By JIM STEELE
pressbox1.com

JACKSON - For 20 years, the NAIA has called Jackson, Tenn. home when it comes to its national women's basketball championship. And in those last 20 years, there have been some memorable players, memborable matchups, memorable teams and memorable games.

But Tuesday night was a memorable night that will perhaps, for now, reign supreme over all others. Yes, there are national championships going on all over the place. March Madness, the NCAA Division 1 basketball tournament, annually, captures our imagination and is going on right now. There is the BSC. There are scads of other national and world championships that go on at a variety of different levels with a variety of different sports and activities.

Sure, national championships are always special and getting there is rare air. Winning a title is a more-fleeting exeprience.

Last Tuesday night, however, Jackson was a showcase for basketball talent. It pitted two talented teams, Union University and Lambuth University. Those two teams are from Jackson, Tenn., the place where the national tournament is played. It was a showcase for two good coaches, Mark Campbell of Union and Bob Bolden of Lambuth. It was a showcase for local talent. There were seven players from West Tennessee programs sprinkled across both programs. Many of those players with local ties saw significant playing time in the championship game. Gleason's Kayla Hudson has a unique distinction of playing for both a state and national title.

Thinking back to players like Michelle Street, Tonya Tuggles, Jessica Henson and others, I'm not sure it's been done with a West Tennessee player before. Hudson's distinction may, indeed, be very unique.

But even more unique is having two teams from the same town playing for a national championship in that same hometown. And it was a great night for Lambuth, Union and Jackson. It was a great night for women's basketball, too. Dozens of middle school, high school and college girls and their coaches were on hand to watch the exciting battle between archrivals.

You can't tell me that those kids weren't inspired by what went on at Oman Arena. And to think that there were six Tennessee teams in the mix made it better.

I think about Freed-Hardeman and a heartbreaking 102-95 double-overtime loss in the Sweet 16 to Cumberlands (Ky). How close the Lady Lions came to getting back to the Final Four. I think of Bethel, who had a 14-point lead in the first half of its game with five-time national champ Oklahoma City. I think of how the Lady wildcat slipped away, then I think how close Bethel came to reaching the Final Four. OKC made it that far.

Oh so close.

West Tennessee was on parade last Tuesday night. Really, it was on parade all last week. When one considers that the TranSouth Conference features five consistently ranked teams each week, one has to figure that we'll have more national-title bouts like this in the future.

Sadly, Lambuth bids adieu to the NAIA as it begins its return to the NCAA, where it once was in the early 1970s. It hopes to compete in the Division 2 ranks, perhaps in the Gulf South Conference. It went out with a bang and will have its hands full, moving forward. I have a feeling, however, that if Lambuth can solve its financial woes and use this title appearance as a springboard to better things, coach Bob Bolden will have a winner at the next level with the Lady Eagles.

Meanwhile, Mark Campbell and his Union Lady Bulldogs will be poised for yet another title. He is going to be loaded. But Bethel returns almost everyone, too. Unfortunately, we won't see another Union-Lambuth battle at Oman Arena any time soon. But we sure could see a Union-Freed or Union-Bethel or Bethel-Freed title game in the very near future.

A moment like last Tuesday night may never come again and basketball fans in West Tennesseee should savor what was achieved at Oman Arena. A national title game with local combatants! A packed, boisterous arena! Archrivals! It was a memorable night for Jackson and we were pretty darned lucky to have witnessed such an event.