Two national titles and another title game appearance in a three-year period were celebrated at UK Saturday. (Vicky Graff Photo)
The crowd welcomed the homecoming of the 1996,1997 and 1998 University of Kentucky basketball teams during halftime. Celebrated on the video were the highlights of their season which included two national championships and one runner up. One of the loudest applauses of the day was for Coach Tubby Smith who joined the teams at center court.
This was a chance to go down memory lane.
Families watched the games together. Everyone gathered in one room, no distractions (phones) just the game. Some even used their children as volume control if they hadn’t upgraded to one of those remotes yet. There was no way to track stats so if you wanted to be updated you would keep your one on that scrap piece of paper by the end table. Life was simpler, good times.
Every VCR in Kentucky had the red button pushed to record. To relive “One Shining Moment” the clunky video tape would have to be inserted and played. I had one for each year. They had a chunk label that read: “IF YOU ERASE YOU DIE.” Dante Jones pointed upward, Cameron Mills crying and the Scott Padgett flex were played at least 500 times throughout the years. Life was simpler, good times.
Jerry Tipton and Larry Vaught were my heroes. Many a late night I would head to the Advocate Messenger to pick up the game paper. I would often rise early to get the Lexington Herald out of the mailbox. The pictures, quotes and stats were saved in a huge box that I held onto for many years. Also included in that box were ticket stubs to games I attended at Rupp. Life was simpler, good times.
These years were fun. There was never a question if we were going to win the tournament. The biggest question was would the celebration be open to the public? Life was simpler, good times.
We beat Tennessee today. They are ranked. We are not ranked. We are on the bubble. I can watch “One Shining Moment” with the click of a button on my remote. I can access any game information as it happens on my phone. My media credentials are sent via email. Life as a Cat fan is more difficult now but life is good.
