ANDERSON, S.C. -- The third-ranked Railsplitters (25-2, 21-0 SAC) held the Anderson Trojans (7-20, 5-16 SAC) without a basket for the final nine minutes of the first half to fuel a 21-2 run, which powered Lincoln Memorial to an 87-71 win in South Atlantic Conference men's hoops action on Wednesday night in Anderson, S.C.
 
Wednesday's game was almost a mirror image of the first meeting between Lincoln Memorial and Anderson this season, when the Railsplitters started sluggishly before ending the first half on a 22-3 run to pace a 13-point victory at Tex Turner Arena on January 13. This time around, LMU let Anderson get off to a red-hot shooting start and build a seven-point lead before responding with a dominant stretch of defense to carry a big cushion into the break.
 
With the win, Lincoln Memorial matches the 2014-15 team for the most South Atlantic Conference victories in the league's single-season history while notching the program's 28th straight conference win since the end of last season. The victory also gives the Railsplitters their sixth consecutive 25-win season and 10th in program history.
 
Luquon Choice (Laurens, S.C.) and Gerel Simmons (Accokeek, Md.) combined for 40 points to lead the charge for the Railsplitters. Choice scored 20 points on 5-of-10 shooting, including a 4-for-6 mark from three-point range. He coupled that with four rebounds and two steals. Simmons also scored 20 points on 7-of-14 shooting to go along with five rebounds and four assists. Emanuel Terry (Enterprise, Ala.) chipped in 11 points, six rebounds and five blocks, while Curtis Webb (Spartanburg, S.C.) posted eight points on 2-for-3 shooting in 16 minutes off the bench.
 
The Railsplitters shot 47.6 percent (30-for-63) in the game with a 9-for-21 mark (42.9 percent) from three-point range. Lincoln Memorial also converted 18 of its 27 free-throw attempts.
 
Anderson controlled the pace early in the first half and opened the game by making 10 of its first 15 shots until the Railsplitters dug in defensively and swung the momentum before the half ended.
 
A jumper by Randall Shaw with 13:46 left in the half gave the Trojans their largest lead of the game at 15-8, but three-pointers from Choice, Webb and Jalen Steele (Knoxville, Tenn.) trimmed the deficit to 19-17 by the 11:56 mark. The Railsplitters finally regained the lead at 23-21 on a dunk by Terry with 10:14 showing on the clock, which ended a 6-0 LMU run, but an old-fashioned three-point play from Steven Faust followed by a Tre' Fields triple put the Trojans back ahead 27-25 with 9:13 left.
 
But that would be the final field goal of the half for Anderson, as the Railsplitters allowed just two free throws while forcing the Trojans to turn it over six times and miss their last seven shots during the last nine minutes of the half.  
 
For LMU, that solid defense led to opportunities on offense, as the Railsplitters ripped off a 21-2 run over that nine-minute span. Lincoln Memorial's lead hit 10 at 38-28 on a pair of Choice free throws at the 4:48 mark, while back-to-back triples from Choice ballooned the lead to 46-28 with 2:13 to go.
 
The Railsplitters would miss their last three shots of the half as well as two free throws, while Anderson knocked down a free throw to cut the halftime deficit to 46-29.
 
Lincoln Memorial's lead hovered in the 15 to 18 point range early in the second half, but the Trojans pulled to within 12 points at 61-49 on a three-point play by Fields with 12:52 left in regulation. However, a quick 8-2 spurt pushed the Railsplitters back out to a 69-51 lead just over two minutes later.
 
From that point on, the Railsplitters never led by less than 14 points, while the lead maxed out at 21 after Terry finished off back-to-back dunks to make it an 87-66 game with two minutes left. The Trojans ended the game on a 5-0 run, capped by a Shawn Benard three that trimmed the final margin to 87-71.
 
Anderson outscored the Railsplitters 42-41 in the second half after being limited to 29 first-half points. That also mirrored this season's first meeting between LMU and Anderson, as the Trojans outscored the Railsplitters 41-39 in the second half of that contest after posting just 31 first-half points.
 
Randall Shaw paced the Trojans with a game-high 26 points on 7-of-16 shooting to go along with seven rebounds. Lex Davis added 15 points, eight rebounds, three assists and two steals, while Shawn Benard had 10 points on 4-of-7 shooting off of the bench.
 
The loss paired with Tusculum's win officially eliminated Anderson from postseason play.
 
The Trojans finished shooting 44.4 percent (24-for-54) from the field with a 6-for-14 mark (42.9 percent) from three-point range. Anderson went 17-for-24 at the free-throw line for a 70.8 percent mark.
 
Quick Hits
The Railsplitters moved to 8-7 all-time against Anderson and defeated the Trojans for the sixth straight time. LMU has now won four straight games on Anderson's home court...The Trojans turned the ball over 21 times, which resulted in 19 points for the Railsplitters. That was the most turnovers by an LMU opponent since VU-Lynchburg had 22 turnovers in December, 2014...Anderson actually won the rebounding battle 38-36, but LMU had 13 second-chance points as compared to 11 for the Trojans...Dorian Pinson (Greenville, S.C.) scored seven points on 3-for-5 shooting...The win moved Lincoln Memorial one away from becoming the first team in SAC history to finish with a perfect conference record
 
Up Next
The Railsplitters wrap up the regular season on Saturday when they welcome the Catawba Indians to Tex Turner Arena for a 4 p.m. tip. In conjunction with the regular season finale, Lincoln Memorial will celebrate Senior Day with a pre-game ceremony. The Railsplitters have won 10 of the last 11 meetings against the Indians.