PHOTO GALLERY: Lincoln Memorial Whips Kentucky Wesleyan 87-67 Wednesday Night

Photos by Jamie H. Vaught

(Click on photo for larger viewing)

Also see story below

HARROGATE, Tenn. - The Railsplitters hit a season-high 19 three-pointers, including 11 in the second half alone, to take down the Kentucky Wesleyan Panthers 87-67 at Tex Turner Arena on Wednesday night, Dec. 19 in the final game of 2018.

The game, sponsored by Middlesboro ARH Hospital, also featured a lucky student who won a shooting contest held during the halftime. After a mostly so-so first half of basketball, Lincoln Memorial (8-3) used a 31-6 run that bridged the gap between the first and second half and outscored the visiting Panthers (4-6) 47-32 in total over the final 20 minutes to head into the holiday break with wins in seven of its last eight games. Despite the lopsided final score, it was a tale of two halves for the Railsplitters.

"Our guys came out much more intense, much more focused," LMU head coach Josh Schertz said of the second-half turnaround. "I thought we played far better on both sides of the ball. Defensively, we had more force, more presence and we impacted the ball at a greater level. On the offensive end, I thought we were a lot more aggressive."

Four different players hit multiple three-pointers for Lincoln Memorial. Cornelius Taylor led that quartet by going 6-for-9 from deep to score a game-high 23 points, which included 15 in the second half. The guard also led the team with six assists. Julius Brown went 5-for-8 from long range to pile up 15 points, while Cameron Henry was a perfect 4-for-4 from three with 16 points, five rebounds and three assists. Courvoisier McCauley added a pair of threes to score 10 points in 20 minutes off the bench. "It's contagious. The ball starts going in and everybody feels a little better," Schertz said of the shooting display. "Just seeing the ball go in the basket was nice for our guys, because from the three-point line we've made a fair amount, but we have obviously had massive swings in terms of games we've shot it well and games we've shot it abysmally."

The Railsplitters will take the next 12 days to celebrate the holidays and recover from a grueling early-season stretch before returning to the court on January 1 with a nonconference matchup against North Greenville at Tex Turner Arena. Tip-off is set for 3 p.m.