HARROGATE, Tenn. – An explosive start and strong rebounding propelled Lincoln Memorial University men's basketball to its 25th consecutive victory inside B. Frank "Tex" Turner Arena Monday night. The fifth-ranked Railsplitters improved to 12-1 on the season and 10-1 in South Atlantic Conference play with another dominant outing, defeating visiting Mars Hill University 102-71 for their fifth consecutive win.
 
Making it 44 triumphs in 45 games and earning its 32nd league win over its last 33 SAC tilts, LMU tallied 63 rebounds for the third-most in any game in program history. Reaching the century mark for the seventh time of 2020-21, the Railsplitters distributed more than 20 assists for the ninth time this season. Overcoming uncharacteristic mediocre shooting, LMU assisted on 24 of its 39 made baskets and grabbed a season-high 17 offensive boards.
 
Holding the Lions (0-4, 0-4 SAC) to 31.2 percent (24-of-77) shooting, including 28.95 percent (11-of-38) in the first half, the Railsplitters scored 27 points off of 15 Mars Hill turnovers and earned 27 of their points off fastbreaks. Playing its fourth game in seven days, LMU scored 58 points in the paint and got 35 points off the bench.
 
The Lions entered Monday night's matchup having not competed in 37 days due to COVID-19 circumstances within the Mars Hill program and the Railsplitters took full advantage of their rust.
 
The night got underway with an emphatic dunk from true freshman guard/forward Jordan Walters and LMU scored the first 17 points of the contest. A conventional three-point play from redshirt freshman guard Jeremiah Keene gave the Railsplitters a 20-point lead at 28-8 after 7:36 of play, before a three pointer by senior guard Alex Dahling and a layup from redshirt senior forward Shaquille Rombley following an offensive board put LMU in front 49-24 at the final media timeout of the half.
 
The Railsplitters took a commanding 56-30 lead into the locker room after shooting 55 percent (22-of-40) from the floor and assisting on 16 of their 22 made field goals.
 
A 10-2 run to start the second half gave LMU a 34-point lead at 66-32 on a steal and fastbreak layup by junior point guard Julius Brown. Redshirt freshman guard Luke Bartemes then capped a 13-4 Railsplitter run to push the lead out to 41 at 83-42 with 11:09 to go. It would prove to be LMU's largest of the night as the Lions outscored the Railsplitters 27-19 across the final 10:08 of play.
 
Both teams seemed to get to the foul line or score at will down the stretch.
 
Going just 3-for-17 (17.6 percent) from beyond the arc in the second half, the Railsplitters shot only 40.5 percent (17-of-42) in the final 20 minutes of action to finish 47.6 percent (39-of-82) from the field for the game. Mars Hill shot 33.3 percent (13-of-39) overall in the second half and was 6-for-17 (35.3 percent) from distance.
 
Redshirt junior guard Cameron Henry led the way for LMU, scoring a game-high 20 points on 9-for-14 shooting to go along with seven assists and seven rebounds. Julius Brown was just one point shy of his season high with 17 points on 7-for-12 shooting, while redshirt senior guard Devin Whitfield scored 14 points, grabbed 10 boards, and dished out a season-high five assists. Walters finished with a near double-double of 10 points and career-high seven rebounds as Keene scored 10 and handed out four assists. Dahling recorded a career-best 14 boards and redshirt freshman forward Simon Wilbar scored a career-high eight on 4-for-5 shooting in six minutes off the bench.
 
The Lions got a team-high 19 points, nine rebounds and five assists from Javonte Cooke. Reggie Wright (11) and Austin Gilyard (10) also reached double figures for Mars Hill.


 
Up Next…
Wrapping up a three-game homestand, the Railsplitters host in-state rival Carson-Newman Wednesday night at 8 p.m. before heading on the road Saturday to close out six games within a 12-day period. LMU takes on Wingate inside Cuddy Arena in Wingate, North Carolina, at 4:30 p.m. Saturday.
 
How to Follow
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 2020-21 season.