Gaffney, SC - The 16th-ranked Lincoln Memorial men's basketball team was back in action on Wednesday seeking its third straight conference win on the road at Limestone. Lincoln Memorial came out hot, but found itself in a heated battle late, eventually securing an 83-77 victory, improving to 4-1 on the season with a 3-0 mark in South Atlantic Conference play.
The Railsplitters opened the game on a 7-2 run to take an early lead. Wes Enis, EJ Smith, and Thomas Allard began finding rhythm from beyond the arc to extend the Lincoln Memorial lead to 23-9 as Elyjah Freeman, Jordan Walters, and Osmar Garcia-Araujo took care of business on the interior. With the lead growing to 25-9 with 12 minutes remaining in the first half, the Railsplitters entered the single bonus and would step to the line for every subsequent foul for the remainder of the first half. Lincoln Memorial blistered the nets in the first 10 minutes of the game, shooting 66% from the floor and from long range. The Railsplitters also dominated the glass through the first 10 minutes, holding a 9-4 advantage on the glass. The Saints began to chip away at the lead, drawing the score back to within 10 points before Lincoln Memorial regained a 13 points lead with nine minutes remaining in the first half, 28-15.
Limestone was able to find success in rebounding, knotting the rebounding margin at 10 boards for each team as it attempted to stay within striking distance of Lincoln Memorial. On the heels of a 15-9 run over the next six minutes, the Saints cut the margin back to single digits at 37-30 with just over three minutes remaining. The margin remained at seven throughout the final 30-seconds until the Saints connected on a bucket ahead of the halftime buzzer to cut the score to 41-36 at the half. Lincoln Memorial finished the first half connecting on 43.8% of its shots from the floor and cooled off to a 31.3% mark from long range after connecting on its first 4-of-6 from deep. The rebounding margin was knotted at 16 boards for each team at the half.
The Railsplitters had seven players score in the first half with Enis tallying 14 points and three rebounds in the first half to lead all scorers. Elyjah Freeman added nine points and four rebounds in the first half. Mahmoud Bangura "Mo" added eight points and two blocks. Lincoln Memorial continued to share the ball exceptionally well, seeing Smith, Walters, and Enis finish the first half with three assists each, with Freeman adding two assists as well.
Thanks to a few quick buckets from Smith early in the second, the Railsplitters opened the second half on an 11-5 run to take a 52-41 lead with 16:30 remaining in the game. The teams traded buckets for the next two minutes to bring the score to 57-47 at the first media timeout of the second half. The Saints responded out of the timeout with a 5-2 run to cut the lead back to single digits, 59-52, with just over 12 minutes remaining in the game. The lead grew back to double digits on a pair of Enis free throws, 64-54 by the second media timeout of the second half. However, the Saints continued to claw back, cutting the margin to eight points at 70-62 with just over eight minutes remaining in the game. Limestone scored the next five points to cut the score to 70-67, which was the closest the game had been since the opening minutes. However, the Railsplitters responded with a 5-0 run of their own to regain an eight point advantage at 75-67 with 4:40 left in the game. The Saints continued to fight back as the clock began to work against them, drawing back to within five points, 75-70 with 3:35 left in the game. Lincoln Memorial's lead grew back to seven points at 79-72 as the clock crept below two minutes remaining. The Saints added a three point basket to cut the lead to two possessions, 79-75 with 1:24 remaining in the game. The lead remained at four, in favor of the Railsplitters, 81-77 with :35-seconds left in the game. Lincoln Memorial was able to secure the game, taking an 83-77 victory, extending its winning streak to three straight in conference play.
With the victory, head coach Jeremiah Samarrippas passed Phil Cox for fourth all-time in wins as an LMU men's basketball head coach and is only five wins away from moving into third all-time (J.D. Alexander).
The Railsplitters were led by Wes Enis with 26 points and seven rebounds. He was followed by Elyjah Freeman with 21 points and eight rebounds, EJ Smith with 13 points, four assist, and three rebounds, Mahmoud Bangura "Mo" with 10 points and three blocks, Osmar Garcia-Araujo with six points and two rebounds, Jordan Walters with four points and two rebounds, and Thomas Allard with three points. Lincoln Memorial will be back at home Saturday playing host to the Anderson Trojans, seeking its fourth straight conference victory.
