HARROGATE, Tenn. --- Me'Kell Burries scored 16 of his game-high 21 points in the second half as Lincoln Memorial University rallied for a 72-59 victory over Tusculum University in South Atlantic Conference men's basketball Wednesday night at Tex Turner Arena.
Martez Brown scored 19 points and grabbed a game-high 16 rebounds and Chase Rankin added 17 points for the Railsplitters (14-5, 8-2 SAC), who trailed by nine points late in the first half before Rankin scored 11 straight points just before halftime to give LMU the lead at intermission and eventually their fifth consecutive victory.
Connor Jordan paced the Pioneers (7-9, 5-5 SAC) with 17 points and Akeem Odusipe contributed 11 points and nine rebounds, but the Pioneers shot just 23.3 percent (7-for-30) from the field in the second half and 32.2 percent (19-for-59) for the game. Tusculum, which has not won at Lincoln Memorial since 2005, saw its three-game winning streak come to an end.
Burries scored 13 points during a 5 1/2-minute span of the second half, including seven in a row to break a 42-42 tie and give the Railsplitters the lead for good. Tusculum went six minutes without a field goal during the run, which gave LMU a 59-47 lead with 5:10 to play.
Tusculum grabbed an early 5-0 lead on a basket by Jordan and a three-pointer from Josiah Morris, while Lincoln Memorial missed its first four shots until a basket by Wes Enis with 16:25 left in the first half. LMU tied the game at 9-9 on a layup by Rankin with 13:36 remaining, but Tusculum went back on top 12-9 on a three-pointer from KJ Crump.
The Pioneers' lead grew to as large as nine points after two free throws from Jordan with 4:17 until the half, but LMU raced into the lead as Rankin singlehandedly went on an 11-0 run behind three three-pointers to send the Railsplitters to a 34-32 halftime lead.
Rankin went 5-for-7 from the field, including 3-for-4 from three-point range, and led all players with 13 points in the first half for the Railsplitters. LMU shot 46.2 percent (12-for-26) from the field and 4-for-9 from three-point range in the half. Jordan paced the Pioneers with nine points in the half, with Tusculum shooting 41.4 percent (12-for-29) from the floor and 4-for-12 from deep.
Tusculum pulled into a 36-36 tie early in the second half on a three-pointer from Bryce Jackson and a free throw from Odusipe. The Pioneers would tie the game at 38-38 on an Odusipe jumper, at 40-40 following a Jackson putback, and for the last time at 42-42 on a layup from Odusipe with 12:59 remaining.
Burries then scored seven points in 80 seconds to give LMU a 49-42 lead with 11:18 to play, and added six in a row for a 57-47 lead with 7:08 left. Other than two brief moments when the Pioneers pulled within nine in the final five minutes, the Railsplitters kept their double-digit lead by going 12-for-12 at the foul line in the second half, including 8-for-8 in the final three minutes.
Crump scored eight points in 21 minutes off the bench for the Pioneers, while Jacob Hobbs had eight points and five rebounds and Jackson added seven points and five boards. Tusculum was 14-for-21 (66.7 percent) at the foul line and turned the ball over just eight times, which LMU still managed to convert into 14 points.
Lincoln Memorial finished the game with a 44-35 rebounding advantage over Tusculum, along with a 34-14 edge in points in the paint. Jordan Walters had eight rebounds for the Railsplitters in 31 minutes, while Burries had six boards to go along with his game-high 21 points.
The Pioneers will play the second of three straight on the road on Saturday, Jan. 27 at Lenoir-Rhyne beginning at 4 p.m. The Bears (9-9, 4-6 SAC) fell 89-49 at Anderson on Wednesday night for their fourth straight loss.
