Midwest Region notes: Davidson's free rides

DETROIT – Davidson's Cinderella run to the NCAA tournament's Sweet 16 has captured the nation's fancy and has many fun facts about the 1,700-student liberal-arts school, located 30 miles from Charlotte, N.C., being bandied about.

You might have heard that Davidson offers free laundry service to its students.

But news Thursday that the school's Board of Trustees was picking up the tab for 275 students to attend the Wildcats' NCAA Midwest Regional semifinal appearance at Ford Field made clean clothes seem so unimportant.

After all, we are talking about college students.

Davidson, the 10 seed, opens Friday's action against third-seeded Wisconsin.

The students will be bused to Michigan, be put up in a hotel for two days and get a ticket to the regional, all courtesy of the trustees. The offer was made to any student at the school and a surprising number said "count us in."

Davidson spokeswoman Stacey Schmeidel told the Associated Press that student demand was higher than expected and that the school was trying to find more buses.

So as sophomore shooting sensation Stephen Curry, senior point guard Jason Richards and coach Bob McKillop have become instant celebrities, the college didn't forget to let the kids on its campus come along for the ride.

"The sense of intimacy that exists on our campus is unparalleled in NCAA Division I basketball," McKillop said. "But when the Board of Trustees votes in a meeting on Thursday to go into their personal pockets and put out the money so that every student can go to this game with a free bus ride, free hotel room and free game ticket, that reaches a level that's unprecedented.

"I'm stunned by it, thrilled by it."

BIG MEN ON CAMPUS

Curry, with 70 points in the Wildcats' two victories over Gonzaga and Georgetown, is the unquestioned star of the team McKillop has likened to a Broadway show. But best supporting actor Richards and others have enjoyed the spoils of victory as well.

Richards relayed some shining moments since the team's return to the campus.

"Thomas Sander stopped at a gas station and got a standing ovation when he was pumping gas the other day," Richards said. "I was also walking to class and one of the maintenance guys gave me a ride in his little cart up the hill. I felt kind of special. Something like that doesn't happen on a regular basis."

BAD GUY BADGERS

When you are matched against destiny's darlings, it can be tough. But that doesn't concern Wisconsin. The Badgers know the crowd likely will be rooting hard against them Friday.

"For us it's just a basketball game," senior forward Brian Butch said. "I think people want Davidson to win and will pick Davidson to win.

"No one picked us to win our conference either, and we did that."

Wisconsin won the Big Ten regular-season and conference titles. The four other Big Ten teams that have achieved that double have advanced to the Final Four (Michigan State in 1999 and 2000, Illinois in 2005 and Ohio State in 2007).

BO-TOWN?

Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan was mostly matter-of-fact in his news conference. But he did take a moment to profess his love for Motown music, saying it brought him back to his college days in the '60s at Wilkes (Pa.) University.

The often crusty coach even managed to make a joke.

"Officials know my affinity for Motown, because they think my favorite two songs are The Temptations' 'Ain't Too Proud To Beg' and Marvin Gaye's 'What's Going On?' "

THE BIG HOUSES

The NCAA is playing two of the regionals in domed NFL stadiums, here at Ford Field and at Houston's Reliant Stadium, and experimenting with a new placement of the courts.

The courts in Detroit and Houston are set up where the 50-yard line would be rather than at one of the corners of the stadium. That makes the sightlines different for fans, and for shooters. The court actually is raised 27 inches off the ground.

It will be a different perspective for some coaches too. They can opt to sit on a stool on the floor above their benches.

Players weighed in on the setup:

• Stephen Curry, Davidson: "Depth perception with the rims, on the field, it's kind of hard to adjust to. But that's what practice is for, just to get used to the arena and the atmosphere. I'm actually looking forward to playing here. I've never played in this kind of arena before. It should be fun."

• Michael Flowers, Wisconsin: "I don't think it's going to be tough. The baskets are still 10 feet, the court is the same length, so it's just like playing anywhere else. One of the good things about playing in the Big Ten is that Minnesota's floor is up just like this, so it shouldn't be too tough getting used to."

• Scottie Reynolds, Villanova: "We got sent an email overview of the court. You could see all the stands and you see this little wooden thing, it was about like thumbnail-small. We were looking for the court. Then we saw it in the middle. It was amazing to see from a picture aspect. When you get out there and start playing, getting the feel of it, it just feels like a regular gym. … But what about [if] we go for a loose ball, dive and go off the court? I mean, that's the thing I was scared about."

• Russell Robinson, Kansas: "The court elevation, I don't think that's going to be a problem. I can play on a roof, you know, if that's where we have to play."

This year's Final Four is at the Alamodome in San Antonio, where the court will be situated near one of the end zones. Detroit will play host to the Final Four in 2009.

The rationale for the new setup is simple: to sell more tickets. In Detroit, 57,000 two-day passes have been purchased. Organizers are expecting more than 105,000 fans for the weekend.

SELF ANALYSIS OF RUSH

Kansas guard Brandon Rush thought about heading for the NBA last summer, but was derailed by a knee injury. Jayhawks coach Bill Self was asked if the third-year guard has come close to reaching his ceiling as a player.

"The first time I ever saw him, I thought he could be as good as anyone I've ever coached," Self said. "I do believe that is the case. Not very often do you have that size, that body. … He's got great, great touch. He's competitive. He's become our best defender.

"He has a very high ceiling, one that I don't think he's come close to reaching. But he's a lot closer than he was a couple years ago."