pa Ann Arbor, Michigan Monday, March 16, 2009 michigandaily.com 'M' dancing for first time since'98 No. 10 seed Michigan to play No. 7 seed Clemson in first round Thursday By ALEX PROSPERI Daily Sports Writer The Michigan faithful waited more than 4,000 days and watched more than 300, games in prepara- tion for a day like Sunday. And judging by the turnout at Crisler Arena, it was worth the wait. For the first time since 1998, the Michigan men's basketball team' has. earned an NCAA Tournament bid. CBS announced Sunday night that No. 10 seed Michigan would face No. 7 seed Clemson in the South Regional in Kansas City on Thursday at 7:10 p.m. If the Wolverines win, they will face the winner of No. 2 seed Okla- homa and No.15 seed Morgan State. "I knew that the country wants to see the block 'M' back at the dance," MichiganAthleticDirectorBill Mar- tin said. "I think it's a real defining moment for our program this year, It's just upward going forward." The Wolverines (20-13) have played their best basketball this season with their backs against the wall. Michigan was the 61st team to have its name called Sunday, which put the team through the grinder yet again. "It was very appropriate because that kind of sums up our season," fifth-year senior C.J. Lee said. "We've been right there, back and forth all year." When studio host Greg Gumbel finally said 'Michigan' on the CBS telecast, it was to the tune of hun- dreds of screaming fans who filled the lower bowl on the east side of Crisler Arena. Michigan coach John Beilein addressed the crowd after the show. "I don't even know because of all the excitement, where are we going?" Beilein asked. Michigan waited more than a half hour to hear its name called - not an easy task for players or coaches. "I was so nervous," fifth-year senior co-captain David Merritt said. "My stomach was turning over just to think that there was a chance we wouldn't make it. Luck- ily and thank God that our name came up as a10 (seed)." Added Lee: "Of course I was ner- vous. When you're seeing all those spots beingtaken by teams that kind of are similar to yourself, we were just playingthe waiting game." Assistant coach Mike Jackson See TOURNAMENT, Page 3A WILL MOLtLER/Daily Michigan players and fans celebrate in Crisler Arena last night moments after they found out they made the NCAA Tournament. CAMPUS REMEMBERS ackbone At'U,' Davidson understand what the endow- ment is, what it's comprised of, how it functions, who manages itnnr m fall how ' . it 5,,,, Pistons owner, University alum passed away at the age of 86 on Friday By VERONICA MENALDI Daily StaffReporter Bill - Davidson, Detroit Pistons owner and Ross School of Business alum, passed away last Friday at the age of86. Davidson died at his Bloomfield Hills home, and although the cause of death is1 still unknown, Davidson's health had been poor for the last few years. The funeral DAVIDSON will be held at Congregation . Shaarey Zedek in Southfield, Mich. Tuesday at noon. University President Mary Sue Coleman wrote in an e-mail state- ment Saturday that Davidson will be greatly missed here at the University. "It was always a pleasure to spend time with him, and my thoughts are with Karen and their family," Cole- man wrote in the e-mail to The Michigan Daily. "We will miss him, and we will honor his legacy as a dedicated and successful alumnus." As part of his legacy at the Uni- versity, Davidson created the Wil- liam Davidson Institute in 1992 at the Ross School of Business. 'The institute, according to its web- site, is a "non-profit, independent, research and educational institute dedicated to developing and dis- seminating expertise on issues affecting firms in transition and emerging market economies." WDI Executive Director Robert Kennedy, who worked with David- son over the past six years, wrote in an e-mail to The Michigan Daily Saturday that Davidson loved to help however he could, and was truly a great man. "Bill Davidson was a business visionary, a great philanthropist and a dedicated family man," he wrote. "He was incredibly generous to the University of Michigan. "One of the nice things was that it was never about him. Bill always encouraged us to aim high and to accomplish great things," he wrote. "The thing he said most often was, 'How canI help?'" See DAVIDSON, Page 3A STUDENT GOVERNMENT ELECTIONS MSA presidential candidates to square off in debate tonight Former MSA president Prof. Scott Page will moderate By JENNA SKOLLER Daily StaffReporter In the midst of one of the most competitive Michigan - Student Assembly election races in recent .history, the presidential and vice presidential candidates from each party will engage in a debate at 7:30 tomorrow night in the Palmer Commons Auditorium. All three parties in the election - the Defend Affirmative Action Party, the Michigan Vision Party and the reMichigan Campaign - will take part in the debate, which WOLV-TV will broadcast on chan- nel 55 and stream to its website. Vice presidential candidates will field questions from.Political Sci- ence Prof. Scott Page, who was MSA president from 1984-1985, until 8 p.m., at which point presidential candidates will take the stage until the close of the debate at 9 p.m. Page said he thinks student lead- ers offer a unique perspective on improvingcampus-wide issues. . "When I was a student, I was convinced that students had some of the bestideas for how to improve the University," he said. "I still think that's true." Page will pose a series of questions to the candidates, who will each See DEBATE, Page 3A WEATHER HI:69 GOT A NEWSTIP? Call 734-763-2459 or e-mail TOMORROW LO4 news o michigandaily.com and let us know. NEW ON MICHIGANDAILY.COM How Selection Sunday went forthe Big Ten. THEGAME.BLOGS.MICHIGANDAILY.COM I'NDEX NEWS...... Vol CXIX, No. 109 OPINION ... '2009 The Michigan Daily ARTS...... michigandoily com ..................2A SU0OKU...........................5A ...................4A CLASSIFIEDS .:...................6A ...................5A SPORTSMONDAY... ...S........ IB 4 J 4 i 1