Basketball gives Greg, Mea Ulland a bonding point all year round

Jan. 18—JAMESTOWN — A few months ago, Greg Ulland told his daughter, Mea, he didn't know if he'd go back to coaching basketball.

Then life took a turn and now he's kind of the face for Jamestown basketball — at multiple different levels.

"I think it's awesome," Mea, a sophomore at Jamestown High School, said of watching her dad coach. "When I found out about it I was just giggling because a few weeks prior he was like, I don't know if I'll go back into coaching, maybe when you graduate' and now he's back and I think it is so fun."

Greg, native of Strasburg, North Dakota, has been playing and involved in some form of basketball since he was born.

"My dad coached high school basketball for 30 years so since I was born I've been around it," Greg said. "It was something that was a passion of mine and something that I thoroughly enjoyed. It was a lot of fun. I came to college at UJ to play basketball and football and then just ended up sticking with football.

"I guess I knew my time was going to run out — I wasn't going to make it to the NBA — so if there was ever going to be an opportunity to be a part of the game it would be as a coach," he said. "I went that way and it's been a good experience. It's given a lot back to not only to myself but to my whole family. It's something that we're all kind of passionate about."

Greg was an assistant women's basketball coach at the University of Mary for one season (2003) and at the University of Jamestown from 2000 to 2002. He then moved up to Grand Forks where he acted as an assistant coach for the University of North Dakota (UND) football team. He then spent the 2005-06 season at Mayville State University with the women's basketball program as an assistant coach, moved back to work with UND's women's basketball program then took the head women's basketball coaching position at UJ.

He acted as the Jimmies' head coach for eight seasons. He hung up his coaching hat in 2018.

"Part of the reason I got out of coaching was that I missed a lot of stuff when Mea was a sixth grader," Greg said. "I had to put the priorities to being a father and being around and being there and watching.

While Greg is currently serving as the interim head coach of the Jimmies' men's basketball team, he's committed to his prior statement.

"With my current position coaching the men, I told them, I am going to do everything I can but unless there's a game on the same day — I don't want to miss any of my daughters' stuff," Greg said.

On Jan. 5, Greg hung around Jamestown to watch Mea and the Jays' take on Bismarck High. After her game concluded, he drove to Sioux City, Iowa, where he spent the night before he drove the rest of the way to Omaha, Nebraska, to meet up with the men's team which was preparing to play Midland University.

"I got to Midland at 9 a.m., did shootaround, hung out in the hotel that morning and then we had our game that afternoon and then I hopped in the car and drove back to Jamestown and then the next morning, on Sunday, my daughter, Harper, had the second day of her tournament in Bismarck so I hopped in the car and drove over there and coached and watched a couple of her games," he said. "It was quite the eventful three days of basketball.

"When it comes to your family and your daughters you want to be a part of it and you want to be there, and with the guys, they deserve as close to 100% as I can give," he said. "It's kind of the Jimmie way. You do everything you can to make it work out. We'll get sleep later on in life but right now there are a lot of things that we have to do."

Mea and Harper have begun to emulate their father's commitment to the game.

"When I was coaching Mea and Harp would get to take one road trip a year with me so we'd go down to Presentation (College) and they'd get to sit on the bus and also sit on the bench with me," Greg said. "(Mea) also came recruiting with me. We'd sit in the gym from 7:30 a.m. to 8 or 9 o'clock at night. She was a trooper.

"She'd come and sit down next to me and we'd watch basketball all day long and talk about it and recruited. It was just one of those things that you could tell that she enjoyed too."

Mea began playing basketball competitively as a third grader.

"We were never going to push basketball on the girls," Greg said. "We wanted them to make their own decisions so we tried a lot of things. We did gymnastics, we did dance, we did soccer, we did basketball, softball, volleyball — we've tried everything and have allowed them to find what they want to do."

While Greg didn't push his daughters in any one direction, his passion for the sport must have seeped into the Ulland household somehow.

"I know in third grade when you start your traveling basketball life I was really excited about it and then in fifth and sixth grade my excitement kind of went down and then it went back up around seventh and eighth grade when my dad started coaching me," Mea said.

Greg coached Mea prior to her competing at the high school level. He now coaches her summer team, North Dakota Phenom, while he coaches Harper's sixth grade in the winter months.

"There's dad and then there's coach," Mea said. "I struggled with understanding that when I was younger but I've come to realize that they really are two different people. He pushes me really hard. If I want to be good I have to work hard. I have to put in a lot of time and he's helped me see that."

Greg's pushing and Mea's relentless work ethic has shaped the sophomore into a natural fit for a Blue Jay starter this season.

The 2023-24 campaign marks Mea's second season as a varsity team member but it is her first year as a starter. In 10 games, the 5-foot-3 shooting guard has accounted for 94 points — the second most by any Blue Jay, 19 rebounds and 12 assists. She is averaging 9.4 points per game and has played a whopping 265 minutes. Mea is currently shooting 51.1% from the floor and making 34.4% of her deep shots.

"I love watching her work hard at something," Greg said. "Seeing her work on some type of drill to develop a skill and then seeing her use it in a game and be successful is really great and then seeing her smile knowing that this was something she worked at and not necessarily perfected but helped her become a better player — those are the things I like to see."

Greg isn't the only one who enjoys being at the games.

"It's so fun having him there — I refuse to look at him though," Mea said with a laugh. "He's always sitting in the same spot so I know exactly where to go after the game but during the game, I try to stay locked in but I still have fun with him being there.

"It's just another thing that my dad and I can bond over," she said. "We talk about my games, his games, games we are watching on TV. It's also always fun to be in the gym with him. He's always thinking about my best interest so I have a lot of trust in him. If I have a question, he'll more than likely know the answer. I know he knows what he is talking about — at least a little bit."