HARTSVILLE, S.C. – Wrapping up a three-game South Atlantic Conference road swing, the Lincoln Memorial University men's basketball team will go for its eighth consecutive victory Saturday afternoon at Coker University in Hartsville, South Carolina. Tip-off from inside the DeLoach Center is slated for 4 p.m. with the game marking the Railsplitters' seventh trip to Coker since 2013.
 
How to Follow
Saturday afternoon's tilt will be streamed live via SAC Live on Stretch Internet, while live statistics of the game can be followed by visiting LMURailsplitters.com or CokerCobras.com, As usual, in-game updates will be available on LMU Railsplitter athletics' official Twitter account, @LMURailsplitter.
 
Opening Tip
- At seven games, the Railsplitters (7-1, 2-0) are on their longest winning streak since winning 21 straight during the 2017-18 season.
- LMU is outscoring its opponents by an average of 25.6 points per game, which leads the league and is the ninth-highest scoring margin in the nation. Over their last seven games, the Railsplitters have outscored their opponents by a 31.7 point average.  
- Unbeaten against Coker, LMU owns a perfect 12-0 record versus the Cobras (2-2, 1-0) and has won six games inside the DeLoach Center. Since Coker joined the SAC prior to the 2013-14 season, the Railsplitters have posted a 24.6 scoring margin in their 12 matchups with the Cobras. The closest Coker has gotten to LMU is four points when the Railsplitters earned a 62-58 triumph in Hartsville on Jan. 31, 2015.
- LMU's 94.6 scoring average leads the 12-team SAC and is the 10th-highest in the country.
- The Railsplitters rank among the top teams in the nation in several offensive and defensive statistical categories, including third in both total assists (155) and total rebounds (338), fourth in defensive rebounds per game (34.3), fifth in three-pointers (86) and field goal percentage defense (35.5%), sixth in steals (72) and three-point attempts (222), 10th in free throws made (139), 16th in free throw attempts (172) and assists per game (19.4), and 18th in free-throw percentage (80.8%),
 
Overcoming 16-Point Deficit
On Tuesday night, LMU claimed its most narrow victory of the young season inside Holt Fieldhouse in Jefferson City, Tennessee. The Railsplitters rallied from a 16-point first-half deficit before pulling out a five-point, 93-88 triumph behind a 61.5 percent shooting performance in the second half. Overcoming a minus-nine margin in rebounding, LMU outscored the host Eagles 53-42 across the final 20 minutes of play and got 19 second-half points from sophomore guard Courvoisier McCauley. Despite being outscored 40-38 in the paint and 17-2 in second-half points due to a 18-3 disadvantage on the offensive glass, the Railsplitters got key contributions late from redshirt senior guard/forward Kamaran Calhoun, Devin Whitfield and redshirt sophomore guard Cameron Henry. Down 64-54 at the 13:18 mark of the second half, LMU went on a 16-4 tear over the next 3:45. A driving layup by senior guard Anthony Brown gave the Railsplitters their first lead of the night at 70-68 with 9:34 remaining. A McCauley layup with three and a half minutes remaining broke the seventh and final tie of the night at 84 apiece and LMU played with purpose on the defensive end of the court for the following two minutes. Calhoun drew a foul on an offensive rebound and connected on both free throws to put the Railsplitters ahead by four with just over a minute and a half to go. Moments later, a wing three from Whitfield proved to be the dagger as it put LMU up 91-86 with only 48 seconds left.
 
Whitfield Reaches 1,000
It took redshirt junior Whitfield just four games to get completely settled into the Railsplitters' offensive system after transferring to Harrogate from fellow NCAA Division II member Trevecca Nazarene in Nashville. After having to sit out the 2018-19 season, Whitfield reached 1,000 career points last weekend in a season-best performance at Wingate. The 6-foot-5 guard poured in a season-high 31 points to help lead LMU to a 37-point (113-76) rout of the Bulldogs. Whitfield knocked down five treys and went 10-for-10 at the charity stripe in the win, not to mention collecting a season-best seven boards. Scoring 907 points across his freshman and sophomore campaigns at Trevecca Nazarene, Whitfield has racked up 136 points in just eight games as a Railsplitter. He has scored a total of 1,043 points throughout his three-season college career and is LMU's second-leading scorer (17.0 PPG). Across the last four games, Whitfield has scored at least 20 points and is averaging 24.3 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.0 assists while shooting at a 54.2 percent (32-of-59) clip and going 15-for-31 (48.8%) from beyond the arc.
 
Voss is the Boss
There has been no sophomore slump for Courvoisier "Voss" McCauley, who is leading the team in scoring (21.0 PPG) and has posted at least 13 points in each of the Railsplitters' eight games this season, including a career-high 36 in an 83-72 home win over USC Aiken. The 6-foot-5 guard is shooting 42 percent (29-of-69) from outside, in addition to averaging 4.3 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.5 steals per game. McCauley ranks second in the nation in three-point attempts (69), fourth in made three pointers (29), eighth in points scored (168), ninth in field goal attempts (121), 17th in field goals made (56) and 27th in made three pointers per game (3.6).
 
The Regional Standard
With the second regular season D2SIDA Southeast Region Poll released earlier this week, the Railsplitters find themselves leading the regional rankings. LMU was unanimously picked first in the NCAA Southeast Region with six first-place votes. Top-15 ranked Queens University of Charlotte who had led the region slipped to No. 2 in the regional ranking after dropping a regional affair to Belmont Abbey last Saturday.
 
National Prominence
With the second regular season release of the national polls earlier this week, the Railsplitters moved up to No. 9 in both the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Top 25 and the D2SIDA Media Poll. LMU rose one spot in the NABC Top 25 and jumped three positions in the media poll after picking up a pair of wins in dominant fashion.
 
Standard of Success
The Railsplitters have finished within the top two of the final SAC standings each of the last nine years, spent 95-straight weeks in the national rankings from December 2010 to December 2016 and completed the season as the top team in the country in two of the last four seasons. LMU is one of four Division II programs to have posted 20 wins or more for 10 consecutive years. Only West Liberty (15), Bellarmine (11) and Indiana Pa. (11) can say the same. The Railsplitters have also reached the NCAA Tournament eight of the last nine seasons.
 
Coach Schertz Among the Elite
Since taking over the LMU men's basketball program in March of 2008, head coach Josh Schertz has amassed a remarkable 293-65 (.818) record over 12 seasons. Entering the 2019-20 season, Schertz' career winning percentage (.817) was the fifth-highest of any head coach in college basketball history at any NCAA level. Furthermore, Schertz ranks third among active head coaches with at least 10 years at the helm - Jim Crutchfield, Nova Southeastern (.845) and Mark Few, Gonzaga (.824) - and owns the second-highest winning percentage among Division II leaders.
 
Coker | 2019-20 Record: 2-2, 1-0 SAC

• The Cobras were picked last in the SAC Preseason Poll by the league's head coaches after going 1-19 in the conference last season and finishing 12th in the final standings. Coker posted a 3-24 overall record in 2018-19 with only wins over Southern Wesleyan, Limestone and Anderson.  
• Entering Saturday's game with a 2-2 record, the Cobras began SAC play Tuesday night at Wingate where they earned a low-scoring 49-45 road win over the Bulldogs.
• Coker opened up its season by splitting games with Limestone, claiming a 58-53 victory on the road before dropping a 73-66 decision to the Saints in Hartsville. The Cobras also suffered an 85-63 setback at Lander last Saturday.  
• Led by first-year head coach Jarred Merrill, Coker features junior shooting guard Royce Hunter who is averaging 20 points per game on 57.1 percent (28-of-49) shooting and 44 percent (11-of-25) marksmanship from outside. Sophomore guard Chandler Lindsey is averaging near double figures in scoring (9.8 PPG) and leads the team in both rebounds (5.8 RPG) and assists (3.8 APG).
• LMU defeated the Cobras 96-67 this past January in South Carolina after earning a 99-72 win over Coker in Harrogate last December. The Railsplitters were also 85-70 winners in Hartsville during the 2017-18 season.  

 
Looking Ahead
The Railsplitters will have a week off from game action before returning to the friendly confines of Tex Turner Arena next Saturday for what will most likely be a top-25 matchup with top-15 ranked Queens. Tip-off is slated for 4 p.m. with the game being featured as LMU's white out. Fans who wear white will receive free admission to both the Railsplitters and Lady Railsplitters' games against the Royals. The women's game is scheduled for 2 p.m. Presented by Edward Jones Investments - Marc Trantham, 400 complementary tickets for the doubleheader will also be available next week by visiting the LMU athletics on the first floor of Tex Turner Arena.
 
LMU L-Club
All LMU L-Club members receive basketball season tickets with premium seating available through silver and platinum memberships. Additional membership benefits include discounts at community partner locations, exclusive e-mail communications, VIP basketball parking and Tex Turner Arena hospitality room access. Become an LMU L-Club member today by visiting LMURailsplitters.com.  
 
On Social
Stay tuned to LMURailsplitters.com, as well as LMU's social media platforms - @LMURailsplitter on Twitter, @LMURailsplitters on Facebook and @lmurailsplitters on Instagram, for complete coverage of Railsplitter basketball throughout the 2019-20 season.