HARROGATE, Tenn. -- The Lincoln Memorial men's hoops team is ranked seventh in the Division II Bulletin preseason top 25 poll and has been predicted to win its fourth consecutive South Atlantic Conference regular season title, it was announced with the release of the Small College Hoops 2015-16 preseason preview.
 
The Railsplitters return seven of their top nine scorers from last season's record-breaking squad that went 30-3 and reset the SAC's single-season record for wins and winning percentage. Lincoln Memorial also became the first program in league history to win three consecutive outright SAC regular season titles and host the NCAA Division II Southeast Regional. The Railsplitters matched the 1976-77 team for the most wins in program history and advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament for the fourth straight season.
 
Coach Josh Schertz's squad heads into the 2015-16 campaign with quite possibly the most talented collection of backcourt players in the country.
 
Luquon Choice (Laurens, S.C.) returns for his junior season after earning All-Southeast Region recognition last season by averaging a team high 14.9 points per game and breaking the program's single-season record with 100 three pointers. Senior Gerel Simmons (Accokeek, Md.) poured in 10.5 points per game and shot 43.6 percent from three-point territory last season. Tim Pierce (Albany, Ga.) and Curtis Webb (Spartanburg, S.C.) are also back, as that pair averaged 6.4 and 5.3 points per game, respectively.
 
That group will be bolstered by Mississippi State transfer Jalen Steele (Knoxville, Tenn.), who averaged 8.7 points in 33 appearances with the Bulldogs as a sophomore. Steele accounted for 10.1 points per game as a junior.
 
Lincoln Memorial is also deep down low with senior Curtis McMillion (Fayetteville, N.C.), sophomores Dorian Pinson (Greenville, S.C.) and Emanuel Terry (Enterprise, Ala.), and freshman Nicksen Blanc (Port Charlotte, Fla.) expected to consume the bulk of the forward minutes.
 
McMillion averaged 7.3 points and 4.2 rebounds over the course of 33 appearances last season, while Pinson produced 5.5 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.0 assist per game over that same span. Terry scored 4.1 points and grabbed 4.5 rebounds on average in just 8.7 minutes per game as a freshman. Blanc is beginning his first official season with the Railsplitters after redshirting in 2014-15.
 
Since the start of the 2010-11 season, Lincoln Memorial has won 86.6 percent of its games, which is the second-best winning percentage in all of the NCAA Division II.
 
The Railsplitters were selected fourth in the Sporting News preseason rankings, which were released late last month.
 
The entire Division II Bulletin 2015-16 preseason issue can be found here.
 
The Railsplitters open up the season on November 13 in Bristol, Tenn. against the King Tornado.