Augusta earns No. 6 seed in NCAA Tournament, set to face Lenoir-Rhyne
Justin Gray | Sports editor
It was announced tonight on the annual NCAA Selection Show that the Augusta Jaguars will be the No. 6 seed in the Southeast Region and will take on No. 3 seed Lenoir-Rhyne in the first round on Saturday, March 15.
This marks Augusta’s first trip back to the NCAA Tournament since the 2022-23 season, when the Jaguars fell in the second round.
Columbus State will serve as the host for the Southeast Region. The full seeding is as follows:
Columbus State
USC Aiken
Lenoir-Rhyne
Lincoln Memorial
UNC Pembroke
Augusta
Catawba
Carson-Newman
The Jaguars compiled several quality wins this season, but none were bigger than defeating No. 1 seed Columbus State twice—a key factor in securing their spot in the tournament.
“There are 300-plus Division II men’s basketball teams, and we are one of the 64 teams playing in the NCAA Tournament,” said Augusta Coach Dip Metress. “We are excited about this opportunity.”
This tournament appearance marks the 13th under Metress. Before his tenure, the Jaguars had qualified for the Division II Tournament only three times.
Despite their strong schedule, the Jaguars lack postseason experience, with only one player—Demitri Gardner—having played in an NCAA Tournament game.
However, Augusta’s challenging slate has prepared them for this moment. That level of competition is expected in the Peach Belt Conference, which placed three of its 10 teams in the tournament. The league likely would have had a fourth had USC Beaufort been eligible for postseason play.
Now, let’s take a look at Augusta’s first-round opponent, Lenoir-Rhyne.
The Bears finished the season with a 26-5 record and upset Lincoln Memorial in the conference championship. They have three wins over top-25 teams, including two against top-10 opponents—both coming against LMU.
When comparing common opponents between Augusta and Lenoir-Rhyne, only three teams overlap: Chowan, Emmanuel and Clayton State.
The Jaguars posted a 4-0 record against those teams, with three of those wins coming on the road. Lenoir-Rhyne went 2-1, suffering a 81-68 loss to Chowan.
That Chowan game may ring a bell for Jaguar fans—it was the site of one of Augusta’s wildest comebacks of the season. Trailing by 10 with just 2:30 remaining, the Jaguars forced overtime and secured a thrilling 105-99 victory.
The Jaguars started the season 0-4 with several key injuries, but they battled to a 19-5 record the rest of the way. With a win over Lenoir-Rhyne on Saturday, AU would earn Metress his 15th career 20-win season.
The Bell Ringer will provide updates on game times and additional details later this week.
Contact Justin Gray at jusgray@augusta.edu.
AU’s Evan Joyner driving to the paint versus North Georgia (Photo by Lydia Williams/The Bell Ringer). Top of screen: NCAA Southeast Regional bracket (Via/NCAA).
Contact Justin Gray at jusgray@augusta.edu.
