HARROGATE, Tenn. -- The No. 1 nationally-ranked and top-seeded Railsplitters (29-2) commence the 2016 NCAA Tournament on Saturday at 5:30 p.m. when they host the eight-seeded Lander Bearcats (22-9) in the quarterfinal round of the Southeast Regional Tournament at Tex Turner Arena.
 
Lincoln Memorial rides into this year's NCAA Tournament in as good a place as the program's ever been in its eight seasons under head coach Josh Schertz. The Railsplitters - the NCAA Tournament's No. 1 overall seed - earned the top billing in the NABC/Division II coaches poll for the third time in program history earlier this week after capturing their third SAC tournament championship in the past six years on Sunday. Lincoln Memorial has won 19 consecutive games with the closest margin of victory over that streak coming in a pair of 10-point wins over Newberry (Feb. 13) and Queens (Jan. 9).
 
The Railsplitters and Bearcats boast wildly different resumes in recent years. Lincoln Memorial is making its sixth straight NCAA Tournament appearance and hosting the NCAA Division II Southeast Regional for the second consecutive season, while Lander is ending an eight-year NCAA Tournament drought.
 
"You hope it helps that we have been here and that we have a lot of guys that have been through this and understand that's it's a little bit different this time of year," Schertz said. "But sometimes ignorance is bliss. Lander won't be wowed by the moment. They've shown all year that they can handle pressure by being in so many close games and finding a way to win that many times. They aren't a team that gets rattled."
 
Lander - in its first season under the direction of head coach Steve Roberts - has been one of the best stories in the Southeast Region this season. The Bearcats were picked to finish 12th out of 14 teams in the Peach Belt Conference preseason coaches poll, but led the PBC East Division from start to finish and then claimed the Peach Belt Conference tournament championship in dramatic fashion on Sunday. In a game that featured 11 ties and 13 lead changes, the Bearcats defeated Augusta 87-86 on a last-second putback in double overtime to punch its first ticket to the NCAA Tournament since 2007.
 
While Lincoln Memorial is ranked second in the country in scoring margin, winning by an average of 19.6 points per game, Lander has played almost every game close this season. Despite their 22 wins, the Bearcats boast a mere plus-4.0 scoring margin. Of Lander's 31 games this season, 22 have been decided by 10 points or fewer. Lander's worst losses were a 17-point setback at Francis Marion and a 10-point defeat to Paine, but the rest have been decided by single digits. The Bearcats are 4-1 in overtime games this season.
 
"Lander is probably as good of an eight-seed as there is in this tournament," Schertz said. "They have played in a lot of close games this season, but when you win a lot of close games, it gives you a tremendous amount of confidence. At the end of the game, they expect good things to happen."
 
In contrast to Lincoln Memorial's high-scoring attack (second in the nation with 96.4 points per game), Lander ranked near the bottom of the Peach Belt Conference this season in offensive output with just 76.3 point per game on a respectable 45.2 percent shooting. The Bearcats are a solid three-point shooting team, though, ranking third in the PBC and 32nd in the country with a 39.1 percent clip from deep.
 
Lander's slower pace and mix-and-match defensive scheme has been effective in slowing down other teams from scoring, as the Bearcats led the PBC this season by allowing just 72.3 points per game. Opponents did shoot at a pretty high rate against Lander, though, connecting on 44.9 percent of their shots, including a 38.8 percent mark from three-point range.
 
The Bearcats are led by All-PBC selections JR Washington and Tobiasz Hose. Washington is putting up 19.7 points, 4.9 rebounds, 2.5 steals and 2.0 assists per game while shooting 45.2 percent from the field. The junior wing has drained 99 three-pointers this season, ranking 21st in the country in that department on a 40.1 percent mark. Hose, meanwhile, is contributing 14.9 points, 7.1 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game on 42.9 percent shooting. That tandem has been backed by Rahu Purdie (9 points per game, 48.5% FG) and Travis Fredimon (8.2 points, 3.7 rebounds, 38.5% FG).
 
Saturday will mark the first all-time meeting between Lincoln Memorial and Lander.
 
The Railsplitters will be looking to advance into the second round of the NCAA Tournament for the fifth consecutive time, where they will then aim to move past the NCAA Tournament's round of 32 for the first time in program history.
 
"It's a different ballgame when you get to the NCAA Tournament, because you're playing for everything. Hopefully the experience of being in the NCAA Tournament, hosting last year and understanding what goes into it will help our guys," Schertz said. "For the older guys, this is their third or fourth trip to the NCAA Tournament and they know what it takes to get here and what it takes to play well. And they have seen what happens when you don't play well. One bad night is all it takes for this to end sad."
 
A win on Saturday would also mark another milestone for Schertz, who is vying for his 200th career win in just his 246th career game roaming the sidelines for the Railsplitters. Schertz - the four-time SAC Coach of the Year - has guided Lincoln Memorial to six straight 25-win seasons, while another win would push the Railsplitters past the 30-win threshold for the second straight year. The LMU men's basketball program had won 30 games in a season only one time prior to Schertz's arrival (1976-77).
 
"The win itself is just kind of blended in with what this team is trying to do," Schertz said. "But I do think that it means three things. It means that I've been here awhile. That's one of the keys. You have to have somewhere that will let you coach long enough to win 200 games. The second thing is that we've been really blessed with great players and assistants. We've had a great run with not only talented players but great people. The third thing is that we have an administration that is committed to winning. This place doesn't just talk about being committed to basketball, it is committed to basketball and giving us everything we need to be successful."
 
The Railsplitters will be led into the NCAA Tournament by their four All-SAC selections, Gerel Simmons (Accokeek, Md.), Luquon Choice (Laurens, S.C.), Jalen Steele (Knoxville, Tenn.) and Dorian Pinson (Greenville, S.C.).
 
Simmons is putting up 20.7 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game and has hit double figures in 24 straight games. Choice is pouring in 17.4 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game on a 48.7 percent mark from three-point territory. The Laurens, S.C. native has hit a program-record 110 three-pointers this season, which is 14 shy of the SAC single-season record. Steele is averaging 16.5 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game and has hit 102 triples this season. Pinson does a little bit of it all for the Railsplitters, piling up 10 points, 7.4 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game with a 57.3 percent mark from the field.
 
Lincoln Memorial and Lander tip-off at 5:30 p.m. on Saturday at Tex Turner Arena, with the winner advancing to face the winner of No. 4 Queens and No. 5 Columbus State at 7:30 on Sunday. Admission is $5 and tickets are already available by contacting the LMU box office at 423.869.6285. Live stats and video links are available at www.LMURailsplitters.com.