HARROGATE, Tenn. – Fueled by a determined defensive effort and a few clutch offensive performances, the Lincoln Memorial men's basketball team secured its 10th consecutive 20-win season with a gritty 81-74 win over Catawba in the regular-season home finale on Saturday evening at Tex Turner Arena. 
 
After allowing 96 points in a loss at Catawba (19-7, 12-6 SAC) in mid-January, the Railsplitters (20-6, 14-4 SAC) redeemed that performance and avenged the loss with a suffocating defense, as the Indians shot just 39 percent from the field and turned the ball over 19 times.  
 
Lincoln Memorial endured its own offensive struggles against a bigger and more physical Catawba team, shooting 40 percent with an 8-for-30 mark from three. However, the Railsplitters went 23-for-27 at the free-throw line and did just enough on that end of the floor to move two games clear of the Indians for second place in the South Atlantic Conference standings with two games left in the regular season. 
 
Freshman Julius Brown scored 20 points to lead the Railsplitters, going 8-for-8 at the charity stripe, while Cornelius Taylor shook off a 0-for-5, scoreless first half to pour in 17 points in the second half. Kamaran Calhoun battled all night in the paint, securing a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Courvoisier McCauley struggled to shoot the rock, but still managed 10 points, six rebounds and four assists. 
 
The Railsplitters honored their lone senior, forward Steven Perriere, before the game, and the Frenchman sparked LMU early after earning the start. Perriere scored the first five points of the game and went 2-for-3 from the field in 10 minutes of action. 
 
Jameel Taylor and Jordan McElveen did almost all of the work offensively for Catawba, combining for 44 points. Taylor was sensational with a game-high 29 on 12-for-21 shooting, while McElveen scored 15. No other Indian finished with more than eight, including leading scorer Marcell Haskett, who was limited to six points on a 2-for-9 effort from the field. 
 
Both teams struggled to get anything going offensively early, but the Railsplitters jumped out to a 10-3 lead following a three from Cameron Henry and a jumper by Brown. However, Catawba answered with an 8-0 run to jump ahead 11-10 by the 12-minute mark of the half. 
 
A three from Taylor extended the Catawba lead to two before a pair of buckets by Henry and two free throws for Calhoun fueled a 6-0 scoring burst that put the Railsplitters back in the lead. 
 
The Indians rallied back to tie the game at 26-26 with a 6-0 flurry, but a three and layup by McCauley followed by a vicious slam by Rhondi Hackett catapulted the Railsplitters to a 33-26 lead with two minutes remaining. 
 
Catawba hit a three to complete the first-half scoring, sending the teams to the locker room with LMU leading 33-29. 
 
The Railsplitters and Indians went point for point through the first six minutes of the second half, but the home team finally started to get some traction over the next stretch, unleashing a 12-5 run powered by five points for Calhoun to take a commanding 60-46 lead with just under nine minutes to play. 
 
The Lincoln Memorial advantage crested at 15 after Brown buried a three-pointer with 8:17 left, but the Indians very nearly erased every bit of that lead with an 11-0 spurt. 
 
Taylor scored nine points during that run, which was brought forth in large part due to LMU's foul trouble and a frenetic full-court press. Taylor's final bucket during that stretch at the five-minute mark cut the deficit to 65-61. 
 
But the Railsplitters never relinquished the lead or deflated and eventually stabilized themselves with two free throws by Brown, a bucket by McCauley and another free throw by Calhoun to extend the lead back to nine. 
 
Catawba made one final push after that as a three for Jordan Barber and three-point play for Taylor brought it back to 72-69 with 1:32 to play. 
 
However, Lincoln Memorial scored its next five points at the free-throw line and Brown scored a breakaway layup with 21 seconds left to ice the game. 
 
Quick Hits 
 
- The only thing the Railsplitters did not do well defensively was limit offensive boards, as Catawba snagged 15 to score 22 second-chance points. The Indians finished with a 47-36 edge on the glass total. 
 
- Henry scored all nine of his points in the first half. The redshirt-freshman was plagued by foul trouble and fouled out after 31 minutes of work. 
 
- The win could have major postseason implications for the Railsplitters, who were ranked No. 7 in the initial Southeast Region poll. Catawba entered the week at No. 5, but lost both games this week. 
 
Up Next 
 
The Railsplitters wrap up the regular season with a pair of road games, beginning at Tusculum on Wednesday. Tip-off is set for 8 p.m.