Granny Basketball Tournament begins in KC this weekend, with a good cause behind it
The Granny Basketball League is gearing up for the largest tournament of its 19-year history, and it’s all happening in Kansas City, Kansas.
The National Granny Basketball Tournament tips off Saturday with opening ceremonies at 8 a.m. at Homefield KCK Showcase Center for a two-day special event.
“It’s a wonderful opportunity to see women of a certain age compete and have a fantastic time playing women’s basketball,” Granny Basketball League executive director Michele Clark told The Star. “This will be the largest tournament in our organization’s history, with 28 teams and more than 300 players, and will be showcased at the brand new Homefield KCK facility in Kansas City, so we’re really excited about that.”
Across the 28 teams in the tournament, 10 states will be represented, as well as Canada. Eight teams are located in Kansas; there is one Missouri team.
Granny Basketball is described to be played “1920’s-style,” including the uniforms, according to a news release from the organization. It’ll consist of six-on-six basketball with rules that involve no running or jumping, no physical contact and four eight-minute quarters.
For Clark, this is her 13th year with the organization. She plays as a member of the Kansas Grayhawkers, based out of Lawrence.
“Playing Granny Basketball is so rewarding on a number of levels,” Clark said. “Longstanding, enduring friendships have been the most special thing I think about playing Granny Basketball. … It’s really joyful to get out and be able to play in a sport with other women between the ages of 50 and 92.”
Clark noted some opportunities the league has had in its history, including traveling all over the country for games as well as playing an exhibition contest at Allen Fieldhouse. But one of the aspects at the core of the league has been giving back.
Each year, the host team of the tournament selects a charity for the event to support. With Olathe’s Kansas Sunflower team hosting, this year’s tournament supports Cross-Lines Community Outreach in Kansas City.
“We wanted it to be local so that we can help out the local community,” Kansas Sunflowers player and tournament chair Shari Baker told The Star. “We chose them because they’re not just a one-and-done kind of charity; they do so much for the community.”
Cross-Lines Community Outreach’s mission is to “provide people in the Kansas City area affected by poverty with services and opportunities that encourage self-confidence, meet the needs of today, and provide tools for future self-sufficiency,” per its website. The organization provides a food pantry, food service Monday through Friday, showers for the community and partners with the police to provide supplies to homeless camps.
The event will support Cross-Lines Community Outreach through admission cost, donations, a silent auction and fan contests.
“It’s a wonderful feeling,” Baker said of giving back to the community. “Anytime we do a big tournament, we have a charity, but we also do other fundraisers throughout the year.”
Baker said her team has recently raised money for medical bills for a student diagnosed with cancer. The team has also supported Operation Breakthrough in downtown KC and volunteered to serve meals at Ronald McDonald House.
“We try to (help) in all communities, not just one,” Baker said. “And not only spread the word of granny basketball, but do everything that we can to help and promote that charity or that cause: to bring more awareness to it for communities around here so that they can continue to get support throughout the year. ... It’s a wonderful feeling to be able to give back through Granny Basketball.”
Baker has been playing the sport since 2019. It has been a means, she said, to stay active and give back to the community, but it has also affected her on a deeper level.
Baker’s husband was recently diagnosed with cancer, she said. Because of Granny Basketball, she doesn’t feel like she has to go through it alone.
“They just rally around you and they’re there,” Baker said. “They’re there for prayers, they’re there for food. They come and sit with me during surgeries. They’re just a great bunch of women with huge hearts. … I definitely don’t know what I would do without them in my life.”
The doors will open at Homefield KCK Showcase Center at 7:30 a.m. on both Saturday and Sunday for the tournament. Admission is $5, and fans are encouraged to bring nonperishable food items for the Cross-Lines Community Outreach food pantry.
“It’s just a special style of basketball, a special style of women’s basketball that we hope to preserve and continue,” Clark said. “The league is continuing to grow, and so we hope that the community can come out and support us as well as support the charity.”
This story was originally published August 2, 2024 at 11:43 AM.
