WACO (January 28, 2009)--Former President George W. Bush is attending a Baylor women's basketball game against Oklahoma in one of his first public appearances since returning to his Crawford ranch.

Bush and his wife, Laura, walked onto the court this evening
with Baylor coach Kim Mulkey after the former president addressed
the team before the game.

As soon as Bush and Mulkey emerged from the tunnel, without any
introduction, the crowd stood and broke into loud applause.

The Bushes then took their seats in the first row behind the
bench.

Bush said, quote, "This is our first outing since I left the presidency and I can't think of a better place."

When the Bushes were introduced during the first timeout 4:03
into the game, somebody screamed "We love you, George Bush" and
there was another loud ovation. He smiled and waved.

When Baylor won the NCAA championship in 2005, Bush called
Mulkey to congratulate the team and later hosted the Lady Bears at
the White House.

The Baylor campus is about 25 miles from the Bush ranch in
Crawford, where they have been staying since last week when
President Barack Obama took office.