Harrogate, TN - The Lincoln Memorial men's basketball team earned a 4-seed in the southeast region and will take on a familiar foe in the first round of the tournament. Lincoln Memorial drew 5th-seeded UNC-Pembroke in the first round of the region. Although the Railsplitters and Braves don't have an extensive history, the two teams have met four times on some big stages. Last season, Lincoln Memorial opened its home slate against then-8th-ranked UNC-Pembroke in what was a national top-10 match up. The Railsplitters edged the Braves in an exciting 71-69 game. The two met earlier this season in Lincoln Memorial's final non-conference match up of the season in Pembroke, NC and the Braves outlasted the Railsplitters 83-75. It is the only time in four games that UNC-Pembroke defeated Lincoln Memorial.

UNC-Pembroke went on to finish the regular season with a 21-6 record, including a 16-2 conference record, riding a 10-game winning streak into its conference tournament. The Braves bested 5th-seeded King and 2nd-seeded Emmanuel to claim the Conference Carolinas crown, earning the 5th-seed in the southeast region of the NCAA DII Men's Basketball Tournament.

Lincoln Memorial wrapped up the regular season with a 23-4 overall record, including a 19-2 conference record, claiming the South Atlantic Conference regular season title. The Railsplitters defeated Wingate and Carson-Newman in route to its second consecutive conference tournament championship game. Lincoln Memorial dropped a heart breaker to Lenoir-Rhyne in overtime to finish as the SAC Tournament runner-up.

Below is a breakdown of each team by the numbers for comparison:
 

Team	Record	Points-Per-Game	Opponent Points-Per-Game	Scoring Margin	Field Goal Percentage	Three Point Field Goal Percentage	Rebounds-Per-Game	Opponent Rebounds-Per-Game (Margin)	Asissts-Per-Game	Turnovers-Per-Game	Steals-Per-Game
Lincoln Memorial	25-5 (23-4)	84.1	71.6	+12.6	51.2%	38.7%	36.3	30.8 (+5.4)	15.9	11.3	6.4
UNC-Pembroke	23-6 (18-2)	87.8	71.7	+16.1	50.9%	39%	39.5	29.1 (+10.4)	15.8	12.9	7.1

The two teams, on paper, are very evenly matched. The first round of the NCAA DII Men's Basketball tournament is shaping up to be very exciting. Tip-off between the Railsplitters and Braves is slated for 7:30 PM on Saturday. Due to inclement weather forecast for Columbus, GA, game times are subject to change.

The game can be found streaming for FREE at: https://pbcsportsnetwork.com/csucougars/