Harrogate, TN - Three days after dismantling Emory & Henry on the road 102-84, the 7th-ranked Lincoln Memorial men's basketball team was back in action on its home floor, seeking revenge against the 16th-ranked Lenoir-Rhyne Bears for a buzzer-beating 79-77 loss in early January in Hickory. From the start of the game, it was clear that Lincoln Memorial was looking to make a statement. The Railsplitters entered the game with a 19-3 overall record, including an 17-2 mark in conference play. Lenoir-Rhyne entered the game with a 20-4 overall record, including a 17-3 mark in conference play, sitting right behind the Railsplitters in the conference standings in second place.

On the first play of the game, Elyjah Freeman threw down an emphatic dunk to ignite the team and crowd. It would be indicative of the energy produced by the game. Lenoir-Rhyne rattled off a 6-2 run to take an early lead, however, it was short-lived as Lincoln Memorial rushed out to a 14-8 advantage and never looked back. In the blink of an eye, the Lincoln Memorial lead grew to 26-10. The Railsplitters continued to dominate, jumping out to their largest lead of the first half at 37-20 with 2:33 remaining. The Bears did end up chipping away at the lead, cutting to within 12 points at the half, 40-28.

Lenoir-Rhyne cut even further into the lead, drawing the score back to within nine points at 42-33 early in the second half. However, Lincoln Memorial once again took over and began to dominate. One heartbeat later, the Railsplitter lead grew to 56-43 with 11:38 left in the game. The score swelled to 72-49 on the heels of a 16-6 run. The Railsplitters outscored the Bears 17-10 for the remainder of the game to secure an emphatic 87-59 victory over #16 Lenoir-Rhyne to improve to 20-3 on the season with an 18-2 mark in conference play.

Four Railsplitters tallied double figures. Elyjah Freeman led all scorers with 21 points and six rebounds, shooting 7-of-11 from the floor. EJ Smith chipped in a career-high 19 points and seven assists, shooting a blistering 80% from the floor and 100% from long range. Thomas Allard added 17 points and nine rebounds, nearly tallying a double-double. Wes Enis totaled 16 points and five rebounds, shooting 6-of-14 from the floor. Connor Jordan chipped in five points and two rebounds. Jordan Walters added four points, five rebounds, and seven assists. Osmar Garcia-Araujo totaled three points, two rebounds, and two steals. Ngundeng Ruey added two points from the free throw line to round out scoring for the Railsplitters.

Lincoln Memorial shot 54.5% from the floor, including a 41.7% mark from long range and an 85% clip from the charity stripe. The Railsplitters forced 15 turnovers which led to 20 points, dominated the paint 40-28, and led the fast break 23-6.