Box Score  

Harrogate, Tenn.----The top-seeded and 13th-ranked Lincoln  Memorial University Railsplitters eliminated the eighth-seeded Wingate University Bulldogs from the Food Lion SAC Tournament Wednesday night with a 78-72 victory. LMU improves to 25-2 overall, moving on to Saturday's semifinals to take on Newberry. Wingate ends its season at 14-13 overall.

SAC Player of the Year Vincent Bailey led the LMU attack with 23 points and 12 rebounds. Chance Jones added 17 points, while Lorenza Ross had 12 points and eight assists for the Railsplitters.

Second team All-SAC senior Deion Turman (Pittsburgh, Pa.) had 18 points to lead the Wingate attack, adding four rebounds and three assists. Sophomore guard Xavier Griffin (Marshville, N.C.) had 14 points, five rebounds and three assists, while second team All-SAC selection Ryan Daye (Burlington, N.C.) also had 14 points, knocking down four triples on the night. SAC Freshman of the Year Isiah Cureton (Waxhaw, N.C.) contributed 13 points, three rebounds, two blocks and two steals.

Threes from Cureton and Daye gave the Bulldogs a 13-8 lead nine minutes into the opening half. A Bailey jumper trimmed the lead to one, but buckets from Turman and senior forward Jeff Parker (Madison, N.C.) put the 'Dogs on top by seven with 7:19 remaining. A three-point play from Jones got LMU to within two, but two Turman free throws and a Daye triple pushed the lead back to seven. Lincoln Memorial responded with a 16-5 run to take a four-point lead at intermission, capped by a Luquon Choice triple with three seconds left in the half.

A layup from Jones three minutes into the second half pushed the LMU lead to six, but Daye answered with a triple to cut the lead in half. A Jones triple and Bailey layup pushed the advantage to nine with 12:47 remaining. Wingate would not go away, getting a three-point play from freshman Josh Dominguez (Matthews, N.C.) and a Griffin bucket to make it 57-55 at the midway point of the half.

A three from Cutis Webb put the Railsplitters on top by six at the 7:32 mark, but a Parker putback got Wingate back to within two a minute later. Choice answered with a big three, while a jumper from Ross made it 71-62 with five minutes remaining. Two Bailey free throws pushed the lead to 11 at the 3:32 mark. The Bulldogs refused to go away, getting triples from Griffin and Daye to cut the lead to four with 33 seconds remaining. That would be as close as Wingate would get the rest of the way.

LMU shot 46 percent from the field, hitting four-of-13 shots from three-point range (30.8 percent). Wingate shot 43.6 percent from the field, while knocking down seven-of-13 shots from beyond the arc (53.8 percent). Lincoln Memorial held a 40-33 rebounding advantage, while holding a 22-14 edge in second chance points. Wingate converted 10 LMU turnovers into 13 points.