EVANSVILLE, Ind. – For the third time in program history, the Lincoln Memorial University men's basketball team will be playing in the NCAA Division II Final Four after dismantling fifth-seeded Colorado School of Mines 90-76 in the Elite Eight Wednesday afternoon. The fourth-seeded Railsplitters (19-3) shot 54 percent from the field, scored 45 points in each half and got 55 combined points from redshirt junior guard Cameron Henry and junior forward Jordan Guest in the national quarterfinal victory inside the Ford Center in Evansville, Indiana.

Improving to 3-0 all-time in Division II Elite Eight games, LMU held the Orediggers (18-3) to 37.8 percent (14-of-37) first-half shooting as Mines was limited to just 1-for-13 from beyond the arc in the opening 20 minutes of play. Dominating the post with Guest's fifth double-double of the season, the Railsplitters outscored the Orediggers 48-28 in the paint and outrebounded Mines 38-32. Valuing its possessions, LMU turned the ball over just seven times while collecting nine steals and blitzing the Orediggers 13-0 in fastbreak points.
 
The Railsplitters led for all but a little over three minutes of the Elite Eight matchup and held a 26-point lead early in the second half before Mines cut into the deficit late.
 
Guest led all players with 28 points and 11 rebounds, going 11-for-17 from the floor and scoring 14 points in both halves. Henry went 10-for-15 and was a perfect 3-for-3 from three-point range, racking up 27 points and seven rebounds while distributing a team-high four assists.

After exchanging baskets to start the game, a steal and fastbreak layup by redshirt senior guard Devin Whitfield gave LMU its first lead at 6-4. A triple by senior guard Alex Dahling five minutes in broke an 8-8 tie and Henry went on a 7-0 run of his own sparked by a steal to push the Railsplitters in front 21-13 after the first 10 minutes.

A Henry and-one layup with just over seven minutes to go in the half put LMU up by 12 at 33-21 before an extremely deep wing trey from Dahling gave the Railsplitters a 13-point advantage at 36-23 with just over five minutes left in the half. Guest hit a jumper at the 3:26 mark of the half to give LMU its first 15-point lead of the afternoon and scored on a tip-in off the rim with only seconds remaining for the Railsplitters to take a 45-30 edge into halftime.
 
Shooting 55.2 percent (16-of-29) in the first 20 minutes, LMU connected on six of its 11 first-half three-point attempts (54.5 percent) and went 7-for-9 at the free-throw line.
 
Opening up second-half play on a 16-3 run, the Railsplitters took a 26-point lead at 61-35 after five-and-a-half minutes of action. Its largest advantage of the day, LMU got eight points from junior point guard Julius Brown and a Whitfield three pointer pair during the stretch. With the Orediggers' only points in the first few minutes of the second half coming on a trio of free throws from All-American Brendan Sullivan, redshirt sophomore guard/forward Xavier Bledson capped the lengthy run with a layin.

The fast second-half start proved to be pivotal for the Railsplitters as Mines shot 53.1 percent (17-of-32) in the closing 20 minutes and went 8-for-13 (61.5 percent) from outside in the second half.

Outscoring LMU 13-9 over 4:45 the Orediggers got back within 19 at 70-51 with nine-and-a-half minutes to go. However, a conventional three-point play from Bledson and a Henry layup kept the momentum with the Railsplitters. Guest drained his third three of the afternoon with just under seven minutes remaining, keeping LMU in front by 24 at 80-56 before the Mines' desperation push.

The Orediggers went on a 19-8 run over the ensuing five minutes of play capped with a three pointer from Sullivan, which got Mines within 13 at 88-75 with 1:55 left. The run would be false hope for the Orediggers as the Railsplitters kept Mines without a field goal the rest of the way. Guest threw down a dunk off a pass from Whitfield with under a minute showing on the clock to put an exclamation point to the triumph.

Despite going 4-for-12 (33.3 percent) from long range in the second half, LMU shot 52.9 percent (18-for-34) across the final 20 minutes to finish the game 34-for-63 overall from the floor and 10-for-23 (43.5 percent) from distance. The Orediggers had just seven free-throw attempts in the contest and shot 44.9 percent (31-of-69) from the field for the 40 minutes, including going 34.6 percent (9-for-26) from outside.

Brown finished with 13 points on 6-for-11 shooting and grabbed four rebounds, while Whitfield scored eight and Dahling and Bledson both seven. Dahling also pulled down seven boards.
 
Mines was led by Sullivan's 21 points on 8-for-13 shooting and Ben Boone's 17 points. The Orediggers also got double-figure scoring from Michael Glen and Kobi Betts, who both notched 14 points.

Of Note
Reaching their third Division II Final Four since 2016 after going back-to-back in 2016 and 2017, the Railsplitters have now reached the national semifinals three of the last five Elite Eight championships. With its Elite Eight win, LMU is now 4-2 in the Division II Elite Eight championship and 18-8 all-time in NCAA Championship games. The Railsplitters are now 2-1 at the Ford Center. Head coach Josh Schertz (337-68) is only two wins shy of becoming LMU's winningest coach and is only one victory away from tying Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame member Dean Bailey's school record 338 wins (1948-75).
 
Up Next…
The Railsplitters will play top-seeded West Texas A&M in the 2021 Division II Final Four Thursday at 7 p.m. ET/6 p.m. CT. The Final Four tilt will be broadcast live on CBS Sports Network and can be streamed here. The Buffs (18-2) ousted eighth-seeded Daemen College 97-83 in their Elite Eight outing later Wednesday afternoon.
 
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 postseason.