HARROGATE, Tenn. -- The 13th-ranked Railsplitters entered Wednesday night's South Atlantic Conference contest against Wingate ranked 23rd in the nation in scoring margin, but Coach Josh Schertz has been pleading for his guys to put together 40 minutes of high-energy, focused basketball, knowing full well that there was an untapped level that his team had not yet reached.
 
That limitless potential finally rose to the surface as Lincoln Memorial (9-1, 5-0 SAC) opened on a 14-0 run and pulverized the Bulldogs (6-2, 2-2 SAC) 103-57 at Tex Turner Arena, notching the most lopsided win in the history of the LMU/Wingate series. 
 
"We played 40 minutes, competed well, defended at a high level and rebounded well, particularly in the first half," Schertz said. "Offensively the ball popped and moved. The guys did a terrific job of trading good shots for great shots. I was really proud of how they competed and fought and their attention to detail on both sides of the ball."
 
The Railsplitters were the beneficiaries of countless, standout individual contributions. Gerel Simmons (Accokeek, Md.) poured in 27 points on 5-of-7 shooting from three-point territory, while Curtis McMillion (Fayetteville, N.C.) had 20 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks in 24 minutes. Jalen Steele (Knoxville, Tenn.) produced 13 points, six rebounds and four assists. Luquon Choice (Laurens, S.C.) pitched in 12 points, a career-high seven assists, four rebounds and two steals. Dorian Pinson (Greenville, S.C.) added nine points, 10 rebounds and a block.
 
11 of the 12 players to appear in the contest registered at least three points for the Railsplitters.
 
"The ball sharing was tremendous," Schertz said. "I was really proud of Luquon. He made some really nice passes and didn't force anything. When the ball moves and we don't overdribble it, we are really hard to guard. That's the key for us."
 
For all intents and purposes, the Railsplitters put the game out of reach in the first five minutes of play, as a jumper by Pinson capped a 14-0 opening run at the 14:47 mark. Wingate finally registered its first points of the contest on Isiah Cureton's jumper at 14:29, but McMillion finished off an old-fashioned three-point play a minute later to extend Lincoln Memorial's lead to 19-4.
 
"We came out with a lot of energy and guys were flying around early on," Schertz said. "Our guys were making it difficult for Wingate to finish on dribble drives because we were solid all the way around: positionally, helping early and on the ball. Everything was really at a high level in terms of our defensive execution."
 
The Railsplitters never led by less than 13 points in the first half after that flawless start, while Choice drove into the lane and flushed a one-handed dunk to make it a 33-13 game with 7:12 still remaining in the first frame. Lincoln Memorial pushed its lead to 48-24 following a three-pointer from Steele and a free throw by Spaw, but Wingate got two free throws from Zeriq Lolar to cut the halftime lead to 48-26.
 
Lincoln Memorial connected on 18 of its 32 shot attempts (56.3 percent) and six of its 12 three-point tries (50 percent) in the first half while holding Wingate to 9-for-33 shooting (27.3 percent) and a 3-for-10 effort from long range over that same span. The Railsplitters also accumulated a 23-11 advantage on the backboards in the first half.
 
The Bulldogs briefly closed the gap to 18 (58-40) on Anthanee Doyle's three-pointer with 15:33 left, but a jumper by McMillion capped a 7-2 run that pushed the Railsplitters back out to a 65-42 lead by the 12-minute mark.
 
The chasm between Lincoln Memorial and Wingate continued to grow as the second half waned on, as the Railsplitters used an 8-0 spurt to make it a 30-point game (77-47) with 8:25 to play. A little over five minutes later, the deficit hit 40 points on a jumper by Nicksen Blanc (Port Charlotte, Fla.).
 
The Railsplitters' final offensive numbers were astounding: 58.5 percent shooting (38-for-65), 40.7 percent from the three (11-for-27), 15 second-chance points on 11 offensive rebounds.
 
Wingate, meanwhile, finished shooting 29 percent (18-for-62) in the contest and 6-for-19 (31.6 percent) from the three.
 
Josh Dominquez was the only Bulldog in double figures, scoring 16 points in 19 minutes off of the bench. Doyle and Cureton added eight points apiece.
 
The win was by far the most one-sided in the 25 all-time meetings between Lincoln Memorial and Wingate, surpassing the Bulldogs' 99-70 victory over the Railsplitters on February 2, 2008. It was LMU's largest margin of victory against a South Atlantic Conference opponent since a 110-61 win over Catawba in March, 2014.
 
Quick Hits
The Railsplitters assisted on 22 of their 38 field goals as four different players finished with at least three assists...Lincoln Memorial absolutely dominated the backboards, outrebounding the Bulldogs 52-29. Wingate entered Wednesday's game ranked 27th in the country in rebounding margin...The Bulldogs won their first two meetings against top-20 ranked programs this season, beating No. 6 Mount Olive and No. 20 UNC Pembroke...Lincoln Memorial improved to 16-9 all-time against Wingate and won the sixth-straight meeting between the two teams...The Railsplitters led for 99.5 percent of the game
 
Up Next
The Railsplitters complete the 2015 portion of the schedule by paying a visit to Newberry for a 4 p.m. tip on Saturday, December 19. Lincoln Memorial does not return to Tex Turner until squaring off against undefeated Queens on January 9.