National-caliber grit

Scientists interested in charting the full range of human emotions need to hook their equipment up to an Augusta State University fan right now.

Exhilaration. Depression. Joy. Wistfulness. Gratitude. Longing. Pride. Frustration.

Jaguar faithful have run through every sentiment in the book the past week, after the ASU men's basketball team took us on a thrilling trip through the NCAA Division II "Elite Eight" tournament in Springfield, Mass., for the first time in school history.

After an electrifying double-overtime, come-from-behind-a-million-times win in the quarterfinals Wednesday, and a more sure-footed victory in the semifinals Thursday, the team flirted with a national championship before yielding its double-digit lead to a Winona State (Minnesota) squad that has been in the title game three years running.

Despite the defeat, Augusta State proved it belonged among the elite teams in the nation.

And in the process, Coach Dip Metress and his gang took a lot of us on a ride we'll never forget.

They say all good things must come to an end. Well, they're wrong.

Memories are forever, you see.

Yes, it's sad to have witnessed senior All-American magic man Tyrekus "A.J." Bowman play his last game for ASU -- but if he has to leave, what a way to go out: with a spinning, soaring, jamming, vintage Bowman performance that included a team-high 26 points and a national-title-game-record shooting percentage of 80 percent.

And on national TV, no less.

It hurts, too, to be so close to the brass ring and to feel it slip away. But let it be remembered that these guys squeezed every last drop of sweat they could out of a long and furious season, managing to become one of the last two Division II teams playing and handing the school a record-tying 27 victories against seven defeats.

Now the task will be to top it -- without Bowman and four other seniors who must move on. It'll be tough -- but winning has a winsome habit of begetting winning, and Metress's bench is still laden with talent. And no doubt his recruiting efforts will be bolstered with a DVD of ASU's moment in the sun.

Still, whatever heights may come, this team was one for the ages. It shows what a wildly diverse, but like-minded band of brothers from Augusta, Tignall, Ga., Ireland, Australia and other points can achieve with hard work and national-caliber grit.

Maybe scientists ought to measure that too!