Make it pink

Jefferson, Dukes put their twist on annual Pink Out game vs. Louisiana

By MADISON HRICIK The Breeze

It’s the solidarity of pink shoes, pink jerseys, a pink tie. It’s remembering that no one is alone in this fight.

It’s #4Ma.

Senior guard Kiki Jefferson’s first tattoo, which she got last year, is on her right forearm: It’s “#4Ma,” written in a calligraphy print. She said the saying is her own spin on the popular dedication to parents, “For Mom,” “For Mama,” etc.

But the saying originates from a different type of dedication for Jefferson. Her mom has battled cancer since Jefferson’s senior year of high school, and JMU women's basketball’s Pink Out on Thursday against Louisiana is the yearly opportunity for Jefferson to show off just how proud she is.

“My mom is just my backbone and my reason,” Jefferson said. “The game isn’t only about my mom because there are so many other fighters out there.”

The Pink Out game has started every year with the JMU women’s basketball team honoring Jefferson’s mother, Kiyana, since Jefferson began playing with the Dukes in 2019, and anyone else fighting cancer. At that time, Kiyana was going through breast cancer treatment and was cleared during Jefferson’s freshman campaign.

But Kiyana underwent treatment again for bone cancer in December 2021.

Jefferson said she credits almost all of her success to her parents’ sacrifice. Jefferson said she always felt supported by them during her basketball career, even as Kiyana went through treatment.

“It just shows that I’m not in this alone — and nobody is in this alone,” Jefferson said. “Anybody that’s battling cancer is not alone.”

While Jefferson played AAU basketball before arriving at JMU, her parents worked multiple jobs to help keep Jefferson and her brother playing the game they love.

Four jobs for Kiyana, and two for Jefferson’s father, Marcus. Marcus worked from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Kiyana wouldn’t get off work until 10 p.m. — “she was just always working,” Jefferson said.

The Pink Out is an emotional game every season, and both Jefferson’s parents make sure to attend every year.

“I don’t want to say it but like, my mom couldn’t have been here,” Jefferson said. “You never know, and I’m just glad she is here.”

JMU is just one of many basketball programs around the country to have its own pink game, with some women’s basketball programs also joining in with pink jerseys, shoes and testimonies of what it can be like to have a family member go through cancer treatment. JMU head coach Sean O’Regan said it’s especially caught on in women’s basketball.

The Pink Out game originated at North Carolina State with the #Play4Kay movement in 2006 after former NC State head coach Kay Yow was diagnosed with breast cancer. Yow lost her battle in 2009, but the Kay Yow Cancer Fund has continued to grow since its inception in 2007. The pink game has been an annual event for the Wolfpack since and it’s grown into a national staple in women’s college basketball, spanning all three NCAA divisions.

O’Regan added the Dukes’ Pink Out game hasn’t always been an in-depth, “all out” performance they put on every year. It’s slowly grown bigger, in part due to Jefferson’s personal struggles, but it’s what the head coach loves about this particular night.

“I think it’s a great awareness,” O’Regan said. “It’s really a cool thing to do and I’m glad we do it right.”

O’Regan also said JMU’s game is about cancer awareness holistically, not just breast cancer. The pink signifies Yow’s fight, but O’Regan said having the Dukes represent fighters from all types of cancer is more personal to the team.

“It’s the whole picture,” O’Regan said. “I think everybody in the whole world has had somebody affected by cancer. For us, it certainly hits home. But if you went through the whole team, I know I’ve had family members affected with it, and I think everyone has had someone affected by it.”

Since the classic Pink Out is well known, it’s nothing new for a few transfer players.

In particular, graduate transfer guard Caroline Germond played in cancer awareness nights during her time at TCU. So to coincide with the pink jerseys and shoes JMU will wear, she put a photo of bedazzled sneakers on TikTok and decided she wanted to try it.

It was a hit among the team. A few players got the Nike swoosh logo filled with silvercolored rhinestones. Germond placed each rhinestone by hand, she said, and while time-consuming, it was still a worthwhile activity for the cause.

Junior forward Annalicia Goodman, among others, sported the sparkling swoosh at practice Tuesday afternoon since the majority of the team was breaking the pink shoes in. But Germond ran out of some of the materials, so not every player will sport the extra sparkle, but she still enjoyed the chance to make a few pairs shine.

“I love being creative like that,” Germond said. “And I think they send a message too, so just wearing them is cool.”

Louisiana head coach Gary Brodhead also demonstrated his own support to the Pink Out.

“Our program here at Louisiana at Lafayette has been greatly affected by breast cancer throughout the past 11 years,” Brodhead said in a statement to The Breeze. “From our players, to assistant coaches, our associate head coach and head coach. We have each had people affected by it and we take great pride in bringing awareness to this cause. We feel the breast cancer game is one of the great ways to bring awareness to our community.”

JMU has been on the road for the last two weeks but is opening a two-game homestand with its annual Pink Out game. It’s part of what Jefferson is looking forward to the most about coming back to the Atlantic Union Bank Center.

“I want to show [Kiyana] she’s not in this fight, this journey, alone,” Jefferson said. “She has me, she has her family and she has my teammates, coach is always here, JMU Nation is always here. She’s not in this alone, and I’m not in this alone.”

CONTACT Madison Hricik at breezesports@gmail.com. For more women’s basketball coverage, follow the sports desk on Twitter @TheBreezeSports.