Chapter 3

We got up, got dressed and I turned on all the exterior lights and soon we were engaged in an intense game of basketball. The first one to score 21 points wins, and you have to win by two points, like 21-19. Each basket, regardless of where it was scored from, counted as one point.

When I bought the house, the prior owners had installed a basketball goal, and one of the first times Bo, Alice and Carrie came over to my house, Carrie had asked if I played.

I had been a four-year starter on my high school team, and while I was not the most gifted athlete in the world, I was tall. I also had very quick feet, and far more than average reflexes. I might not have been recruited by any of the major colleges, but a number of junior colleges, as well as lower-level four-year colleges had expressed an interest in me.

Instead, I opted to join the Marines.

I first started playing against Carrie when she was only 12. She was already tall for her age, and had pretty good skills, but it really was no contest.

I would let her win occasionally – perhaps one or two games out of 10.

By the time she was 14, I was no longer “letting” her win. She still won at least two, sometimes three games out of 10. By the time she was 15, that had climbed to at least five games out of 10.

During her senior year, she could easily beat me eight games out of 10.

But all of those games had been really close, really competitive. It was not unusual for some games to actually go into the 30s, before one of us (usually Carrie) would eke out a two-point victory margin. I think the highest scoring game we had ever played was 39-37.

While it was true that I had not played in over two years, I still kept myself in pretty good shape, running as much as I could, and working out with weights, so I was still pretty confident.

Yes, she was a starter on a nationally-ranked basketball team, and was named a pre-season All-American for her current, junior, year, but I was still pretty confident.

Even if she had led her Crimson Tide ladies’ basketball team to the semifinals of the NCAA tournament as a sophomore, losing to the eventual national champions, I was still pretty confident.

I knew that at least I could really give Carrie a challenge, and probably still win one or two games out of 10.

During that night, and over the course of the next three days, she beat me 27 straight games.

All amid a never-ending barrage of “trash-talk” about “old fat men who should be sitting in rocking chairs,” and other equally disparaging remarks. And a couple of the games ... okay, more than a couple ... okay, most of the games ... it wasn’t even close!

When I finally won that 28^th game, all she could do was constantly complain about how I fouled her every time she had the ball, how I walked with the ball, how I double-dribbled, how much I cheated!

But as I told her, in regards to the supposed “fouls,” in that last game we were playing by Marine Corps jungle rules: “No Blood, No Foul!”

Then she told me that when we went to bed later that night, she would show me what “No Blood, No Foul,” REALLY meant!

And God, did she ever! It was WONDERFUL!

Soon, though, she had to go back to school. She told me she wanted to quit, to stay with me, but as I told her one night, if she did that, she would probably regret it for the rest of her life.

What I did, though, was rent a small apartment in Tuscaloosa, and many nights I would drive down and we would spend the night together. I became a permanent fixture at all her home games, and also traveled to most of her away games.

We were married as soon as her junior year was finished.

The General served as best man, Jenny was matron of honor, and of course Bo gave the bride away. True to their word, The General and Jenny went on a month-long cruise, and we honeymooned at their house on the beach in Hawaii.

If you are a sports fan, then you should already know most of the rest of the story.

During her junior year, Carrie had led her Crimson Tide team to the finals of the NCAA tournament, when they lost by a single point, on a very controversial call.

The next year, as a senior, she led the nation – men and women – in scoring and again led her team to the national championship finals where they crushed their nemesis from the year before by over 50 points. Carrie scored 66 points, and was named Most Valuable Player (MVP)

How she was the second player drafted that year, and quickly led The Atlanta Dream of the WNBA (Women’s National Basketball Association) to the semifinals her first year, and won back-to-back championships the next two years, leading the league in scoring all three years, and being named MVP in both championship games. She was also named league MVP all three years.

How she was selected for the U.S. Women’s Olympic basketball team and won an Olympic Gold Medal, again being named MVP.

And can anyone forget her incredible interview with Bob Costas on NBC just hours after winning the Olympic Gold Medal?

His opening words set the tone for the interview.

“Some people say she is the greatest female basketball player of all time,” Costas began, “while others say you can drop the qualifier ‘female’ and simply rate her as one of the best basketball players of all time.”

Costas then introduced Carrie.

Costas immediately started telling everyone he almost didn’t know what to say about Carrie, then started reading some of the highlights of her career.

“You led your team to the semi-finals your sophomore year, then to the championship game your junior year. Many people felt your team was robbed, because you lost by a single point and replays clearly showed you were fouled – intentionally – with three seconds to go,” Costas said. “You should have been on the foul line, with one point needed to tie, and two to win.

“Then you come back your senior year, absolutely on fire. You led the nation in scoring. That is among both men and women, and again led your team to the national tournament where your average margin of victory, before the championship game, was over 30 points,” he continued.

“Then in the championship game, you hit 10 of 10 from three point range, hit 20 of 20 free throws, and hit eight of nine shots from two points. And again, replays show your one miss should also have counted since the other team was clearly guilty of goal-tending.

“You also had 13 rebounds, 12 steals and 10 blocked shots, resulting in a quadruple-double. Some sports writers have said your performance in that game was the most dominating they have ever seen, and most are quick to note not just in women’s basketball, but in basketball period.

“What happened between your junior and senior years that changed your game so much, Carrie?” Costas asked.

Carrie explained that she had gotten married before her senior year, and had dedicated her senior year to her husband, who served as an inspiration to her.

When Carrie had told me that, before returning to Tuscaloosa for her senior year, I was almost speechless. But to hear her tell that to a national audience was absolutely breath-taking.

Costas continued: “You led the WNBA in scoring all three years, and have won back-to-back championships. And now, you have led a United States team that, frankly, wasn’t given much of a chance, to the Olympic Gold Medal.

“How can you compare those different titles, Carrie?”

Carrie said that growing up, her goal was simply to be able to make a varsity team. When she was 12, she met someone who changed her life, and made her become a better player, and better person, than she had ever thought she could be.

I realized, with a shock, that she was talking about me. I began to get a little misty-eyed.

“He believed in me, and always told me I could accomplish anything if I wanted it badly enough. He also told me that excuses were just that, excuses for not wanting something badly enough,” she said.

Carrie said by her senior year in high school, as scholarship offers began coming in, her goals had changed.

“Now I wanted to play college basketball, and be a starter. That is really all, just to be a starter. Again, I never dreamed I could actually play for a national title.

At the start of her senior year of college, Carrie said, her dreams had changed again.

“Now, I wanted that title so bad I could taste it,” she emphasized.

Once that had been accomplished, and professional basketball became an option, she simply wanted to be the best to ever play the game, she said.

“I can’t even describe what an honor it was to represent my state and team in the NCAA tournament and win a championship. And what an honor to represent the South as a member of the Atlanta Dream and win two titles.

“But to represent my country, and win Olympic Gold – that is something I never even dreamed of, never conceived could happen.

“But none of this would ever have happened, never been possible,” she said, “without one man. I would like to dedicate this Gold Medal to my husband, Jake Lewis.”

Now I am a lot more than a little misty-eyed. I am actually sitting just off-camera, and without my realizing it, the cameras swung over and started filming my reaction.