Last time North Alabama made the ASUN Conference title game, things looked a little different.

Along with a COVID-19 season, the Lions weren’t fully eligible to compete in the NCAA Tournament regardless of the outcome.

What’d it look like on Thursday?

A packed house and a trip to the Big Dance on the line coming up.

North Alabama took down Jacksonville with a 78-63 victory in the ASUN Conference tournament semifinals, punching a ticket to the conference title game at Lipscomb.

Tipoff is set for 1 p.m. in Nashville, with the winner clinching a spot in the NCAA Tournament.

“This is why the games are played,” UNA coach Tony Pujol said. “I’m very proud of our guys and the way they competed here tonight, which put us in a position to play for a championship, which has been the goal since day one. Right now, our focus now is going to turn to Lipscomb and on to Nashville.”

North Alabama had a chance to clinch a spot in the NCAA Tournament on Thursday, with a Queens victory over Lipscomb ensuring UNA would head to the tournament since Queens is not a full Division I member yet.

Still, Pujol is excited for the opportunity to earn his way in.

“Our identity is an identity that when, no matter what happens today — a good thing happened to us today — the next day, we’ve got to come out and we got to go out there and get prepared to compete,” the coach said. “Our focus now is to be where our feet are, and our feet are tonight, just to enjoy this moment.

“I know a lot of people were watching this game up in Nashville. To me, it didn’t matter who we played. To me, I just want to play. I want to get out there and compete for a championship. So, we’re going to enjoy this tonight, and then tomorrow, we’ll get started with Lipscomb.”

Senior Will Soucie was there for the 2021 ASUN Conference title game, when UNA fell to No. 1-seeded Liberty in a 79-75 loss. This time around, he aims to leave the court with a different feeling.

“The one thing that I remember most keenly is obviously when the buzzers went off and the confetti kept hitting the ground for them and they stormed the court. It hurt; I mean, obviously we had seniors at that time that I knew that really wanted it. We were so early in the Division I transition, we would have made history so early on.

“I’m in different shoes now, now I’m the senior. I want to make sure I’m handling it the right way with my guys, my elders, fellow seniors; an opportunity this big you can’t take for granted.”

This marks the first ASUN Conference championship for many, including All-ASUN selection Daniel Ortiz, who finished with 18 points and knocked down four 3-point baskets on a night that saw all five starters score in double figures.

Jacari Lane finished with 19 points in the win, while Corneilous Williams had a double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds and Taye Fields nearly had one with 10 points and 9 rebounds; Soucie scored 12 points for the Lions.

“All the work you put in, you think of moments like this,” Ortiz said after the win. “These are the moments that when you put work in, you think of in your head and it becomes a reality. It’s something, man. It’s just something special, something great, and I’m happy this community was able to witness this.

“We’re not done yet.”

Ortiz praised his teammates for the mindset heading into the matchup, aiming to take the same mindset into a title tilt in Nashville.

“Coming into this game, our mindset was just come out here and leave it all on the line. If you leave it out on the line, when you leave, you can be okay with the results. That’s going to be our mindset going into Sunday, where we see we leave it on the line, and we believe at the end of the night we’ll have the result we want.”

North Alabama went 1-1 against Lipscomb in the regular season, beating the Bison 74-64 at home on Jan. 23 before dropping a 75-63 road game on Feb. 20.

Needless to say, Pujol and company know the challenge that lies ahead in Huntsville native Lennie Acuff’s squad for the title.

“You’re playing against a very well-coached team,” he said of playing the Bison a third time. “Lennie Acuff is one of the best in the game, not just in our league, in the nation. Their team, it’s also like ours, a group of guys that have played together. Now, it gives us an opportunity to get on the floor, and listen. I’m a big believer that when you play one game for a championship, to be honest with you, home or away, it doesn’t really matter. You’re going to have to go out and take it. The bottom line is, we have an opportunity to do so.

“We’re going to put our best foot forward, we’re going to prepare and we’re going to go after it.”