Harrogate, TN - The Lincoln Memorial men's basketball team bounced back in emphatic fashion Wednesday night with a sizable win over conference opponent UVA-Wise. The Railsplitters entered the game with a 9-5 record, including a 3-2 mark in SAC play. The Cavaliers entered the game with a 7-7 overall record, including a 3-3 mark in conference play.

There were nine lead changes in the first half as both teams failed to separate from one another. The Railsplitters opened the game on a 5-0 run before the Cavaliers battled back to knot the game at 10-10. UVA-Wise took its first lead of the game with 15:13 on the clock in the first half, 11-10. The lead would change hands four times over the next two minutes, seeing Lincoln Memorial come out the other side with a slim 14-13 lead. The game flow remained the same as the Cavaliers tied things back up at 18-18 with 12:00 remaining in the half. UVA-Wise would regain the lead, but it would be short lived as the Railsplitters regained the lead 22-20. Maintaining the theme of a tight game, the Cavaliers yet again regained the lead, 24-22, moments later. UVA-Wise held the lead for 3:27 of the remaining 4:00 of the first half before Lincoln Memorial regained the lead 39-38. However, the Cavaliers tallied the last bucket of the half, taking a 41-39 lead at halftime.

Coach Samarrippas' halftime adjustments began to take immediate effect in the second half as the Railsplitters began to play as if their hair was on fire, roaring out to a 22-9 run to open the second half, taking a 61-50 lead on the heels of three consecutive three pointers. UVA-Wise would never regain the lead. Having already outscored the Cavaliers 22-9 in the half, Lincoln Memorial closed the game outscoring UVA-Wise 33-23 from there to secure a 94-73 victory at home, improving to 10-5 on the season and 4-2 in South Atlantic Conference play.

Lincoln Memorial's offense was extremely balanced all night, getting contributions from both the starters and players off the bench. The Railsplitters had five players score in double figures, led by Chase Rankin with 22 points. He added seven rebounds and four assists. He was followed in scoring by Me'Kell Burries and Matthew Sells with 16 points each. Coming off the bench, Sells connected on 4-of-6 attempts from long range throughout the game. Wes Enis and Martez Brown added 13 points each. Brown also tallied 13 rebounds for his ninth double-double of the season. Jordan Walters and Osmar Garcia-Araujo added seven points each to round out scoring for Lincoln Memorial.

The Railsplitters will hit the road this weekend for a match up with Catawba. Tip-off is slated for 4:00 pm.