Lincoln Memorial's Luquon Choice named D2CCA All-American

March 21, 2017

EDINBORO, Pa. – Lincoln Memorial University redshirt-senior guard Luquon Choice (Laurens, S.C.) has been selected to the D2CCA All-American third team, it was announced on Wednesday. Voting for the Division II Conference Commissioners Association All-American Teams was conducted by DII Sports Information Directors from institutions and conference offices.

Choice – a three-time All-South Atlantic Conference and All-Southeast Region first team selection – earns the first All-American nod of his illustrious career in the Blue and Gray, as he helped lead the 15th-ranked Railsplitters (29-5) to their second consecutive Southeast Region title and NCAA Division II Elite Eight appearance.

Through 34 appearances this season, Choice has averaged 18.2 points, 5.4 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.1 steals per game while shooting 47.5 percent from the field and three-point range. Choice leads the nation in three-pointers made with 134, which obliterates the previous SAC and program record of 127 (Jalen Steele, 2015-16). The Laurens, S.C. native has also converted 84.4 percent of his free-throw attempts while logging 19 blocks.

Choice has scored double figures in all but four of his 34 appearances this season, including a dazzling 36-point performance in a win over Wingate on February 4. Choice scored 31 of those 36 points in the second half to help the Railsplitters overcome a 10-point deficit at Tex Turner Arena.

Just a week after that, Choice scored 33 points on 12-of-20 shooting to lift the Railsplitters past the Newberry Wolves, who led by as many as 23 points in the first half.

Choice scored at least 25 points seven other times throughout the season, pouring in 28 against Kentucky Wesleyan in the Small College Basketball Hall of Fame Classic, notching 29 against Lenoir-Rhyne in the SAC home opener, and adding another 28-point outburst against Carson-Newman on January 25. He also scored 25 points in back-to-back games against Anderson and Catawba to close out the regular season.

Choice posted the first double-double of his career with a 23-point, 10-rebound effort at Brevard on February 1, and enters this week's Elite Eight with five double-doubles on his resume. That includes a 22-point, 10-rebound effort against Limestone in the Southeast Region semifinals on March 12 in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Choice will leave LMU as arguably the most decorated player in program history. He is ranked first all-time in three-pointers with 420, which is also a SAC career record, first in games played with 134, first in games started with 112, first in minutes played with 4,091, second in three-point field-goal percentage with a 44.7 percent clip and fourth in points with 2,000. He is also fourth all-time in field goals made, 10th in assists, 11th in steals and 13th in blocks. Choice needs just 33 points to overtake Don Burton (1954-58) for third all-time in points at Lincoln Memorial.

More important than his individual accomplishments, Choice has won a program-record 121 games during his four-year tenure at Lincoln Memorial. During that span, the Railsplitters have won four SAC regular-season titles and two tournament championships, captured two Southeast Region titles and made an appearance in the NCAA Division II National Championship.

The Railsplitters will look to make their second consecutive trip to the National Championship this week. Lincoln Memorial will play Chico State in the national quarterfinals at 9:30 (ET) on Wednesday, March 22 at Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

The complete list of D2CCA All-Americans can be seen here.

The Division II Conference Commissioners Association All-America Men's Basketball Team is sponsored by the Division II Conference Commissioners Association. The Division II Conference Commissioners Association encourages and promotes Division II athletics and high standards of sportsmanship as important elements of higher education. The CCA is a key communications link among the conferences as they discuss views, policies and regulations that impact Division II intercollegiate athletics and works closely with the NCAA as a communications channel to NCAA Division II member colleges and universities.

FIRST TEAM

Name School Pos. Ht. Wt. Yr. Hometown

Phil Taylor**% Shorter G 5-9 175 Sr. Brooklyn, N.Y.

Justin Pitts NW Missouri State G 5-9 143 Jr. Blue Springs, Mo.

Matt Bingaya Fairmont State G/F 6-4 210 Sr. Delaware, Ohio

Michael Smith% California Baptist G 6-4 195 Sr. San Francisco, Cal.

Dustin Sleva Shippensburg F 6-8 220 Jr. Pittsburgh, Pa.

** Ron Lenz National Player of the Year

SECOND TEAM

Name School Pos. Ht. Wt. Cl. Hometown

Will Vorhees Notre Dame College F 6-8 240 Jr. Columbus Grove, Ohio

Justin Reyes St. Thomas Aquinas G/F 6-4 205 Jr. Haverhill, Mass.

Javonte Douglas Montevallo F 6-8 Sr. Charlotte, N.C.

Zach Hankins Ferris State C 6-10 234 So. Charlevoix, Mich.

Keshun Sherrill Augusta G 5-9 160 Sr. Cleveland, N.C.

THIRD TEAM

Name School Pos. Ht. Wt. Cl. Hometown

Luquon Choice Lincoln Memorial G 6-3 235 Sr. Laurens, S.C.

Michael Mallory Southern Connecticut State G 6-1 Sr. Waterbury, Conn.

Gokul Natesan Colorado School of Mines G/F 6-5 190 Sr. Santa Clara, Calif.

Devin Schmidt# Delta State G 6-4 215 Sr. Sevierville, Tenn.

Devin Gilligan Southern New Hampshire F 6-5 220 Sr. Amherst, N.H.

HONORABLE MENTION: Deshon Francis, UT Permian Basin; Dan Monteroso, West Liberty; Braxton Reeves, East Central; Chauncey Orr, Hawaii Pacific; Gage Davis, St. Cloud State; Jordan Spencer, Augustana(SD)