HARTSVILLE, S.C. – The Railsplitters (13-4, 8-3 SAC) will continue their search for more consistency on Saturday when they make the 350-mile trip to Hartsville, S.C. to face the Coker Cobras (6-11, 3-8 SAC) in South Atlantic Conference action at 4 p.m.
 
Lincoln Memorial won its third straight game on Wednesday night and beat archrival Tusculum for the 19th consecutive time with a 90-68 win in Greeneville. The Railsplitters were nearly perfect in the first half, shooting 57 percent while holding the Pioneers to 30.4 percent shooting to build a commanding 22-point lead at the break. That ultimately ended up being the final margin, as the two teams played to a 40-40 stalemate in the second half.
 
In many ways, that was a microcosm of how the Railsplitters have played all season, mingling stretches of absolute brilliance with fits of lethargy and complacency. You have to look back just two games to Lincoln Memorial's trip to Anderson to find another example of that, as the Railsplitters led 52-30 at the half but were outscored 47-42 in the second. Against Mars Hill, the Railsplitters put up 57 first-half points and led by 20 at the break, but were held to 37 in the second half. At Wingate on December 14, the Railsplitters were up 15 at the half before being beat by the Bulldogs 43-40 in the second stanza.
 
Each individual piece for the Railsplitters has flitted in and out at times this season, but junior Dorian Pinson (Greenville, S.C.) has consistently brought it on a nightly basis. Pinson has scored double figures in seven of his last eight games and fell just two rebounds short of becoming the first player in program history to record a triple-double on Wednesday, logging 15 points, 10 assists and eight boards against Tusculum. The Greenville, S.C. native is ranked third in the SAC in assists and fourth in rebounds.
 
Lincoln Memorial will strive to play 40 minutes of competitive and energetic basketball on Saturday against Coker, who were the victims of one of the Railsplitters' most complete performances of the 2016-17 campaign back on December 3 at Tex Turner Arena.
 
In that contest, the Railsplitters used Coker's up-tempo, pressure defense to their advantage, creating 2-on-1 and 3-on-2 breaks with regularity. The result of that? Lincoln Memorial shot 62 percent from the field, held the undersized Cobras to 31 percentage shooting, won the rebounding battle 60-33 and walked away with a 115-74 victory. There were no consistency issues in that one, as the Railsplitters outscored the Cobras by 18 in the first half and 23 in the second.
 
Coker hasn't been a whole lot better since that loss, either, as the Cobras are 2-8 since losing at Lincoln Memorial. Coker will be looking to snap a three-game losing streak on Saturday, as the Cobras lost 78-73 at home against Lenoir-Rhyne on Wednesday despite leading by as many as 19 points. That stunning collapse came after Coker fell 84-78 to Carson-Newman and took a 113-68 drubbing at the hands of Newberry.
 
Defense has been the primary issue for the Cobras, who are allowing 87 points per game on 48 percent shooting. Those numbers are even worse in SAC play, where Coker is giving up nearly 90 points per game. The offense has taken a step back as well, as Coker hasn't topped 80 points in a game since suffering a 99-84 loss at Wingate on January 4.
 
Nobody is lighting up the scoresheet for the Cobras, but six players are averaging at least seven points per game. JaQuez Motley leads that group with 13.9 points per game, but is shooting just 39.5 percent from the field. Jake Barret is putting up 11.6 points and grabbing 4.5 rebounds per game, while Roman Hall and Nathan Lemke are contributing 9.4 points per game apiece. Lemke leads the team with 7.4 rebounds per game. Miguel Priest and Jalal Abdul-Azeez are chipping in 8.7 and 7.0 points per game, respectively.
 
The Railsplitters could be in store for another monster performance on the backboards. Coker is ranked 10th in the SAC in rebounding margin with a minus-5.2 disparity, while Lincoln Memorial leads the league in that department with a plus-9.7 edge. Lincoln Memorial hasn't been outrebounded since Carson-Newman grabbed a 39-36 edge on the glass back on November 22.
 
In the first meeting against Coker, seven players scored in double figures for the Railsplitters. Emanuel Terry (Enterprise, Ala.), who has missed five straight games, led the way with 19 points, while Cornelius Taylor (Claxton, Ga.) scored a then career-high 15 points. Motley paced the Cobras with 15 points on 5-of-14 shooting, while Barrett had 14 on a 6-for-16 effort.
 
Tip-off is set for 4 p.m. on Saturday inside of Coker's DeLoach Center. Live stats, video and audio links for that contest are available at www.LMURailsplitters.com.
 
Five things to watch for against Coker
1. Lincoln Memorial has never lost to Coker, winning all seven of the all-time meetings with relative ease. The Cobras have played the Railsplitters within 10 points just three times, while Lincoln Memorial has won the last two meetings by 41 and 49.
 
2. The Railsplitters are just two games back of Queens in the SAC standings after the Royals were handed their first loss of the season by Wingate on Wednesday night. LMU is tied with Carson-Newman for second place at 8-3, while Queens is sitting at 10-1. The Railsplitters have won an unprecedented four straight SAC regular season titles.
 
3. Lincoln Memorial will be looking for its second winning streak of at least four games this season. The Railsplitters won five consecutive games from November 26-January 4.
 
4. In general, Coker has not been a great offensive team, but the Cobras have been much more productive at home. Coker is shooting 42.4 percent from the field and averaging a hair under 82 points per game at home. On the road, the Cobras are shooting 37.4 percent and scoring just over 72 points per game. However, the Cobras haven't won in Hartsville since November 22 and are 1-5 on their home court.  
 
5. Coker can be problematic on the defensive end, as they create nearly 10 steals per game. Lincoln Memorial did nearly everything right in the first meeting, but did turn the ball over 22 times.