If you think keeping up with the Joneses is tough, try keeping up with the Bradys.
Scott and Mary Brady of Vernal certainly have quite the time trying to keep up with their basketball-playing bunch.
Not only do these parents of seven travel to attend as many UVSC games as they can to follow their oldest son, Jordan, but they also hit the road often to support their daughter, Nicole, and her SLCC team.
The Bradys also watch and help coach their elementary school kids — Cameron and Andrea — who play Junior Jazz basketball in Vernal.
They would really have to stretch themselves out thin, but their son, Griffin, is redshirting this year at Snow College, and another son, Trevor, put his college basketball career on hold to serve an LDS mission in Zimbabwe after playing at Western Wyoming Community College in Rock Springs.
Mom and dad don't wait for postcards or phone calls to see how their kids are doing — they follow them in action. Seniors in high school (Uintah) and college get top priority — that's Jordan this year — but they spread out their support.
Attending as many games as possible (along with taking kids to hoops-related camps, clinics, practices, etc.) is, Mary said, "what we do." The payoff: a lot of family fun and helping kids get college basketball scholarships.
"We're a basketball family all the way," Scott said. "We're gone to basketball all the time."
The payout: The couple spends thousands of dollars on gas, drives thousands of miles and watches thousands of minutes of basketball each season. They've gone through four cars over the years for athletic adventures, and have put 25,000 miles on a new car that they bought about a year ago specifically for trips across the Beehive State and elsewhere.
"These are our vacations," Scott said during a recent visit to Salt Lake for Nicole. "The most entertaining thing we do is watch our kids play sports."
"We'll be rich when we're done," Mary joked.
The parents are so devoted to supporting their family's sporting events, they even traveled to watch son-in-law Shane Smuin, who married their non-sports-playing daughter, Meagan, play baseball in Indiana.
Chit-chatting about one particular subject helps keep them awake on long road trips.
"We talk about what the coaches should do," said Mary with a smile, pointing out they try not to be critical. "We appreciate the coaches."
And their kids appreciate them. Nicole joked that she'll give them a new car if she ever becomes rich and famous.
"I like it that they are willing to take the time to drive out for me," said Nicole, a freshman. "It kind of scares me with the bad weather, though."
The family plans on moving to Salt Lake City soon, but not necessarily to cut back on their basketball traveling. Scott currently commutes about 350 miles roundtrip to his nursing job at the University of Utah Hospital.
ABOVE-PAUR CAREER: In 30-plus years, CEU women's coach Dave Paur had coached almost 1,200 games in baseball, basketball, track and football without missing a single one — until a week ago.
Paur made the rare exception to miss his Golden Eagles' contest when he was invited to be inducted into the Southern Utah University Coaching Factory Hall of Fame. Paur, also CEU's athletic director, has coached the women's team for 19 years, perhaps highlighted by the 2004 squad finishing seventh in the NJCAA poll.
"An opportunity to do something like that doesn't come often," said the former Southern Utah basketball player. "I'd better take the opportunity when it's there. It was a surprise."
His team also took care of its business in his absence, trouncing Colorado Northwestern 86-50.
MOVING ON UP: The Westminster men's six-game winning streak has not gone unnoticed. The Griffins, who are 16-3 and tied for first in the Frontier Conference, jumped three spots to No. 8 in the NAIA poll, marking the school's highest-ever ranking. The previous high was ninth on March 1, 2005.
The Griffin women slipped to No. 25. Neither Westminster squad played last week.
As for SLCC, losing to second-ranked Southern Idaho took a toll on the men but benefited the women. The Bruin men fell four places to seventh, while the women received more votes and are just one spot away from entering the NJCAA Top 25 after their impressive overtime loss.
Sweeps over Snow College this past weekend should only help the Bruins' status.
DIXIE DANDY: Dixie State guard Ryan Sanchez, who played at Fremont High, notched his second 32-point game this year in Friday's 74-72 win at Notre Dame de Namur. The most impressive part is that he hit 12 of 15 shots, including all four 3-point attempts. The junior, whose 13.7 points average is second-best on the team, has been on a tear lately, leading the Rebels in scoring in three of the past four games.
NATIONAL SCENE: Westminster point guard Danny Reeder held onto his NAIA assists lead during the bye week with a 7.1 average; he's also fifth in free throws at 88.8 percent ... SLCC's Brian Green regained the NJCAA free-throw shooting lead with his 96.3-percent average; CEU's Kal Bay is fourth at 93.1 percent ... SLCC remained second in team defense (53.0 ppg allowed), and holding Snow to 45.5 points in two games will help ... SLCC's women are second in FT percentage at 71.3 percent.
E-mail: jody@desnews.com