HARROGATE, Tenn. – The hottest NCAA Division II men's basketball team in America returns to the hardwood Saturday afternoon as Lincoln Memorial University welcomes Wingate for a South Atlantic Conference matchup inside B. Frank "Tex" Turner Arena. Presented by Danny England Motors, tip-off between the host Railsplitters (22-1, 15-0) and visiting Bulldogs (10-11, 6-9) is slated for 4 p.m.
 
LMU enters the weekend looking to remain unblemished in league play (15-0), at home (1210-0-0) and in 2020 (10-0).
 
How to Follow
Saturday afternoon's contest will be streamed live via SAC Live on Stretch Internet, while live statistics of the game can be followed by visiting LMURailsplitters.com. The voice of the Railsplitters, Rusty Peace, will have the call of the game. As usual, in-game updates will be available on LMU Railsplitter athletics' official Twitter account, @LMURailsplitter.
 
Opening Tip
- At 22 games, the Railsplitters hold the longest winning streak in the nation by eight games. It is the most consecutive wins for LMU since earning a program-best 24-straight victories during the the Railsplitters' run to the national title game in 2015-16.
- An overtime neutral-site setback to top-five ranked West Tex A&M (99-89) in the season opener at the fourth annual Small College Basketball Hall of Fame Classic in Saint Joseph, Missouri, on Nov. 1 was LMU's first and only loss this season. That is 99 days without enduring a defeat.
- Reaching their 20th-straigtht victory last Wednesday night with an 87-65 home triumph over longtime local rival Carson-Newman, the Railsplitters now hold the five-longest winning streaks in conference history. In fact, LMU is the only program in the 12-team SAC to have won 20 in a row at any point.
- Owning five 20-game win streaks in school history, the Railsplitters' four other such streaks all took place in the last 10 years beginning in 2010-11 (22). LMU also won 20-straight during its 2014-15 campaign while winning 24 in order in 2015-16 and 21 consecutive in 20127-18.
- With a 90-78 win at Lenoir-Rhyne Wednesday night, the Railsplitters tied the second-longest winning streak in program history.
- LMU's 15-straight league victories are also the most of any team in the nation, while its 22 total wins are tied for the most among all Division II programs.
- Playing a 22-game conference schedule in the 12-team SAC, the Railsplitters have defeated every team in the league at least once and have topped Coker, Carson-Newman, Queens University of Charlotte and Lenoir-Rhyne twice.
- With seven regular season games remaining, LMU holds a commanding five-game lead atop the SAC standings.
- Some of the Railsplitters' best basketball of the season has been played as of late with LMU defeating its opponents by an average of 21.3 points in the month of January and holding five of its nine adversaries under 70 points.
- The Railsplitters held steady at No. 2 in both the National Association of basketball Coaches (NABC) Top 25 and D2SIDA Media Poll this week and for the first time of 2019-20, LMU is receiving multiple first-place vote in the media poll.
- It marks the fifth consecutive week the Railsplitters have been ranked in the top five of both national polls. The No. 2 ranking is the highest for LMU since completing the 2017-18 season as the top team in the land.
- For eight-straight week, the Railsplitters are ranked among the top five teams in the country, marking the 49th week in program history.
- No other SAC school is ranked or receiving votes in either of the national polls.
- Since Nov. 25, LMU has been ranked at the top of the D2SIDA Southeast Region Poll and continues to lead the regional rankings after receiving all six first-place this week. Fellow league members Queens (15-6, 10-5) and Catawba (15-6, 10-5) are ranked fifth and sixth, respectively, in the regional poll with Anderson (13-7, 8-6) checking in at No. 8 and Tusculum (13-9, 8-6) receiving votes.
- The Railsplitters own seven wins over teams who were either ranked or receiving votes in at least one of the two national polls when LMU defeated them. Four of those are top-25 victories with the Railsplitters ousting then 22nd-ranked Davenport (D2SIDA Media Poll) 98-48 on Nov. 2, then 12th-ranked Queens (NABC Top 25) 73-64 on Dec. 7, then 22nd-ranked Catawba (NABC Top 25) 110-85 on Jan. 11 and then 17th-ranked Queens (D2SIDA Media Poll) 103-80 most recently last weekend.
- A remarkable seven different LMU players have scored at least 20 points in a game this season with four owning multiple 20-point outings. Sophomore guard Courvoisier McCauley has scored 20 points or more on 12 different occasions while redshirt junior guard Devin Whitfield has reached 20 points 11 times. Senior point guard Anthony Brown has claimed four 20-point games and redshirt sophomore guard Cameron Henry has had three 20-point outings.
- Three different Railsplitters have turned in 30-point performances in 2019-20 with both McCauley and Whitfield scoring more than 30 twice and Henry earning 30 points once.
- Four of LMU's five starters are averaging double-digit scoring led by McCauley's 20.3 points per game and followed by Whitfield (17.4 PPG), Henry (14.0 PPG) and Brown (12.5 PPG).
- The Railsplitters continue to lead all of Division II basketball in two key categories, field goal percentage defense (37.9%) and defensive rebounding (32.2 RPG) while ranking second in both scoring margin (23.4), third in three-point field goal defense (28.8%), fifth in shooting (52.1%), seventh in assists per game (19.3), eighth in scoring (93.2 PPG) and 10th in both made three pointers (255) and total rebounds (915).
- Holding a 26-10 all-time record versus Wingate, LMU has won 16 of its last 17 meetings with the Bulldogs. Prior to last year's season-ending loss to Wingate in the opening round of the 2019 SAC Tournament, the Railsplitters had won 15 consecutive in the series.
- LMU has gone 13-3 against in Harrogate and head coach Josh Schertz is 25-5 against the Bulldogs.
 
Last Time vs. Wingate
In the Railsplitters' conference opener in Wingate, North Carolina, on Nov. 23, LMU pummeled the host Bulldogs by 37 (113-76) behind 52.2 percent shooting and 14 made threes. LMU went 27-for-32 at the free-throw line after a scorching start and held Wingate to 38.2 percent shooing and only five three pointers. Outscoring the host Bulldogs 40-24 in the paint, the Railsplitters led from its opening possession on and got 35 points off the bench and 17 off of 18 forced turnovers. Led by a then season-high 31 points from Whitfield, the Lipscomb, Alabama (McAdory HS), native scored his 1,000th-career point in the contest.
 
Last Time Out
On Wednesday night, LMU used a big second half to complete the regular season series sweep of Lenoir-Rhyne and earn a gritty, 90-78 road victory in Hickory, North Carolina. Scoring 54 second-half points on 59.4 percent shooting, including going 6-for-8 from distance, the Railsplitters rebounded from a lackluster performance in the first half and led by as much as 13 down the stretch after falling behind by four early. With four double-figure scorers, LMU got double-double outings from Whitfield and Henry as McCauley poured in a game-high 26 points on 11-for-18 shooting. Notching his second double-double of his Railsplitter career, Whitfield hauled in a season-high 13 rebounds and scored 25 on 8-for-14 shooting, including going 5-for-7 from long range and 4-for-5 at the foul line. Henry posted his third-straight double-double and fifth in the last eight games with a career-best 17 boards and 13 points, not to mention dishing out four assists.
 
Southeast Region Supremacy
Sitting atop the Division II Southeast Region, the Railsplitters have already won three battles between SAC and regional leaders this season. Both of LMU's wins over Queens, last weekend and on Dec. 7 (73-64), came when the two teams were No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, in the league and Southeast Region. Furthermore, when the Railsplitters defeated then 22nd-ranked Catawba 110-85 in Harrogate on Jan. 11, the Indians entered second in both the conference and the region. LMU also owns an 83-72 home victory over USC Aiken as part of the Railsplitters' SAC vs. Peach Belt Challenge and took down Tusculum 96-81 on the road on Jan. 22. Both the Pacers (14-9) and Pioneers (14-9, 9-6) are receiving votes in the latest D2SIDA Southeast Region Poll
 
Distance from the Rest
Fifteen of LMU's 22 victories thus far this season have come in dominant fashion. Owning an astounding seven wins by at least 31 points and 15 by 20 or more, the Railsplitters have outscored their competition by 538 points through 23 games. On Dec. 15, LMU defeated visiting NAIA member Tennessee Wesleyan by 60 points (122-62) for its largest margin of victory since pummeling Mars Hill by 87 (156-69) in December of 2017. The Railsplitters have notched wins of 60, 50, 47, 40, 37, 32, 31, 26 (twice), 25, 23, 22 (twice), 21 and 20 points this season. During its 22-game win streak, LMU has defeated its opponents by an impressive average of 24.9 points.
 
Bevo Francis Award Top 100 Watch List Members
On Jan. 15, McCauley and Anthony Brown were both named to the 2020 Bevo Francis Award Top 100 watch list as announced by Small College Basketball and the National Awards Committee. Presented annually, the Clarence "Bevo" Francis Award is given to the player who has the finest overall season within Small College Basketball (non-Division I). The two guards joined an illustrious list of former LMU players who have been named to the Bevo Francis Award watch list in recent years, including Jalen Steele (2016), Luquon Choice (2016 and 2017), Dorian Pinson (2017 and 2018), Trevon Shaw (2018), Emanuel Terry (2018) and Cornelius Taylor (2019). All-American Terry won the national player of the year award in 2018 after compiling a remarkable 126-14 career record donning the Blue and Gray. It marks the fifth-straight year the Railsplitters have had at least one player named to the Bevo Francis Award Top 100 watch list.
 
Head Coach Josh Schertz Wins No. 300
The Railsplitters' 76-64 win over UVA Wise on Wednesday, Jan. 8 was head coach Josh Schertz' 300th of his remarkable career. He needed just 365 games as a head coach to reach the career milestone. Coach Schertz now owns an astonishing 308-65 (.826) record in 12 seasons at the helm of the Railsplitter men's basketball program.
 
Decade of Excellence
Closing the books on one of the best decades of basketball among all NCAA levels, LMU achieved unheralded success from 2010 until the start of 2020. Below are some of the Railsplitters' biggest accomplishments.

• 254-50 (.836) overall record
• 148-13 (.919) record inside Tex Turner Arena
• 174-28 (.861) SAC record
• 11 SAC titles, including seven regular season championships (2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018) and four SAC Tournament titles (2011, 2014, 2016, 2018)
• Eight-straight NCAA Tournament appearances (2011-18)
• Two Elite Eight appearances (2016 and 2017)
• Two national semifinal appearances (2016 and 2017)
• One NCAA title game appearance (2016)
• Eight All-Americans (Emanuel Terry, 2018; Dorian Pinson, 2018; Chris Perry, 2017; Luquon Choice, 2017; Gerel Simmons, 2016; Lorenza Ross, 2015; Vincent Bailey, 2014; Desmond Johnson, 2011)
• 37 All-SAC selections with 18 first-team picks

 
Railsplitters at Home
Inside Tex Turner Arena, LMU has registered a .930 (147-11) winning percentage over the past 10 seasons. Entering the 2019-20 season, the Railsplitters ranked sixth nationally at home in all of college basketball since 2010-11 with a .925 (135-11) winning percentage. Only West Liberty (.953), Bellarmine (.949), Kansas (.947), Kentucky (.942) and Duke (.929) owned a higher home court winning percentage than LMU during that span. Since coach Schertz took over the reins of the program prior to the 2008-09 campaign, the Railsplitters have gone 170-16 (.914) in home contests.
 
Standard of Success
LMU has 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. The Railsplitters are one of only four Division II programs to have posted 20 wins or more for 11 consecutive years. Only West Liberty (15), Bellarmine (11) and Indiana Pa. (11) can say the same. LMU has also reached the NCAA Tournament eight of the last nine seasons.
 
Coach Schertz Among the Elite
Since taking over the Railsplitter men's basketball program in March of 2008, head coach Josh Schertz has amassed a remarkable 308-65 (.826) record over 12 seasons. Entering the 2019-20 season, Schertz' career winning percentage (.817) was the fifth-highest of all head coaches 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 (.846) and Mark Few, Gonzaga (.828) - and owns the second-highest winning percentage among Division II leaders.
 
Looking Ahead
The Railsplitters return to game action Wednesday, Feb. 12, traveling to nearby Wise, Virginia, to take on first-year SAC member UVA Wise in a 7:30 p.m. tip-off. Next Saturday, Feb. 15, LMU hosts Newberry at 4 p.m.
 
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.