When did you become a fan of your favorite WBB team?

mred · #1 07-10-2002, 07:00 PM

I'm not sure if we've had this thread before...

I actually grew up a fan of the Iowa Hawkeyes (ick). I generally picked teams opposing my older brother; he decided during the 1984 Super Bowl that the Dolphins would be his favorite NFL team, and I started following the 49ers because they were the opposition. He was a Cyclone fan, so I was a Hawkeye fan. Still, the Cyclones were my second-favorite school, and I rooted for them when they weren't playing the Hawkeyes.

Just after my family moved to Ames in 1992, I remember watching Iowa and ISU play a MBB game, and I realized I was rooting for ISU. That was the beginning of the end...

Anyway, I didn't care about WBB at the time. This was the "dead era" of ISU WBB (defined as any era before Fennelly) and I could probably only name a handful of current/former WBB players. I did watch a lot of high school GBB (especially 6-on-6).

I remember when ISU made it to their first NCAA tournament, when players like Tara Gunderson were seniors. I reacted the way many ISU fans did: "Our WBB team is actually good? Cool..." The big turning point for me was one day late in 1997 (my freshman year at ISU), when ISU played Iowa. The game was televised locally and nothing better was on. I watched with my parents and my girlfriend (now wife) as ISU upset Iowa stunningly easily. We all thoroughly enjoyed watching it, so we decided to go to a game just after New Year's. After all, it was only $4 for adults and $2 for students. (How times have changed...) ISU barely snuck past Missouri, and we enjoyed every minute. We went to most of the games that season, and over the next three seasons you could count the number of home games I missed on one hand. It would take more than both hands to count the number of away games I attended (Kansas, Nebraska twice, UNI twice, Drake, Iowa twice, Creighton, Big XII tournament, neutral games in Cedar Rapids, etc.)

cycofan · #2 07-10-2002, 07:14 PM

Much like you MRED, I was somewhat oblivious to women's bball when I was in school in Ames (somewhat earlier than you)!

I lived across the street from Hilton as a freshman in 1989, and ventured over to see the Iowa/ISU women's game. I would guess that there were 300 people there, the level of play from the Cyclones was awful, and I didn't go back.

The next time I went to Hilton for a women's game was the first year that they hosted first and second round games. I confess to have primarily going to the first round to see Vivian Stringer bring her Rutgers team back to Iowa (I also grew up a Hawkeye fan)!

I went back for the heartbreaking ISU loss to Rutgers in the second round, and the rest, as they say, is history!

KSUron · #3 07-10-2002, 07:49 PM

I grew up in Nebraska so there is no doubt who my favorite team USED to be. Due to exposure to some terrific women high school players in Nebraska that we got to see as adults my wife and I became women's basketball fans. We moved to Kansas three years ago and met the Ohlde family and of course Nicole.

I can tell you exactly when I became a Kansas State fan. I was on Interstate 135 on my way to a meeting in Wichita. I was listening to the radio and heard an announcement that Nicole Ohlde and Laurie Koehn had signed with KSU. I did not have one thing to wear that was purple but before I got home I already had my first K-State hat and shirt.

Since then my wife and I have been impressed with the KSU WBB people and their sports information and ticket people. We are now Wildcat WBB fanatics. I haven't quite made the shift in football though, but I'm getting there. Our daughters think we have crossed some serious ethical lines in becoming KSU fans.

TXSNOS · #4 07-10-2002, 08:46 PM

I became a girls' basketball fan while in high school in the mid '70s. All of my best female friends played. It was half-court 3 on 3 back then. I went to almost all of their games, home and away. Go Edna Cowgirls!!

When I came to the University of Texas, I followed the women's team in the late '70s and early'80s by reading articles about them in "The Daily Texan." It wasn't until the NCAA Championship game in 1986(?) that I actually saw them play and that was on TV. I was just blown away by the athleticism that those women displayed. Clarissa Davis, Andrea Lloyd, Beverly Williams, Yolanda Wimbish, just to name a few. This sounds a bit sexist, but before I actually saw them play, I didn't know women could do those kinds of things. I started going to games the next year (1986-87) and became a season ticket holder a year or two later and have been ever since. I have been to a number of NCAA regional tournaments and have been to two final fours. I'm hoping that Stacy, Heather, and the gang can get Texas to another final four, so I'll have even more reason to go to another one!

HOOK 'EM!

TXSNOS

elfdenmom · #5 07-10-2002, 09:09 PM

I went to a couple of Texas Tech games before the nineties, but can't really describe myself as a fan until the 1991-1992 season. I went to an afternoon game in 1991 and was absolutely blown away by Sheryl Swoopes' moves and shooting. The rest of the team wasn't too shabby either. The rest is history. I went to as many games as I could manage and soon became a season ticket holder. Since my husband wasn't interested in wbb, I had to go on my own, and it was quite a commitment when I started going to the night games on my own. Haven't looked back since, and now count myself as a rabid LR fan.

YCN · #6 07-10-2002, 11:05 PM

Like elfdenmom, I can trace the roots of my interest in women's college basketball back to Sheryl Swoops. At the time my Dad and I both became big fans of her play. I'd never ever seen a woman playing basketball at that skill level, and it didn't surprise me one bit that she hoisted her Tech team on her back to win the national championship.

I think I commented to my Dad at the time that I'd seen plenty of NBA players that didn't play with nearly the skill and intelligence that she had (and has) in her game.

After that, my nascent interest in the game sort of waned until I was able to see Coach Coale's Sooners play when Stacey Dales was a sophomore. I was instantly hooked on their positive, intelligent and intense style of play, and mesmerized by the personas of the Sooner players and head coach.

And now I'm a bigger fan of women's basketball than ever. From just that one seed it has grown not quite to an obsession, but a very healthy interest in women's basketball at more than the college level.

Who knows, in 10 years I might be a completely insane nut about this sport. I know I already enjoy it immensely - maybe even more than men's basketball at any level. There is something inherently fundamentally sound about women's basketball that I find lacking elsewhere. In the NBA they are starting to see a lot of foreign players succeed because they do exactly what is expected at high levels of the women's game. They play with solid fundamentals, and they play for the team.

And I love team basketball. That's exactly why I have been disillusioned with a lot of men's basketball, because athleticism doesn't equate to basketball, it equates to me.

And I guess compared to most people I'm just a newbie to the sport.

carolann · #7 07-10-2002, 11:09 PM

Quote:

This sounds a bit sexist, but before I actually saw them play, I didn't know women could do those kinds of things.

O.K. Here it is. When I was a child (a girl), I amused myself by making up games that involved physical skill. For example (parent's don't faint)-- I would take all the swings off the swing set, and then jump from a chair and grab the swing set bar. Of course, I kept moving the chair back farther and farther. This game ended when I enticed a friend to join me. She promptly missed and broke her arm. I also designed a little obstacle course in the back yard that included jumping over ropes tied between 2 trees, going under saw horses, and so forth. My friend and I would race through the course. By highschool, I spent the entire "P.E." period trying not to actually break a sweat or mess up my hair! Not being seen naked in the shower or changing clothes after gym were also high priorities. I thought my P.E. teacher belonged to another species. If any girls played sports in my highschool, particularly team sports, I didn't know about it! I knew one girl who was a diver, and a little light tennis and golf weren't out of the question (cute outfits were a must, of course). My college didn't have sports other than club sports. I had no interest in athletics, television, or other such lowly entertainment. Gee, wasn't I fun? Yes, indeed. I was learning to drink coffee, and go to 'art films'. When I moved to Austin in the 90's, I couldn't believe my eyes the first fall Saturday that I saw all those people wearing those weird orange and white shirts. So, I didn't watch anyone, men or women, play basketball until the nineties when I moved to Austin. A friend took me to a game and it seemed like a nice little diversion. I never saw Clarissa Davis, Kamie Etheridge, et al, play in person. I have watched tapes of the 1986 final four games. At first, I just knew the players were running up and down the floor, trying to put the ball in the basket. Since then I've learned a little about screens, picks, flops, charges, and so forth. I'm still behind most of you in my knowledge of the game. I have fun and I enjoy getting to be an armchair analyst whether I have the expertise or not. I also have fun wearing my Texas garb, jumping up and down, and generally acting the fool in the stands. Oh yes, the first time I went to a basketball game, I thought it was very rude for people to clap when the opposition missed a free throw!

Now you know the whole truth, and if you ever paid any attention to any of my posts, you won't anymore!

Buffsfan22 · #8 07-10-2002, 11:10 PM

Newby to this board, but an ESPN board veteran. Love this site now that I've found it.
Originally from Pittsburgh, where women's athletics were an afterthought while i lived there anyway. Then I moved here to Boulder in 92.
I started out as a huge Buff volleyball fan. I payed attention to Buffs basketball and went to an occasional game, but I became a fan of UConn instead.
But last year I got season tickets for the first time and fell in love with the Buffs. I'm hooked for life now.
Funny to me that we're being written off this year after graduating our starting backcourt. I picked some year to quit rooting for UConn, huh? lol.
I do think (assuming we return a healthy Linda Lappe) that we'll have the best frontcourt in the conference if not the nation. I don't think we lose anything with Kate Fagan replacing Roulier at the 2, and I thought from the first five minutes I saw her play last season that Veronica Johns-Richardson, who will takeover the point, will be the best player we've ever had here.
I'm glad the Buffs are being overlooked (again!) I'm more excited about this year's team than I was last years. VJR isn't just a great athlete, she's a really smart kid as well and she has had a year to learn the system. Y'all will know her name well by season's end.
Texas Tech and Texas are going to be tough to get by, but I like our chances.
Sorry K-State fans, don't mean to slight ya, but your team didn't impress me when they came here, or in the tourneys.
Anyway, I think the B12 will be the toughest again this season and when not playing the Buffs I wish all the B12 teams well.

Press · #9 07-10-2002, 11:39 PM

Growning up in West Texas, sports/entertainment consisted of football, more football or girls basketball. My family was a huge supporter of gbb. As far back as I can remember, my sisters played and we went all the girls HS games. We also traveled 70 miles to watch Wayland Baptist Flying Queens in Plainview, almost every home game, if on the weekend. The Flying Queens were IT, back then and put on a show. We even went to some of the Lubbock Monterey games to the the Etheridge sisters play because they were SO good!

My first experience with Coach Sharp is back in the late 70's when she brought her Lockney HS girls team to our hometown tournament. No doubt, they were very good.

When I got to Tech in the early 80's, Coach Sharp was an assistant coach and I was one of about 150 people sitting in a folding chair, courtside. Tech always had a good team, but spent most of time trying to figure out a way to beat Texas. We waited a long time but it eventually happened. From that point forward, it was Swoopes, the National Championship, and the rest is history.

Thanks to the Internet, it's much easier to follow the teams and we can talk wbb 24/7/365, and I love it!

[This message has been edited by Press (edited 07-10-2002).]

TXSNOS · #10 07-10-2002, 11:48 PM

I had the pleasure of seeing Sheryl Swoopes play in a high school all-star game. She ran circles around everyone. She broke my heart when she left the University of Texas, but I'm still a big fan of hers anyway. Her cat-like body control is amazing.

TXSNOS

[This message has been edited by TXSNOS (edited 07-10-2002).]

KSUron · #11 07-10-2002, 11:56 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Buffsfan22:
Funny to me that we're being written off this year ---

I'm glad the Buffs are being overlooked (again!) I'm more excited about this year's team than I was last years. ---

Sorry K-State fans, don't mean to slight ya, but your team didn't impress me when they came here, or in the tourneys.

Not to worry Buffsfan22. We are not writing off the Buffs this year. Also bear in mind that for various reasons you did not see anything close to what the KSU ladies can do when they were out there. When our two top point guards went down with injuries we struggled for a while, but I can join you in saying that oponents that overlook either of our teams this year will do it at their peril.

But most of all: WELCOME to the board KV. I'm glad you found us.

DblT81 · #12 07-11-2002, 12:20 AM

My life or something like it by DblT81:

Basketball was always big in our house growing up. My dad played some college ball. Being short, slow, and not able to jump, my high school playing career was spent mostly on the bench where I dreamed of being a sports writer. [When I got to college, I found out that to afford that dream car/house/lifestyle I wanted, another career might pay off better.]

Similar to Press, growing up as a sports fan in West Texas, girls basketball was important. [The Amarillo Globe News beat the pants off the Lubbock Avalanche Journal in the reporting on girls basketball, BTW.] When I went to Tech around the same time Press was there, I went to a few LR games since some old HS foes played for Tech. But I didn't go to many games because I couldn't get anyone to go with me and going by myself would have been uncool.

The career and family took me away from Lubbock. I followed the Tech team by reading box scores in the paper since stories were rarely written about wcbb games. Then Sheryl Swoopes happened and Tech was on TV more and more. And Sports Illus began writing about her and wcbb. Like Elfdenmom, the '91-92 season was the starting point of me being a somewhat rabid fan. The internet has made it even more fun and interesting because now I listen to all the games that I can't watch live or on TV.

Many old time Tech fans blast those they call "band wagon" fans who have only followed the Lady Raiders since Swoopes. For those of us who live outside of Lubbock, it was difficult to be a big fan until TV and the internet made it possible to see and hear more games and read more info.

RaiderPower1 · #13 07-11-2002, 01:45 AM

Well, let's see obviously being "only" 18 I couldn't have been a big fan during the Swoopes era when I was 8. I don't get the "band wagon" fan thing either. I've never been called one but I know people would think that because I just started being a fan when I could understand the game 6 years ago. Now, I am one of the biggest BASKETBALL fans out there. I never played with my school but I did play 4 years for a recreational league here in Lubbock during HS. I also go to the Gus Macker tournaments in New Mexico and the Hoopla tournaments they have in NM. I have coached 9-12 grade girls for a recreational league here in Lubbock for 3 years. I enjoy alllll levels of basketball but I probably like TTU womens' bball more. I can tell you that I'll support any team that is in my hometown or closest pro team to it. I like all Texas Tech sports, Dallas pro teams (Cowboys, Rangers, Mavericks), and my (now former) HS sports. I have for the longest time wanted to be a sports commentator specifically basketball and football and I have been told by my college professors that I would make a good one but the job market ain't all the big right now. I will be moving to Dallas for my education but we are still getting the season tickets and I am still coming home to see some games. I'll probably even make it down to Waco to see the LRs. We will head to Hawaii to see them on their tournament over there. I'm a pretty dedicated fan and I support them through thick and thin. I'm a really big fan even if some will call me a "band wagon" fan just cause I started liking the LRs postSwoopes but hey it's not like I could support them before them. There will always be Red and Black in my blood though even when I move to UT Dallas. Go Lady Raiders!!

Cycurl714 · #14 07-11-2002, 10:08 AM

I have to blame the 1996 Olympics for gettting me interested in women's sports in general.
Then during the 98-99 season I began seeing about the cyclones on the local news and I was curious. Then I saw the Sisters beat UCONN in the tourny and I was hooked.

swok34 · #15 07-11-2002, 11:13 AM

I became a fan of OU during the season that Stacey sat on the bench red-shirting with her torn ACL.....?5 seasons ago.

I had been following the LSU women's team in Baton Rouge for about 3 years before moving to Oklahoma.....and watched the championship game back on CBS when that's all the TV that was available. I can't say I was as avid a fan when following LSU as I am now and have been for these past 5 OU Seasons.

I, like Carol, probably act like a fool screaming, and through the years, have seen folks move and never, ever sit behind me

Though as you have all mentioned, the internet has changed the environment for the fans of women's college basketball. I attend most of the games of the OU softball team, though the information on the internet is far and few.