The buses were already starting to line up in front of Belk by 3:30 p.m. Thursday and students were busy packing up their black-and-red gear and “Go Cats” signs for the dawn departure Friday. Here’s the latest press release from the college on the Detroit-bound Wildcat fans:

Davidson College Trustees are now sponsoring a total of seven bus loads of students to attend Friday night’s Davidson-Wisconsin “Sweet 16″ basketball game in Detroit. The nearly 300 student riders were selected on a first-come, first-served basis after President Tom Ross’s office announced the offer to students via e-mail on Wednesday afternoon. The Trustees’ offer covers the cost of the bus ride, game tickets, and hotel rooms for each student.

The buses will depart at 5 a.m. tomorrow (Friday) from the Baker Sports Center parking lot for the 10-11 hour ride to Detroit, and area media are expected to cover the departure. The buses will remain in Detroit until the conclusion of Sunday afternoon’s game, arriving back in Davidson in the wee hours of Monday morning.

Friday classes will continue as normal at the college. President Ross emphasized in his e-mail to students, “We know that at Davidson, academics come first,” and that students should sign up for the trip only if it is the right academic decision.

Students and community members unable to attend Friday’s 7:10 p.m. game vs. Wisconsin in Detroit are invited to watch the contest on large-screen TVs in the Alvarez College Union. Hundreds of students, faculty, staff and community members have turned out for the previous tournament broadcasts.

See related coverage on DavidsonNews.net:

Rally sends Wildcat team off to Detroit

Trustees send students to tourney free

Google ranks ‘Davidson’ volcanic

Hang out a bedsheet, rally for cats

Cats top Georgetown in march to Sweet 16