Father and daughter among first UVA hoops tailgaters as fans return to JPJ

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (WVIR) - University of Virginia basketball fans waited for 612 days between chances to catch their ‘Hoos live and in-person at John Paul Jones Arena.

The COVID-19 pandemic left the stands virtually empty for almost two years. But Tuesday, Cav fans were back.

More than two hours before the opening tipoff of UVA’s season opener against Navy, a father and daughter were busy setting up a tailgate in the parking lot with a UVA table ready to hold the food and beverages of the special occasion.

“It became our thing for bonding, like father-daughter bonding,” said Jordyn Lam. “So, that’s what we do together.”

Jordyn and her father Steve Lam have followed the ‘Hoos from JPJ all the way to Minneapolis for the 2019 Final Four and the national championship.

“It’s our thing,” Steve said. “We went to the national championship. Brother didn’t go, Mom didn’t go. So, we got to experience that together.”

Steve has been a fan for 41 years, while Jordyn has been a fan since her crush on Joe Harris. It was hard to tell who loves the Cavaliers more -- but they’re both just glad to be ‘home’ at the arena watching them.

“It’s good to be back at JPJ,” Steve said. “It’s good to see live college basketball again and just be part of this incredible program that Tony has put together.”

Jordyn and Steve have gone through a lot with the Cavaliers -- including the infamous UMBC game in the 2018 tournament. But Jordyn says they’ve learned, mostly through Head Coach Tony Bennett, that basketball is a game of peaks and valleys -- ups and downs.

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