Michael James and his oldest daughter got to enjoy watching UK win at Alabama.
Michael James’ grandfather was a coal miner in Kentucky for 43 years and was the reason University of Kentucky basketball became such an important part of the family legacy.
“We had four generations at a game in 2012 when my grandpa was 86. My daughter was about a year old. He loved the Wildcats and was an incredible man. He was a Kyle Macy fan and we got some pictures of them together and him on the court at Rupp Arena,” James said. “We lost him last July just a couple months shy of his 96 birthday.”
James and his wife have used UK basketball for “getaway trips” when their two daughters were too young — “I am not paying Rupp prices for toddlers,” James said — before he took his girls, then 10 and 7, to their first game in Rupp Arena in 2020 before COVID hit.
“We had not been back since and so I decided to splurge and take my oldest (12) to Tuscaloosa,” James, who lives in Decatur, Ala., said.
She was with him when Kentucky easily handled host Alabama — his youngest daughter had her own basketball game and couldn’t make the trip to the game. However, he is bringing his 9-year-old daughter to Rupp Arena Saturday when the Cats host Florida.
His oldest daughter impressed him with how she “got into” the game at Alabama even though he had warned her they were the visiting fans.
“We watch all the games and I can be quite the animated fan … I’m getting better I think). I tried to explain to her that you had to kind of tip-toe when you’re on the road as a fan. You want to cheer for your team but never be disrespectful or rude,” he said.
“I got several approving nods from the Alabama fans around us. But she didn’t seem to hear that part as she was jumping up and calling a foul when it wasn’t called and just overall going hard in the paint as a fan.
“Both of my girls play basketball so they get it, and it was just fun to see her become that involved in the game. There were lots of teachable moments and opportunities to advance her knowledge of the game. I think the funniest thing she said was, “I’m gonna need Oscar (Tshiebwe) not to miss any more dunks.'”
He said a few “rowdy” Alabama fans close top them were not mean but were using some “colorful language” that he had warned his daughter she might hear.
“When a questionable call got made the chant of ‘Bull S***’ rang out pretty clearly. She loudly said, ‘Well that’s not very nice’ — and they definitely heard her say it. I just chuckled wondering if I was gonna have to take on six former frat boys. But we had a great time.
“This Friday we hit the road to find the nosebleeds of Rupp Arena. Wouldn’t have it any other way!”
4 Responses
Pretty cool stuff Michael !
Few years back the wife and I were visiting our granddaughter at UF plus taking in the game. I grabbed her by the hand during warmups and said come on. Got to security on floor and said “we have a media appointment with Mike Pratt” . Introduced her to Mike and she caught a couple errant balls that bounced her way – got back to our seats and Grandma said “ Jeez Mo, your eyes are as big as saucers “ ! Lifetime memory.
Love that story Paul
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