SALISBURY, N.C. -- Junior guard Luquon Choice (Laurens, S.C.) will look to become the 26th player in program history to reach 1,000 career points when the 16th-ranked Railsplitters (13-2, 9-0 SAC) tangle with the Catawba Indians (7-8, 5-4 SAC) in South Atlantic Conference men's hoops action at 4 p.m. on Saturday in Salisbury, N.C.
 
Choice scored 26 points and matched a career-high with nine rebounds to lead Lincoln Memorial to an 85-72 win over Anderson on Wednesday night at Tex Turner Arena, driving his career point total to 991 in the process. With nine points against Catawba, Choice would be the seventh different player of the Josh Schertz era to join the 1,000-point club, and only the second to accomplish that feat in just three seasons. Choice - who became just the fourth player in program history with 200 career three-pointers earlier this season - would be only the 26th member of the 1,000-point club in over 100 years of Lincoln Memorial men's hoops.
 
"We knew when we recruited (Luquon) that he could score, but what's really impressed me about him is how hard he has worked to become a complete basketball player," Schertz said. "Most of the elite players at any level play one side of the floor and they are offensive players. But Luquon is really trying to turn himself into a complete player that's elite offensively and a lockdown defender. His commitment to improvement has turned him into maybe as good a two-way player as we have in the South Atlantic Conference." 
 
The Railsplitters will be trying to win their fourth straight game and remain unbeaten in SAC play against a Catawba team that has dealt with its share of hardships this season. Before the season even began, the Indians lost All-SAC first team guard KJ Arrington - 17.9 points per game in 2014-15 - to a season-ending injury. On top of that, freshman Malik Constantine has been sidelined for the majority of the season with an injury after putting up 8.5 points and 5.0 rebounds per game in his first four appearances.
 
But in spite of those injuries, second-year head coach Rob Perron has Catawba sitting at 5-4 in SAC play with two one-point losses on the ledger (59-58 vs. Wingate and 71-70 at Mars Hill).
 
"Rob has done an excellent job with his team. They've obviously dealt with a lot of adversity with the injuries," Schertz said. "But you watch them play and they are extremely competitive in every game. They are really balanced offensively with two elite guards and they are very sound defensively. Catawba is kind of a chameleon on that side of the floor because they can throw a lot of different things of you."
 
While those injuries haven't been reflected in Catawba's win-loss record, they have taken their toll on the Indians' offense, which ranks in the bottom third of the SAC in points per game (72.7), field-goal percentage (42.8 percent), three-pointers made per game (6.6), three-point field-goal percentage (33.9 percent) and free throw attempts per game (18.7).
 
Catawba has been able to offset those offensive issues with a defense that can be disruptive, as the Indians lead the SAC in three-point field-goal percentage defense by allowing just a 32.5 percent clip from deep. All told, the Indians are allowing just 74.7 points per game in SAC play, but they are also giving up 44.3 percent shooting on the season.
 
Sophomore guards Jameel Taylor and Jerrin Morrison lead the way offensively for the Indians, as Taylor is putting up 14.9 points, 4.9 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game on 46.1 percent shooting, while Morrison is racking up 12.9 points, 5.1 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game with a 41.5 percent mark from three-point range. Rakeen Brown - a 5-10 junior guard from Hampton, Va. - is contributing 10.2 points per game on a 39.3 percent effort from deep. Andrew Ingram (6.6 points per) and Troy Warren (6.1 points, 5.3 rebounds per) have also appeared in every game for the Indians this season.
 
Saturday's game begins a stretch that will see the Railsplitters play five of their next eight games away from the friendly confines of Tex Turner Arena.
 
"We've always been of the mindset that it doesn't matter where you play, it matters how you play," Schertz said. "That's the key. Whether you're playing at home or on the road in this league, if you don't show up ready to play then you're going to get beat. That's the reality. You have to have great concentration, attention to detail and go play with a high level of energy and focus."
 
Lincoln Memorial has won five straight and nine of the last 10 overall against Catawba. The only loss over that span was a 73-63 setback at Goodman Gymnasium on February 2, 2013.
 
The Railsplitters battled through the offensive doldrums in the 2014-15 regular-season finale to defeat the Indians 60-57 in Salisbury. Lincoln Memorial went just 21-for-61 (34.4 percent) from the floor and 4-for-20 (20 percent) from three-point range in that contest, but held Catawba to 33.8 percent shooting to hang on for the victory. Curtis McMillion (Fayetteville, N.C.) tallied 11 points and six rebounds in 25 minutes of action for the Railsplitters.
 
Tip-off between Lincoln Memorial and Catawba is set for 4 p.m. at Goodman Gymnasium. Live stats, video and audio links are all available at www.LMURailsplitters.com.
 
Quick Hits
The Railsplitters are 4-7 all-time in Salisbury, but have won four of the last five games on Catawba's home court...Lincoln Memorial might have ample second-chance opportunities, as the Indians rank 11th in the SAC with just 25 defensive rebounds per game. LMU is averaging 11 offensive boards per game...Gerel Simmons (Accokeek, Md.) is currently shooting 48.5 percent from three-point range, which would be the highest single-season three-point percentage in program history if it holds, bettering Lawrence Buell's 47.3 percent clip in 1988-89
 
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