The Michigan Daily/New Student Edition-City-Thursday, September 9, 1993- Page 3 Fans gather during Final Four Riot-like atmosphere created during NCAA basketball tourney by Jon DIMasclo Daiy Staff Reporter I By early April, Spring Break tans are fading and term paper deadlines loom on the horizon. The most exciting event for students tohopefor-besides anationalbasket- ball championship -is ariotin theAnn Arbor streets. On Monday April 7, University stu- dents only got half their wish. When Wolverine Chris Webber's hands formed a "T" and the University . of North Carolina's Eric Montross's fingers formed a V," the streets of Ann ' Arbor fell silent. A trickle of students - 2,500 to 3,000 - collected on the streets and $ sidewalks of centralcampus.Atfirst the bewildered students muttered, "This sucks." They quickly began to debate u T' Webber's time-out call. "Webber's a goat." "Oh no, I saw a coach call the time out," shouted another student. Soon, projectiles and glass shards flew through the air. But generally the crowd milled around, shouting nothing more original than, "F ___N-C." A few thousand close friends of the Fab Five gathered at the intersection of S The vortex positioned itself at the after the Michigan basketball team defeated Kentucky to advance to college junction of South University Ave. and Church St. - the corner between Stucchi's and Good Time Charley's - hoping to keep students from driving authorities flanked the protesters with a for ongoing chants and debates. while intoxicated to find more alcohol. human wall in an effort to stave them One hundred and fifty members of But SUMAs effort did not stop fans off. The wall halved. One formed along the Ann Arbor police and the from using intoxicants. SouthForest St. while the otherlinedup University's Department of Public The police compared the protest with on East University. The lines advanced, Safety prepared themselves with riot Saturday's victory celebration, saying filtering fans north or south on Church gear in case the crowd turned ugly. that the crowd after Michigan's loss St. AAPD Sgt. Jack Ceo said the police was much more drunk and unruly than In total, the police made 17 arrests. intended to let the crowd burn its own the prior congregation. Felonious assault was the most serious energy. Ceo added the police were re- After initial chants, University stu- charge. One Ann Arbor high school luctant to use tear gas or force, fearing dents remained, but the crowd was student was allegedly attacked by three either would incite violence. Although supplemented by many Ypsilanti and men and 11 others were hospitalized. the police did not provoke violent ac- Detroit residents. But the scene at South University tion, some fights took place. AAPD Lt. John King blamed most, three days earlier had a different face. The South University Merchant of the violence on people not affiliated Twelve thousand fans flocked to the Association united in an effort to keep with the University. same street Saturday night, to celebrate the area free of drunkenness. Area bars "The 12,000 that came to South U. Michigan's victory over the Kentucky and stores stopped selling alcohol - on Saturday were mostly students who Wildcats. Celebrants came from every including blue beer-after halftime of came to celebrate a victory. But corner of campus. They staggered out both Final Four games, even though Monday's crowd did not appear to be of bars, ran from their fraternities, so- they lostanywhere from $600to $1,000 (University) students. It was a group of rorities, residence halls, homes and from each night. die-hard fans, and they weren't there to a big screen exhibition of the game at The exception, Hop-In, continued celebrate," King said. Crisler Arena. Fans swung from signs to sell alcohol throughout the game After nearly two hours of rioting, and awnings chanting, "Final Four Summer fsias highih Ann AUTUMN IN ANN ARBOR MEANS DOUGLAS KANTEFVDally outh University Ave. and Church St. basketball's final game. They ran to total strangers for hugs and high fives., Broken windows were generally the largest problem. At 11:30 a bottle was thrown at the window of Cava Java. A fright ran through aportion of the crowd when the bottle's crash caused one woman to shout, "Oh my God, he's got a gun." Helmeted police officers, who re- sembled a crowd of Terminator mer- cury men, were in a relaxed and jovial mood. While making sure the crowd didnotgetoutofhand, they joined in the celebration. Parents may be leery of sending their gifted children to the University's riot-stricken campus, but the riots are no worse than a dollar pitcher night at Rick's. Just remember to be prepared. Be- fore you throw that last bag into the car on your way to the airport or the high- way to Ann Arbor - pack riot gear. ~rbor year concerts andfilms in the evening, long talks in espresso bars, browsing and meeting friends at Borders! * Over 120,000 titles to discover " Discounts on NY Times bestsellers, monthly recommended titles, and most hardcovers " Knowledgeable staff " Excellent computer book section " Hundreds of periodicals by Flint Wainess Daily Staff Reporter * Reflecting on the seasonal cycle of life leaves me with only a few words of wisdom for the incoming foot soldiers. Don't wait for the cycle to break you, break the cycle, i.e. spend those dreary winter months in hibernation (or atleast with a cold beer). I know, that is seemingly brash ad- vice brought out by a few too many spring evenings and afew toolittle days in Economics class. But my "skip-the- * winter" theory can easily be proved by a; simple examination of three of the most celebrated events the University has to offer. Hash Bash. An event that could conceivably present an obstacle to my theory. After all, what could be better than thousands of "Generation X" ac- tivists portraying their disgust with a society infringing on their most basic civil liberties? Answer: Almost any- thing. Lastyear'sHashBashcouldonlybe described with the phrase "Don't be- lieve the hype." By the time you trudge through amelangeofrain and snow and reach the Diag (home of Hash Bash), you realize Hash Bash has become a forumforoldboring Libertarians to yell about how wonderful pot is. No longer a political rally, Hash Bash is now a place for the ignorant and apathetic to congregate and drown their sorrows... for free. The crowds have been getting pro- gressively smaller to the point where thehighlightof Hash Bash has become NORML's yearly victory over the Uni- versity for the right to hold the bash in the diag. My pointhere is that HashBash- the granddaddy of winter celebrations -is a bust. But aaahhh, the beauty of spring/summer in o1' A2. Top of the Park. Picture this, hun- dreds of college students and stray Ann Arborites hangin' out on the rooftop at the Power Center, soaking in the mel- lowtunesofGardonLightfootandcatch- ing night after night of free showings of "Casablanca." Free flicks every night for one full * month. vide the ultimate outdoor experience, sun withstanding. So what does this all add up to? The best advice Ihave to give. Take the best the University has to offer (spring/sum- mer) and run with it. Sure, it may take you a few extra years to graduate. But it is well worth the wait. And most importantly, you'll skip the depression of watching the wintery tradition of Hash Bash sink slowly into a mire of pointless smokathons. When you come to the University, you're en- tering what they used to call "Little Berkeley," a bastion of political action and energy. But, in the winter, that energy just doesn't seem to be there anymore. I g;;g rngg gs Specializing in Decorative Papers for the Arts Handcrafted Gift Items 407 N. Fifth Ave. 741-7531 r n . 4- ; Ann Arbor's oldest & finest produce market We specialize in QUALITY What to look for Monthly: Fresh-squeezed orange & grape- fruit juice, quality dairy products, and natural foods. GOURMET GROCERY M-F, 8-6 . 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