Go, Tigers, Go!

Last Saturday was a special treat for me — EAToo and I went with the family to see the #1 ranked Memphis Tigers take on the UTEP Miners. I was very excited, since it was the first game I had been to since, well... the last game I saw live, I was at the Pyramid, cheering for “MSU” rather than “U of M”. So, yeah, a while.

Although I haven’t been to a game in years, I have been a Tiger basketball fan for as long as I can remember. It all started when I was a little girl; back then, I would often spend Saturday nights with my grandmother. She loved basketball, having herself been captain of the Tennessee state high school girls’ basketball team at age 16. (Even in her ‘60s, the woman could still palm a basketball. So cool.)

Back then, you never watched a Tiger game live on television — there were still just three television networks, cable had been invented but hadn’t gotten as far as Memphis, and the youngest person in the family acted as the remote control, called into the room, if necessary, to change the channel. So the only way to watch the Tigers on television was to wait until 10 p.m., at which time the game would be broadcast on public television, with far less picture quality than you would get from cell phone video today. But still, we watched. Every Saturday night. Even when I got older, and really wanted to watch “Saturday Night Live” instead. Even during the years when wins were difficult if not impossible to come by.

And I became a die-hard fan. My mother likes to tell the story of the year I won my elementary school spelling bee, and got to compete at the regional level. The night of the regional bee, the Tigers were playing in the Sweet 16 level of the NCAA Tournament. When I was eliminated, rather than being upset, all I wanted was to know the score of the basketball game. (My mother still thinks I tanked the spelling bee on purpose, so that I could watch the game. Untrue, but I will admit to being distracted.)

I moved away after college, and had a hard time keeping track of the team for a while. But after I returned to Memphis in 2002, I started paying attention again. And how could you not? Under the skilled coaching of John Calipari, the Tigers have demanded growing attention and respect (although the respect is still hard to get, at least from the national media).

So, I was terribly excited when my BFF called to let me know that one of the corporate sponsors had released a pool of tickets for last Saturday’s game. Sure, the tickets were kind of high up in the arena (okay, only three or four rows down from the top), but I figured that no matter where the seats were, being there had to beat watching it on television.

And I wasn’t disappointed in the least. The whole experience was a blast. This was my second visit to the FedEx Forum. Having been there twice now, I really do believe the Forum is one of the best things the city of Memphis has ever done. Parking garage scandals aside, the Forum is a class act in a city not really known for class acts.

For one thing, the Forum is very clean. Even, or maybe especially, the bathrooms — a big deal when you are the aunt/easily-manipulated-complete-sucker most often targeted to make bathroom runs by a nine-year-old boy and four-year-old girl (who, of course, never need to go at the same time). Clean public restrooms are just not something you can count on anywhere anymore, so it means a lot that they take care of the facilities. In addition to the Forum being well run, the acoustics were much better than in the Pyramid. And on top of that, there wasn’t a bad seat in the house — we not only had a great view of the court, but also a good view of the big screen, which is capable of simultaneous video and graphic displays. Think live action and instant replays, framed by panels showing you the words to the fight song.

And, of course, there was the game itself. I can’t even describe the energy in the room. Sure, some of the excitement was fueled by the fact that we were all rooting for the #1 team in the nation (two weeks running!), and hoping they would extend the longest-running home winning streak in college basketball history. But even more than that, Tiger fans really do have a special positive energy — we want our team to win, but never in a mean-spirited way, and we’re not so hard-headed that we are blind to our own team’s faults. I mean, let’s face it, Memphis would have left UTEP in the dust if they hadn’t missed 20 freethrow attempts.

But despite some tense moments (including a 60-all tie with 2:31 left in the game), they did win, 70-64, in large part due to Chris Douglas-Roberts, who made 24 points, including the only three-point shot the Tigers had during the entire game — and did so without drawing a single foul. It was a hard fought game, especially for a team that normally wins big, but it was exciting right up to the finish.

And there was never a dull moment, even when the players weren’t out on the court. The Mighty Sound of the South pep band was there, of course, as were the #1 Pom-Pon Squad and Cheerleaders in the country. There were games and giveaways during timeouts, and replays and clips on the video screen during any lull in the action. There was even a fun-but-cheesily-timed clip from The 300 (“This is where we hold them! This is where we fight!”), which, played while the teams were tied near the end of the game, got the entire crowd up on its feet.

Only one thing marred the near-perfect day — a group of UTEP fans who were sitting behind us. (Fortunately, they moved to empty seats in a lower level during halftime.) It’s one thing to make loud, rude, obnoxious comments about the home team. It’s quite another to use loud, foul language in close proximity to your own children and other people’s children. But to refuse to stand for the national anthem? Not cool. Not cool at all.

But, overall, I can’t wait for the chance to go back and cheer on my Tigers as they (hopefully) continue on to a well-deserved national championship. And if this week’s polls are any indication, they are well on their way.

Except for the RPI poll — the only one to put Memphis in second place. Under Tennessee. Not to diss my other alma mater, but Tennessee? Really?

Really?