HARROGATE, Tenn. -- The No. 1 nationally-ranked Railsplitters (32-2) claimed their spot in the 2016 NCAA Division II Elite Eight with a wire-to-wire 103-80 win over the Lenoir-Rhyne Bears (21-10) in the championship game of the Southeast Regional in front of a packed and raucous crowd of more than 4,000 spectators at Tex Turner Arena on Tuesday night.
 
With the win, Lincoln Memorial collects its 22nd straight victory, matching the school and South Atlantic Conference record for the longest winning streak, and punches a ticket to the NCAA Tournament's Elite Eight for the first time in program history. It will be Lincoln Memorial's deepest postseason run since the 1976-77 team finished fourth in the NAIA national tournament. It also completes the Railsplitters' nearly flawless run through the Southeast Regional in which they won by 27, 28 and 23 points. The Elite Eight is being held at Dr. Pepper Arena in Frisco, Texas from March 23-26.
 
 
"Our guys were awesome," LMU head coach Josh Schertz said. "I'm so lucky to be able to coach this group. It's remarkable. Their ability to rise to the occasion and play their best when their best is needed is unbelievable. It was a total team effort. I love these guys and I'm just incredibly lucky to be their coach."
 
Senior Jalen Steele (Knoxville, Tenn.) scored a game-high 27 points on 8-of-16 shooting with five three-pointers, with 21 of his points coming in the first half. At the conclusion of the game, Steele was selected as the Southeast Regional Most Valuable Player, and the Mississippi State transfer was immediately overcome by emotion.
 
"The year that I was sitting out I put in a lot of work," Steele said. "I just laid back and let everything flow and let God take care of everything. And it all worked out. I got to a good school with a great coach and with some great players. It just hit me all at once. It feels great."
 
Sophomore Emanuel Terry (Enterprise, Ala.) was all selected to the Southeast Regional All-Tournament team after turning in the most productive game of his college career in the biggest game in program history, scoring a career-high 24 points on 10-for-11 shooting coupled with 12 rebounds and five blocks.
 
"What you saw tonight was a guy that was dominant on both sides of the ball," Schertz said. "To me, before tonight Emanuel was the best defensive center in the country. When he plays like he did tonight, he's the best center in the country. When he plays like that, we're hard to beat."
 
The Railsplitters' final Southeast Regional All-Tournament selection, Gerel Simmons (Accokeek, Md.) added 19 points with three assists and two rebounds, while Dorian Pinson (Greenville, S.C.) produced 11 points, six rebounds and four assists. Curtis McMillion (Fayetteville, N.C.) contributed eight points and five boards in 10 minutes off the bench.
 
Lincoln Memorial shot 53.3 percent from the field, converting 32 of its 60 shot attempts, including 8-for-18 from three-point range. The Railsplitters also went 31-for-39 at the charity stripe to help seal the game late.
 
 
"The way we played tonight, the way the crowd was and the way we were energized and focused, there was nobody in the country that was going to beat us tonight on this floor," Schertz said. "I don't mean that disrespectfully to anybody else, but as focused as we were and as in tune as we were, there was nobody in the country at this level that was going to beat us."
 
Fueled by an absolutely frenetic crowd of more than 4,000, the Railsplitters jumped on Lenoir-Rhyne right from the tip, opening on a 9-0 run before the Bears finally got their first bucket on a Will Perry basket at the 17:06 mark. Keenan Palmore finished off an old-fashioned three-point play in the next L-R possession to trim the Railsplitters' lead to 9-5, but Lincoln Memorial ripped of a 12-0 run and assumed a commanding 21-5 lead on a basket by Pinson with 14:43 left in the half.
 
"The crowd was amazing," Terry said. "I feed off energy like that. We've got a great support here and the crowd really helped us get the win tonight."
 
The Railsplitters' lead hit 18 points at 26-8 after Terry finished off a layup at the 13:44 mark, but Billy Bales buried a three-pointer near the midway point of the half to end a mini spurt by the Bears which closed the gap to 28-16. Steele hit a three to push the Railsplitters back out to a 33-18 lead, but Darrion Evans hit two threes and finished off a four-point play to pull Lenoir-Rhyne within 10 at 35-25 at the 7:38 mark.
 
Lincoln Memorial stiff-armed that push, though, using an 8-2 run capped by another Steele three to make it 43-27 in favor of the home team with 5:41 left in the half. The Railsplitters never led by less than 13 points for the remainder of the half, while a jumper by Tim Pierce (Albany, Ga.) put Lincoln Memorial ahead 56-37 late. Bales hit a three-point at the buzzer to cut LMU's halftime lead to 56-40.
 
The two teams traded baskets early in the second half, with Lincoln Memorial carrying a 63-46 edge in the under-16 media timeout. But in a matter of minutes the Railsplitters had widened the gap even further, using a 9-0 run to take a 72-46 lead with 14 minutes to play.
 
The Bears had one last run in them, though, as Lenoir-Rhyne buried five consecutive three-pointers to power a 15-2 run that cut the deficit all the way down to 79-65 and forced LMU to burn a timeout at the 9:23 mark.
 
But like they had all night, the Railsplitters responded, going 4-for-4 at the charity stripe to power a 6-2 spurt and grab an 85-67 lead with eight minutes to go.
 
Lenoir-Rhyne pulled to within 14 points on two different occasions after that, with the last coming after a pair of Evans' free throws at the 5:37 mark. But the Railsplitters used a 13-0 run to assume a 101-75 lead with two minutes left to kick off the celebration at Tex Turner Arena.
 
Lenoir-Rhyne, which finished shooting 37.8 percent in the game with an 11-for-29 mark from three-point range, was led by Southeast Regional All-Tournament selection Keenan Palmore, who produced 23 points and nine rebounds on 8-for-22 shooting. Evan had 16 points off the bench, while Will Perry collected 13 points, five rebounds and four assists in 25 foul-plagued minutes. Reed Lucas added 10 points.
 
 
"When you coach, you don't score a point and you don't get a rebound," Schertz said. "I'm incredibly happy for this team. I told my wife that I've never felt more pressure. Not from outside, but from inside, because I wanted it so bad for this group of guys because they're such a special group. What better way to do it then in front of a crowd of 4,000 plus. It's an incredible feeling. I'm just overwhelmed and so happy for these guys."
 
The Railsplitters now advance to the NCAA Division II Elite Eight at Dr. Pepper Arena in Frisco, Texas. The Railsplitters open against an opponent to be determined once the tournament is reseeded on Wednesday, March 23.