second-half stretch that saw the Longhorns look as crisp as they have all season. But with Iowa State’s defensive player of the year, Jameel McKay, fronting Texas’ junior center Cameron Ridley nearly all game, Texas challenged Iowa State to a threepoint shootout. Texas fired up 22 from long range. Iowa State matched. Texas knocked down 10 of those. Iowa State matched. Texas was able to build themselves a comfortable lead as Iowa State went icecold in the latter parts of the first half. From the 12:51 to the 3:06 mark, Iowa State missed 11 straight shots as Texas went on a 14–0 run to take control of the half and the game. “It’s not very often we’re
Iowa State sophomore guard Monte Morris capped off a 12–0 run by the Cyclones with a game-winning shot over Texas junior guard Demarcus Holland on Thursday night. The loss eliminated the Longhorns from the Big 12 tournament and put them on the bubble for the NCAA tournament.
Daulton Venglar Daily Texan Staff
going to have a nine-minute scoring drought with what we have out there offensively,” Hoiberg said. “Give those guys a lot of credit.” With a raucous crowd urging them on, Iowa State didn’t bend over. They fought and fought, cutting the lead many times. Texas found an answer each and every time — until the end. “We played our hearts out,”
Taylor said. “Our coaching staff put us in a great position to win a game.” Senior forward Jonathan Holmes led Texas with 15 points. Taylor added 13. Felix poured in 10, all coming in the first half. Iowa State was led by 24 from Morris and 22 from junior forward Georges Niang. Now all Texas can do is wait until the NCAA
tournament selection committee determines its fate Sunday. “We can’t really control anything right now,” Holland said. “We dropped one today that would have really helped us out a lot. I’m confident whatever tournament we got to, and, if we go to the Big Dance, that we will be a great team that can compete with anybody in the country.”
BASEBALL
By Jacob Martella @ViewFromTheBox
Sam Ortega | Daily Texan file photo
Junior sprinter Morolake Akinoson and the Texas women’s 4x400-meter team are headed to the indoor NCAA Championships hoping to make up for a last-second defeat last year.
Longhorns set to make up for missed opportunity On a cloudy day at Mike A. Myers Stadium earlier this week, the Texas women’s 4x400-meter team laughed as they leisurely jogged off the track, sweat drenching their burnt orange warmups. Despite their calmness, just a three-hour plane ride separates the nation’s top4x400-meter team from the stress of the indoor NCAA Championships, the crown jewel of college indoor track and field. However, to the sprinters, composed of juniors Morolake Akinosun and Courtney Okolo, sophomore Kendall Baisden and senior Ashley Spencer, it’s just another track meet. “When you have some of the best 400-meter talent in the country — if not the world — what’s to be nervous about?” Spencer said. The Longhorns have been in this situation before, however, coming out on the losing end. Last year at the women’s
championship meet, Texas held a 1.5-point lead over Oregon, and the last race, the 4x400-meter, of the meet held the title. Coming down to a photo finish, the Ducks edged out the Longhorns by a beak. Oregon recorded the fastest 4x400-meter time in collegiate history; Texas recorded the second-fastest. But the Longhorns’ loss, coming at two-tenths of a second, propelled Oregon past Texas, giving them the women’s title by half a point. “[We have] so much fire and energy from what happened [last year],” Akinosun said. “We’re ready to use that and go out and compete this weekend. Sure, on paper, we’re ranked first in our event and fifth in the country, but you don’t run the race on paper”. Okolo, a Bowerman hopeful, believes their experience last year and in other indoor meets this season will only help the team this year. “We were really close last year, but, this year, we’re
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more experienced,” Okolo said. “We’ve been on the national stage together, so now we know what it takes.” This is the first full season Akinosun, Okolo, Baison and Spencer have been together on the 4x400meter team at the national level. Although the group ran together last season, Akinosun didn’t compete in the championship meet. “We know each other, and we want to win this with each other and for each other,” Okolo said. The strong chemistry between the foursome has only helped their success. They even keep up each other’s superstitions. Akinosun has had two batons since her senior year of high school that she has never let touch the ground. “There are a lot of times when you’re a head coach, and you stand back in awe,” head coach Mario Sategna said. “These girls provide one of those times. They push each other to the max, and it’s fun to watch.”
Texas’ batting order is filled with players that can change a game at any given moment, but few have more consistency at the plate than junior left fielder Ben Johnson. Take the start of Tuesday night’s game against Incarnate Word: Johnson wasted no time sparking the Longhorn offense, leading off the bottom of the first inning with an infield single to third base on the first pitch he saw. Johnson then hustled to third base when the throw to first sailed into foul territory and scored on a double by the next batter. That lone run was the first of seven Texas scored in an easy midweek win, and it’s the latest instance of Johnson using both his skill at the plate and hustle on the base paths to get the Longhorns going. “My job as the leadoff man is to get on-base and find a way to score a run,” Johnson said. “That’s my goal every time I get up to the plate.” Going into Tuesday’s game, Johnson led the Longhorns — and the Big 12 — with a .433 batting average and was fourth in the league with a .481 on-base percentage. He’s also coming off of memorable weekend at Stanford, where he hit two home runs in the series opener last Thursday night and went 5-for-5 with two RBI in Sunday’s finale. Johnson said one of the biggest keys for his success has been attacking the ball early in the count. “I’m not sure what the number is, but the majority of my hits have been on the first few pitches to me at bat,” Johnson said. “It’s just looking for a pitch you’re
It’s just looking for a pitch you’re going to get, and once you get it, take advantage of it and don’t miss it. —Ben Johnson, Junior left fielder
going to get, and once you get it, take advantage of it and don’t miss it.” While his statistics paint a great picture, it’s what doesn’t show up in the box score — hustle — that has really made Johnson a leader in Texas’ lineup. In the Longhorns’ home opener, Johnson took full advantage of a mistake by the UTSA center fielder. Johnson converted what should have been a single into a three-base error when the ball rolled under the outfielder’s glove and all the way to the wall. “What [Johnson and senior right fielder Collin Shaw] really are is they hustle,” head coach Augie Garrido said. “They use their speed to get two bases instead of one on-base hits a lot.” Texas now opens up conference play beginning with a three-game series at home against West Virginia this weekend and another three-game set versus Kansas State next weekend. As the games get increasingly important, Johnson’s plan is simple: to do more of what he’s already doing. “[I’ll] just do whatever it takes to get on-base, whether that’s getting a hit, taking a walk or getting hit by a pitch — find a way to get on and get in,” Johnson said.
Baseball vs. West Virginia Friday, 6 p.m. Saturday, 5 p.m. Sunday, 12:30 p.m. Longhorn Network Softball @ Arkansas Saturday, 1 p.m. Sunday, 6:30 p.m. Monday, 8 p.m. SEC Network
TOP TWEET Chad Hollingsworth @ChadH_31 If you’re a Cowboys fan and think Murray will be easy to replace you are just ignorant and butthurt
WEEKEND PREVIEW WOMEN’S TENNIS After suffering injuries and coming off five back-to-back losses, No. 54 Texas women’s tennis will travel north and play its Big 12 opening match against No. 23 Oklahoma on Friday and then face off against No. 10 Oklahoma State on Saturday. In the last dual match, in which the team played Houston, Texas only dressed five healthy players and had to forfeit a match in doubles and singles. During the injury spell, Texas played a tough schedule resulting in them going 0–5 for road games. So far, eight of Texas’ past opponents are in this week’s ITA national rankings. The Longhorns will need to return healthy players to get out of the slump. Oklahoma head coach David Mullins said the team is ready to play a fully healthy Texas team and will conclude its fivegame homestand against the Longhorns. Oklahoma State has been ranked in the ITA top 10 for the past two weeks. Last season, Texas suffered a tough loss to Oklahoma State in the semifinals of the Big 12 championships in Fort Worth. This game will be the first time they’ve faced off since that loss. The match versus Oklahoma will begin at 5 p.m. and will be aired live on SoonerSports.tv and later be re-aired on various Fox Sports channels. Texas will play Oklahoma State in Stillwater, Oklahoma, at 1 p.m. with live scoring at OKState.com. —Reanna Zuniga
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KAT SAMPSON, LIFE&ARTS EDITOR | @thedailytexan Friday, March 13, 2015
SXSW
Hostels offer immersive SXSW experience By Olivia Lewman @thedailytexan
As celebrities make their ways to penthouse suites for South By Southwest, a large number of festival-goers will call Firehouse Lounge & Hostel and Drifter Jack’s Hostel home for the week. When Collin Ballard cofounded Firehouse two years ago, there were no hostels in Austin. Currently, Firehouse is fully booked during SXSW. The hostel can house up to 72 people, has private or dorm-style rooms, and is located a block off of Sixth Street in the oldest standing firehouse in Austin. Ballard said he opened the hostel because it was the perfect combination of his passion for travel and love of hosting. Working the front desk as concierge allows Ballard to direct guests to different spots in Austin depending on their interests. He enjoys tailoring his suggestions to make sure guests take full advantage of all Austin has to offer. He recommends his guests visit East Sixth Street’s “off the beaten path” bar scene, Rainey Street, and the shops on South Congress.
If guests aren’t interested in leaving the cozy confines of the hostel, Firehouse will be hosting its own festivities. The shows will take place in the dimly lit hostel bar with warm red walls and comfortable black leather booths. Firehouse kicks off its SXSW week Tuesday around 3 p.m. with a number of local bands, and it will finish up with a laid-back lounge Saturday. “[Firehouse is] a nice little place to come and meet your friends and recharge,” Ballard said. “Charge your phone, charge your body. Get some water [and] get some more alcohol before heading out to the last shows of the week.“ Across town, Drifter Jack’s is preparing for incoming SXSW guests. Drifter Jack’s is not only a hostel; it’s a showcase of Austin artists’ murals. Located off Guadalupe and 26th streets, Drifter Jack’s will house artists and bands from all over the world. Three weeks before Drifter Jack’s opening in October 2013, more then 25 artists worked to cover the hostel’s walls with murals. Andy Ward, UT alumnus and owner of Drifter Jack’s, said he gave the artists free reign to paint
In the week to come, these hallways will fill with activity and good vibrations as festival goers and artists come to Austin for South By Southwest. Drifter Jack’s Hostel owes its vibrant murals to the talent and creative expression of local Austinites.
Jack DuFon Daily Texan Staff
the blank walls however they pleased. As a result, each room has a different theme that exhibits the artists’ individual styles. Painter and graffiti artist Chris Rodgers, who created murals downtown such as the #BeSomebody mural and Russian House mural, painted one of the rooms.
The wall is a an East Coast meets West Coast theme with Tupac’s and Biggie’s faces covering the wall from top to bottom. Miranda Lewis, local artist and co-founder of visionary art collective Third Coast Visions, painted female goddess figures on the yellow, orange and green walls of the
female-only dorm. A tree of life mural with double-helix DNA detailing on the tree’s trunk adorns the walls of “The Sacred Geometry Room.” Chance Roberts, Austin artist and co-founder of Third Coast Visions, created the art for the room.
With SXSW’s ensuing influx of visitors, Ballard agreed that staying at either hostels will diversify festival-goers’ vacation experience. “Meeting people and interacting with guests from all over the world is the biggest pay-off,” Ballard said.
MOVIE REVIEW | ‘CINDERELLA’
Disney’s ‘Cinderella’ translates well to live-action By Alex Pelham @TalkingofPelham
Director Kenneth Branagh clearly wants people to grasp that this adaptation of “Cinderella” is a straight retelling of the classic fairy tale. There are no major twists or unexpected endings awaiting moviegoers. “Cinderella” treats the fairy tale story seriously. The result is a
visually stunning remake that develops a sense of originality and fun, despite a few story and character flaws. Ella (Lily James) lives a happy life with her mother and father in medieval England. Tragically, her mother dies of illness, and her father soon marries Lady Tremaine (Cate Blanchett), a widow who shrewdly hides her
cruel nature. Ella’s father also dies from illness. Ella is left in a state of constant abuse by her new relatives and is mockingly rechristened “Cinderella.” After learning of a ball, Cinderella is determined to outwit her stepmother, win over a prince named Kit (Richard Madden) and reclaim the life she once had. James is charming as
From left, Will Kauber, Chris Davis, Montsho Thoth, Nathan Wilkins and Clementine Kruczynski represent some of the many creative forces behind Austin-based media label Raw Paw. The collective was recently voted best record label at the Austin Music Awards. Charlotte Carpenter Daily Texan Staff
Multimedia publishing house supports local artists’ projects @mackenziepdaily
Whether you’re a doodling college student or an artist with decades of experience, Austin-based media label Raw Paw wants to represent you. Raw Paw is a record label company, publishing house and creative platform. The collective produces an expansive variety of local Austin artists’ work, including “zines,” comic books and albums. When Will Kauber and UT alumnus Chris Davis founded Raw Paw in 2010, it was a group of artists and friends searching for a creative outlet. Five years later, Raw Paw was voted best record label at the Austin Music Awards. The community represents a group of pop-culture artists who want to network with people who share similar interests and passions. Davis said Raw Paw helps its members create a living off of what they love to do. “We’re trying to wipe away the grit and muck of life and find their true potential,” Davis said. “Then, on our end,
that perception. There are a few problems with the film. The first act, which centers on Cinderella adjusting to her new life under her stepmother, is really slow. The action doesn’t pick up until right before the ball begins. Another issue is the constant narration from an omnipresent observer. This aspect was also featured in
“Maleficent,” and it’s grating and unnecessary. Disney is obviously afraid to edge away from this annoying trope in fantasy films. Some aspects of the story and Cinderella’s characters are failures, but the film, overall, proves that a fantasy movie with computer-generated mice and fairy godmothers can still be taken seriously.
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Cinderella and definitely sells the famous princess’ image of being kind and courageous. It’s disappointing that James fails to give more agency to her character. Cinderella has often received criticisms for being a heroine who relies on luck rather than her own actions. James makes her version of the princess likeable, but she doesn’t do much to change
try to make and establish and figure how to open up doors for that artist.” Director of operations Clementine Kruczynski said Raw Paw can be split into three different categories — books and print, the record label and Raw Paw events. Raw Paw publishes a series of poetry chap books, each of which features 20 original poems from a single artist and is designed by CogDut, a customized screen printing business run by Davis and Kauber. Nathan Wilkins, lead vocalist for the band Hikes, said Raw Paw both promotes the band’s music and genuinely supports the band’s endeavors. “[Raw Paw and Hikes have] been growing together, instead of just watching something grow or being left behind,” Wilkins said. Davis said Raw Paw focuses on a few bands at a time, creating a team of people who lift up one another. Raw Paw also promotes Milezo, Young Tongue and Chipper Jones. One of Raw Paws’ bigger projects, “Raw Paw the Zine,” is an annually
published book that incorporates submissions from the public. This year, the zine has an alien theme. “This is like our flagship — full-color, full-design, with a year or more of content,” Kauber said. Kauber said the Zine hosts a release party that encompasses all of the artistic elements. “[Zine] is a way to capsulate a culture and disseminate information,” Kruczynski said. “It’s more of a art collective than a business — very inclusive.” Kruczynski said the group represents a creative pocket in which the goal is to fulfill artists’ dreams. “We’re encouraging friends and the people around us to pursue their true passions,” Davis said. The founders of Raw Paw said they advise everyone to obtain a degree in what they love and find a way to make a career out of it. “We’re taking a last stand at trying to convince our community that you can do this and make a living,” Kauber said. “Just keep trying; we’ll keep helping; we’ll keep working together.”
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