HICKORY, N.C. – The Lenoir-Rhyne Men's Basketball Team defeated Lincoln Memorial for the first time since Feb. 13, 2010, coming away with an 85-83 victory inside Shuford Gym on Senior Night. The Bears had lost 17 straight to the Railsplitters who are one of the top programs in Division II. 

INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Final: Lenoir-Rhyne 85 | Lincoln Memorial 83
Records: Lenoir-Rhyne (19-9, 12-8 SAC) | Lincoln Memorial (20-8, 14-6 SAC)
Location: Shuford Gym | Hickory, N.C.

STATS OF THE GAME:
• The combination of Djibril Diallo and Cory Thomas scored 49 of the Bears 85 points. Diallo went 7-of-16 from the field, while Thomas was a rebound shy of a double-double finishing with 25 points and nine boards. 
• Bertrand Awana went a perfect 4-for-4 from the field in his 20 minutes of action and blocked three shots including a crucial rejection with 23 seconds to go and the Bears clinging to a one point advantage. 
• LR led by 13 with just over nine minutes to play but the visitors clawed back and took an 83-82 lead with 1:01 to play. Diallo calmly sank two free throws to reclaim the lead with 40 seconds left in regulation. The Bears would stop LMU on two straight possessions in the final 35 seconds.  
• Four players scored in double figures for Lincoln Memorial led by 18 points from Anthony Brown who went 8-for-13 from the field. 

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE:
• The outcome had significant repercussions on the South Atlantic Conference Tournament. LMU drops a spot from the No. 2 to the No. 3 seed and the Bears finish in a fourth-place tie. Due to tiebreakers, LR will earn the No. 5 seed.  
• LR has had 19 games decided by single digits on the season. 
• The 19 wins this season is the second-highest total in the past 11 years of LR basketball, trailing only the 21-win team of 2015-16. 
 
UP NEXT:
The Bears will turn their focus to the postseason as they travel to Tusculum for a Quarterfinal matchup on Wednesday evening.