Memphis is a passionate city, and it shows.
Look no further than the food.
Whether you prefer succulent pork that's been cooked all day and smothered in sauce or gently applied spices (a rub), it's easy to find great barbecue in Memphis.
Or the blues.
Beale Street is the heart of the soulful southern sound, but not all of the great music is played in the downtown area.
Or basketball.
Memphis loves basketball. It embraces the up-tempo, cascading action and thunder of the ball on the hardwood.
The city loves football too, but the 20th-largest city in America gets no interest from the NFL.
Yes, Memphis is often referred to as a high-crime city, but of the 30 cities with the highest murder rate five are located in the SEC footprint and Memphis is not one of them.
After the Memphis Grizzlies won two consecutive games against Golden State to take a 2-1 lead in their NBA Western Conference semifinal series, Monday night on the Mighty Mississippi was chock full of excitement, enthusiasm and hope going into Game 4.
Radio talk shows -- and Memphis seems to have more per capita than any city in the world -- filled the air waves with stories. TV and the newspaper also did their part.
The No. 5 seed Grizzlies had blown by fourth-seeded Portland in the first round of the playoffs, winning the series 4-1 thanks to defense and determination.
To have a 2-1 lead on No. 1 seed Golden State and NBA MVP Stephen Curry in the conference semifinals was exhilarating, and it appeared momentum had swung when point guard Mike Conley returned to the Grizzlies' lineup.
In Game 3 against Portland, Memphis' under-rated guard -- whose dad was a track and field All-American at Arkansas and an Olympic gold medalist -- took an elbow to the face that eventually required surgery April 27.
If the injury hurt as bad as it looked, Conley should have stayed in the hospital.
Instead he returned for the Grizzlies' first victory over the Warriors, wearing a large protective mask, but Monday night all the point guard talk was about Curry.
Almost from the start it was his and the Warriors' night.
Memphis led 2-0 for 13 seconds, 9-8 for 15 seconds and was tied at 18 for 10 seconds. From that point on, the Warriors showed why they were the top seed.
Curry had 21 points by halftime and finished with 33. He also had eight rebounds and five assists.
The Grizzlies simply didn't have an answer for Curry, and what makes that worse is Memphis is probably the best defensive team left in the playoffs.
Golden State had five more field goals on eight fewer attempts, but the huge difference was the Warriors made 14 three-pointers on 33 attempts, a very healthy 42.2 percent.
Midway through the fourth quarter the stands began to empty fast, but that wasn't indicative of anything other than the change in attitude of fans from coast to coast, especially for late games. People who have to be at work or have a drive ahead of them often leave with time on the clock and catch the remainder of the game on the radio.
That is just sports, from the high school level through the pros.
Fans pay big bucks to be entertained, not to be disappointed.
The other No. 1 seed, the Atlanta Hawks, also came back Monday to tie their Eastern Conference semifinal series with the Washington Wizards at two games apiece. The Wizards are a different team without their point guard, John Wall, who is out with a broken hand.
The Hawks, who are sort of a no-name team, are at home tonight with a chance to grab control of their series.
The Grizzlies go back on the road at Golden State, but no doubt sometime this morning Memphis will start buzzing again hopes and dreams will continue to be in play.
Memphis is passionate about many things, especially its NBA team.
Sports on 05/13/2015