HARROGATE, Tenn. -- Before the grueling South Atlantic Conference schedule kicks off next week, the fifth-ranked Railsplitters (1-1) will get a nonconference tune-up on Thursday night when they welcome the Hiwassee Tigers (4-4) to Harrogate for the Tex Turner Arena opener, set for a 7 p.m. tip-off. 
 
In celebration of the home opener of the 2015-16 basketball seasons, Lincoln Memorial will host a free poster giveaway. The first 50 fans in attendance will receive limited edition signed men's basketball, women's basketball and cheer and dance commemorative posters.
 
The Railsplitters went 1-1 in this past weekend's SAC vs. Conference Carolinas Challenge in Bristol, Tenn., dropping an 83-69 decision to the King Tornado in the season opener on Friday before rebounding with a 94-77 victory over the Lees-McRae Bobcats on Saturday.
 
The season-opening loss to King was noteworthy for several reasons, as it ended the Railsplitters' seven-game winning streak in season openers, snapped a 10-game winning streak against the Tornado and was only the program's second loss in November since the start of the 2010-11 campaign.
 
Defense and rebounding were mainly at the root of that loss, as the Railsplitters allowed King to shoot 50.9 percent from the field, knock down 13 three-pointers and accumulate a 38-28 rebounding edge. The game got away from Lincoln Memorial early in the second half, when King used a 19-1 run to pace the eventual 14-point victory.
 
"There's a way to play the game and there's a way to respect the game and go about playing it. And we didn't do that," LMU head men's basketball coach Josh Schertz said. "Our loss was really two-fold. One, the credit goes to King. They played terrific basketball. But on our end I thought we came out very lethargic. They were certainly the more determined, tougher team while we were very loose and very soft. We got what we deserved and they got what they deserved. Now, when you get exposed do you learn and grow from it, or do you try to blow smoke and make it something that it's not."
 
The Railsplitters weren't given much time to dwell on that loss, though, as they had to quickly shift their attention to a gritty Lees-McRae squad coming off of close loss to Tusculum the night before. Lincoln Memorial was able to come away with the 17-point victory, but that was mostly due to a tremendous first-half defensive effort, as the Railsplitters limited the Bobcats to just 26 points on 31.3 percent shooting through the first 20 minutes. However, the second half was played to an even 51-51 draw, as Lees-McRae shot 50 percent from the field and went 18-of-20 from the charity stripe.
 
"We played a little more than a half of a half with the proper level of intensity, force and focus," Schertz said. "To our team's credit, I think the guys were a little bit embarrassed about how they performed, their level of competitiveness and what they brought to table against King. I think for most of the first half, maybe 12 or 15 minutes, we competed at a high level. When you look at the first-half stats, it was more like what we've seen the last couple of years. We talked at the half about trying to build on that and not getting complacent. And we went out in the second half and from a defensive standpoint it was really poor. I thought we just relaxed, and relief is the worst emotion you can have in sports."
 
Junior shooting guard Luquon Choice (Laurens, S.C.) led the Railsplitters past Lees-McRae and powered out of a shooting slump that carried over from last season by hitting seven of nine three-pointers and scoring a game-high 23 points. Prior to that game, Choice, who broke the school record for three-pointers last season with 100, was 6-for-38 from three-point territory in his last seven games, which includes a 1-for-6 effort versus King.
 
Emanuel Terry (Birmingham, Ala.) was also a highlight for the Railsplitters offensively this past weekend, scoring 14 points on 7-of-8 shooting against King and notching 13 points on 5-of-7 FGs against Lees-McRae.
 
Now the attention shifts to the Hiwassee Tigers, an NAIA program out of Madisonville, Tenn. that enters Thursday's contest with a 4-4 overall record. Most recently, Hiwassee traveled over to Chattanooga to face the Tennessee-Chattanooga Mocs, who handed the Tigers a 94-55 pounding.
 
Denetrius Kitchens led the Tigers with 12 points and three steals while D.J. Graves accounted for 11 points with a pair of three-pointers off the bench. Kitchens also led the Tigers against Tennessee Wesleyan earlier this season, scoring 22 points, grabbing five rebounds and swiping three steals.
 
"Will (Raby) has done a good job with (his team). He's got a good team," Schertz said. "They're scrappy and a little undersized, but they compete and play hard. I told the guys that this week is primarily about us. It's about us improving, getting better and making strides because if we don't go out, execute and compete Thursday night, then you can get beat. One thing we've talked about since I've been here is appropriate fear. That's not being scared but that's understanding that anything can happen in a competitive situation. We've got to worry about us this week. I want to see a team that competes and goes out and executes and really sustains that for a 40-minute window."
 
The Railsplitters have won all eight meetings against Hiwassee and none have been particularly close games. The two teams last met on November 9, 2013, when Lincoln Memorial smashed the Tigers 91-66 at Tex Turner Arena. The Railsplitters have hit triple digits five times against Hiwassee, including 143 in an 81-point victory in 2009.
 
Lincoln Memorial begins a brutal stretch after Thursday's game against Hiwassee, hosting Carson-Newman in the SAC opener next Tuesday, followed by a nonconference contest against UVA-Wise and a road trip to Lenoir-Rhyne, who upset 13th-ranked UNC Pembroke this past weekend.
 
Live stats, video and audio links for LMU/Hiwassee will be available at www.LMURailsplitters.com, the comprehensive online home of Lincoln Memorial athletics.

Live Stats | Video | Audio