In the Beginning....

I can honestly say that I don’t remember a time when Kentucky basketball wasn’t a part of my life. I was born into a family that was (and still is) crazy about UK basketball. I grew up watching the Cats play.

Winters were spent sprawled on the living room floor either watching or listening to games with my Dad. You knew to settle in about 10 minutes before tip off and there was to be no moving around during the game. No walking in front of the TV. No talking. Games were serious business.

As I got older and started to play basketball myself, games were a chance for Dad to teach me. I learned about zone defenses, pick and rolls, and full court pressure by watching Kentucky. The proper techniques for bounce passes, free throws, and setting screens were demonstrated by players like Ford, Delk, Mashburn, and Rhodes.

And then, some time around the start of 6th grade I fell in love. Most girls that age were pouring over Tiger Beat magazine. They had posters of the New Kids on the Block on their walls. I read the Kentucky Basketball Yearbook and had a UK basketball poster hanging over my bed. My love? Travis Ford.

Now, don’t get wrong, I loved all my UK basketball players, but Ford was by far my favorite. I read his section of the yearbook so often I could recite it by heart. I knew his height, his weight, all his stats from the year before, and more non-traditional things like his favorite ice cream and his favorite movie. During games, I watched him all more than anyone else. I talked about him with my friends. The highlight of my life was when my Dad went to a game and brought me back a 3 point card signed by Traivs Ford. At one point I was going to marry him.

That season (1993-94) was his senior year. It was the year of Jeff Brassow’s last second tip in to win the Maui Invitational. It was the year Ford hit a record 50 free throws in a row. It was the year of the Mardi Gras Miracle down at LSU. But most importantly, it was the year that I got to see my first UK game--Live.

It was UK vs Mississippi at Freedom Hall in Louisville on Wednesday January 12. My Dad, my best friend Melissa, and I sat mid court in the balcony row B (yes, I remember all that). The minutes leading up to the team coming out for warm up were some of the longest of my life. (We were in our seats as soon as the doors opened.) And, when they ran out, I got my first glimpse of the guys who were rock stars in my world. I’m kind of surprised that I didn’t pass out.

What I did do was take about 3 rolls of film worth of pictures (remember film?) on a camera with no zoom and a flash that you had to attach externally. Not one of them was any good--all the players were about the size of ants--but to me they would be priceless. We all cheered for the whole game, me so loudly that I couldn’t talk the next day. And, while I don’t remember much about the game itself (UK won 98-64) I do know that it was one of the best days of my life. And I’m pretty sure that my mom and my sister got tired of hearing me talk about the game in the weeks and months that followed.

After that point, there was no going back. I had been fully initiated into the Big Blue Nation and I was destined to bleed blue for life.

Here's video highlights from the Mardi Gras Miracle game (incidentally I went to bed before the miracle come back, it was the last time I ever didn't watch the end of a game, no matter how horrible things were going.)

It's Basketball Time in the Bluegrass!!!

With basketball season nearly upon us, everyone is talking about our new coach and what he is going to bring to (or should I say bring back to) Kentucky basketball. Excitement is at an all time high. Rumors and speculation are running wild.

The coach himself, however, cautions that we need to keep in mind that we have a young team full of new players who have to learn a whole new system of basketball and things will be shaky at the start. I contend, however, that the learning curve doesn’t just apply to the players (and the fans) as they learn the dribble drive offense, but to the coach as well. There is nothing quite like Kentucky basketball and it can take an outsider a little while to learn to ropes.

Over the years I’ve had the task of trying to explain what Kentucky basketball is and what it means to several people. What I’ve found is that UK basketball is one of those things that defies description.

Sure, you can list the stats--7 NCAA Championships, 13 Final Fours, 48 Tournament appearances, 43 SEC regular season titles, 25 SEC tournament Championships, 1988 games won--but there is so much more to it than the numbers.

It’s about the love that the people of Kentucky have for their team. It’s about the pride we feel when we watch them play. It’s about the heart ache we feel when they lose and the glee we feel when they win. It’s about people who pass season tickets down to their grandchildren and drive 3 hours both ways for every home game.

It’s about the people who show up for every game and those that never see them play. The ones who fly to Maui and Alaska for pre-season Invitationals. The people who throw game day parties to watch on HD TVs, those that watch in bars with 300 of their closest friends, and those that spent years crouching around radios to listen to Caywood.

It’s about kids that grow up playing ball in driveways and backyards, on courts made of dirt, concrete, shingles, and grass with backboards tacked to the sides of houses and barns and stuck up on light poles. It’s about kids who take thousands of last second shots to beat teams like Louisville, Duke, and Florida. Kids who grow up idolizing people like Macy, Issel, Givens, Delk, Mashburn, Rondo, and Patterson.

How do you put all of that into words? What can you say that encapsulates everything that this team is to everyone? You can’t. You can’t possibly understand Kentucky basketball unless you have lived Kentucky basketball.

But I would like to try. I would like to try and explain what Kentucky basketball is, at least to me. So, what I’m going to do is, in a series of posts, try to highlight different aspects of my relationship with the Wildcats. It may not work, but hey, why not at least play the game?

The Wheel of Time.....

It's always a good game when UK and Florida get together, although for the past few years it things haven't gone our way very much (hence the reason that I am no longer allowed to watch UK play Florida at Kyle's house with Jenny, Brent, and Ashley.) There are have been some very memorable moments in those games over the years--last season's win comes to mind. But I know that last night's last second shot by Jodie Meeks (yup, Meeks again) will stay at the top of the list.

As it was, I almost didn't go to the game. I have an exam tonight and I needed to study. Plus, after 3 straight losses, one of which was the totally deflating lose at home to Mississippi state last Tuesday, my enthusiasm for the game was pretty low. But it was UK vs Florida, so I went anyway. And boy was I glad that I did. Still, if I hadn't gone, it wouldn't have been the first time I missed a great UK/Florida match up at Rupp.

Probably the greatest UK/Florida game ever played happened 6 years ago, almost to the day. It was February 4, 2003. Another Tuesday night game. Another ESPN game. Florida was #1 in the country. UK was #2. A record 24, 459 people showed up for the game. Rupp was Rockin'. I however, was not there.

I didn't have tickets to that game. My friend who was supposed to go get the tickets, bailed on me and so I was left to watch the game at home. And it was a great game--I think. I actually have very little memory of that game. In fact, I have almost no memory of the game itself. I remember what happened before the game perfectly. In fact, my recollection of the half hour prior to tip off is crystal clear. It was the last time I ever spoke to my Mom.

I had called home to check on things since I hadn't gone home the weekend before (I had to work). Ironically, that was the Sunday of the Space shuttle Columbia disaster. Mom was supposed to come to Lexington that Wednesday for a doctor's appointment and I hadn't heard from them, so I called to see what was going on.

Mom answered the phone and I knew right away that something was wrong. She was confused and wasn't making much sense. When Dad got on the phone, he told me that they had cancelled the appointment since there was nothing they could do and I needed to come home. My instinct was to jump in the car right then and come home, but they wanted me to stay for a formal I had that Saturday, so I did. Mom died early Sunday morning.

While I talked to Dad plenty that week, that Tuesday night, right before the UK/Florida game was the last time I talked to my Mom. My last words to her were "I love you."

I remember sitting down to watch the game and thinking that the Cats just had to win. I couldn't' handle a loss right then. And win they did, by 15. And they kept right on winning, running the table in the SEC that season and winning an SEC tournament title. It wasn't until almost two months later in the Elite Eight that they would finally lose the Marquette.

Did I think about that game last night while I was at Rupp? Yeah. I think about that game a lot. It comes up quite a bit. Every time they talk about the biggest crowds ever at Rupp. Every time they talk about great games at Rupp. Every time Florida plays UK at Rupp. I have always regretted that I didn't get to see that game live. But I am also glad that I got the chance to make that phone call.

So, last night when I had the chance to go to Rupp or stay home, I chose to go. And I'm very glad that I did. Now, at least, I have my own great UK vs Florida memory.