HARROGATE, Tenn. -- With only a day to rest and prepare, the 16th-ranked Railsplitters (8-1, 4-0 SAC) face yet another grueling test in the demanding South Atlantic Conference slate by hosting the Wingate Bulldogs (6-1, 2-1 SAC) at 8 p.m. on Wednesday night inside of Tex Turner Arena.
 
Lincoln Memorial won its eighth consecutive game and began a stretch with three conference games in six days on Monday afternoon, surging in the second half to defeat the Brevard Tornados 88-67 at Boshamer Gymnasium. The Railsplitters and Tornados were all knotted up at 38-38 at the half, but LMU shot 54.8 percent from the field in the second stanza, held Brevard to 10-for-26 shooting over that same span and outscored their hosts 50-29 to pace the 21-point victory.
 
Jalen Steele (Knoxville, Tenn.), Gerel Simmons (Accokeek, Md.) and Luquon Choice (Laurens, S.C.) combined for 64 of the team's 88 points, as Steele produced a season-high 23 points, Simmons scored 21 and Choice added 20. Dorian Pinson (Greenville, S.C.) and Curtis McMillion (Fayetteville, N.C.) contributed 10 points apiece to help the Railsplitters knock off Brevard for the 10th straight time.
 
Now the Railsplitters shift their attention to a Wingate team that is playing as well as any team in the league and Southeast Region.
 
The Bulldogs enter Wednesday's contest boasting a 6-1 overall record that includes wins over No. 6 Mount Olive and No. 20 UNC Pembroke. Wingate's only loss of the season came in Hickory, N.C. on November 24 at the hands of the Lenoir-Rhyne Bears, who had to hit 14 of their 27 three-point attempts to bury the Bulldogs 98-88. Wingate most recently gave Newberry its third loss of the season on December 8 by a final of 89-86.
 
Much like Lincoln Memorial, Wingate stakes its identity on a physical, stingy defense that rebounds the ball well. The Bulldogs lead the South Atlantic Conference in field goal percentage defense and ranks second in points per game allowed, holding opponents to 72.1 points per on 39.5 percent shooting. Wingate is second in the league in terms of rebounding margin with a plus 7.0 advantage on the glass. They also don't allow second-chance opportunities with a SAC-leading 32.1 defensive rebounds per contest.
 
"Any Brian Good coached team is going to defend and rebound," LMU head coach Josh Schertz said. "That's been their foundation of their program since he's been there. His teams are always outstanding defensively and on the backboards."
 
While defense and rebounding have been a trademark of the Wingate men's hoops program, the Bulldogs have seismically shifted their offensive philosophy. After averaging just 69.3 points and 55.7 field goal attempts per game last season, the Bulldogs are putting up 83.6 points and 60.6 field goals per game on 47.6 percent shooting this season. Their offensive is mostly predicated on getting into the lane, though, as Wingate is second-to-last in the league in three-point field goal attempts per game with 17.4.
 
"Where they've made changes is on the offensive end, where they've kind of done a 180," Schertz said. "They used to be more traditional before with two bigs and had a run of outstanding post players over a long period of time. Now it looks more schematically like the Anderson Trojans when (Coach) Jason Taylor was there: a lot of dribble drives, handoffs and rub cuts."
 
The Bulldogs are getting substantial contributions from a number of players. Junior forward Isiah Cureton is piling up 18.2 points, 6.2 rebound and 2.7 assists per game on 48.6 percent shooting. Standout freshman forward Mike Baez is nearly averaging a double-double with 14.9 points and 8.1 rebounds per game on a 46.1 percent clip. Senior guard Xavier Griffin is contributing 13.3 points and 3.7 assists per game while hitting 43.1 percent of his shots. Junior guard Anthanee Doyle has added 10.6 points a night. Zeriq Lolar is chipping in 8.3 points per game on 36.8 percent shooting from long range in seven appearances off of the bench.
 
"Wingate is a terrific team, certainly one of the best teams in the league and the region," Schertz said. "It's going to take a great effort on our part. It's not complicated in terms of the scout, but they put really good players in great positions. They play a style that really fits them. The thing that's been impressive is that they have been able to maintain their defensive and rebounding identity with the changes they've made on offense."
 
The Railsplitters are 15-9 all-time against Wingate and have not lost to the Bulldogs in Tex Turner Arena since 2009. Lincoln Memorial has won the last five meetings between the two programs since losing 69-53 in the title game of the 2013 SAC Championship.
 
Lincoln Memorial led for nearly every minute of last season's meeting in Harrogate on February 21, but it was anything but easy. The Railsplitters led 65-50 with 6:54 to go before the Bulldogs fought back and closed the gap to 75-70 with 17 ticks left. Lincoln Memorial would hold on for the hard-fought 76-70 triumph, as Wingate shot 41.5 percent from the field and went 3-for-19 from three-point range. Choice had 15 points and five assists, while Pinson tallied 13 points in 18 minutes off of the bench. Griffin (17) and Lolar (11) combined for 28 points, but Cureton was limited to four points on 1-of-8 shooting.
 
The Railsplitters have won five straight South Atlantic Conference home games and 22 of their last 23 dating back to the 2013-14 campaign.
 
Tip-off is set for 8 p.m. in Harrogate. Live stats, video and audio links are available at www.LMURailsplitters.com, the comprehensive online home of Lincoln Memorial University athletics. Fans can also listen along with Voice of the Railsplitters Rusty Peace at WLMU 91.3 The Gap.