No. 2 Seed LMU Downs No. 6 Seed Tusculum to Advance to NCAA DII Southeast Regional Final

HARROGATE, Tenn. --- Jordan Guest recorded a double-double with 19 points and 12 rebounds to lead the second-seeded Lincoln Memorial Railsplitters to an 80-66 win over No. 6 seed Tusculum in a semifinal game of the 2021 NCAA Division II Southeast Regional. The regional is being hosted by LMU and held at Tex Turner Arena.

The Railsplitters, who are ranked No. 13 in the country, advances to Tuesday's regional final where they will host No. 4 seed Emmanuel College, who upset top-seeded Belmont Abbey, 76-53 in the other semifinal.

Tusculum, who was making its third NCAA postseason appearance and first since 2009, ends its remarkable year with a 14-6 record, its third-consecutive winning season under head coach JT Burton.

Lincoln Memorial was playing in its first game since losing at Tusculum, 90-74 on Feb. 17. The next day, the Railsplitters paused team activities due to COVID protocols resulting in LMU not playing in the South Atlantic Conference Tournament.

With the 25-day layoff, Lincoln Memorial did not show any signs of rust as the Railsplitters led wire-to-wire to advance to the NCAA Regional final for a fourth time since 2016. LMU will be in quest of its third region championship and first since 2017.

LMU placed five players in double-figure scoring including 17 by Cameron Henry, 15 points from Alex Dahling and 11 points apiece from Devin Whitfield and Jeremiah Keene.

Tusculum freshman Inady Legiste scored a team-high 19 points off the bench. South Atlantic Conference Player of the Year Trenton Gibson contributed 16 points to go along with nine rebounds and three assists. Sophomore Keaston Brown scored a career-high 15 points, while sophomore Justin Mitchell had six points and seven rebounds in the loss.

LMU scored the first nine points of the game and led 12-2 following an Alex Dahling layup. Tusculum later put together a 10-4 run as Legiste hit a jumper in the paint to cut the deficit to one at 26-25 with 4:17 left in the half.

LMU closed out the period with a 12-2 run and take a 37-27 lead at the intermission. The Railsplitters carried the momentum into the second period and led by as many as 18 on two occasions early in the half including 50-32 with 14:01 left.

The Splitters maintained the double-digit lead for most of the half but the Pioneers went on a 10-1 spurt, capped off by a Justin Mitchell triple as the once 18-point lead was whittled to 61-55 with 5:55 on the scoreboard. But a 12-5 LMU run put the game to advance the home team.

The Railsplitters went 29-of-61 for 48 percent from the floor, while Tusculum went 21-of-61 for 34 percent. LMU held a 40-34 edge in rebounding while both teams committed 18 turnovers each. Tusculum held a 34-15 advantage in bench scoring, but LMU scored over half of its points in the paint, including 20 fast-break points.

Gibson's 16-point performance gives his 1,174 for his career which moves him into sole possession of 19^th on the Tusculum's all-time scoring list as he moves past Bob Sohas (1,166, 1970-74) and Ray Christian (1,156, 1990-94). Gibson also achieved another milestone as he recorded his 500^th career rebound, making him the only player in the 110-year history of TU basketball with 1,000 points, 500 rebounds and 300 assists in his career.

Tusculum has finished fourth or better in the South Atlantic Conference in each of the last three seasons and have made back-to-back trips to the SAC Championship Semifinal for the first time in program history.