GWYNEDD VALLEY, PA. -- Third-seeded Gwynedd Mercy rallied past sixth-seeded Centenary, 81-77, Monday evening in a first-round matchup of the 2017 Colonial States Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Tournament.

The Griffins advance to the semifinal round, where they'll play at #2 Cabrini on Wednesday with a start time of TBA.

Down by as much as 14 midway in the first half, GMercyU (20-6) would later close the half on a 7-0 run to get within 33-30 at halftime. Gwynedd shot just 28% in the first 20 minutes as the Cyclones used a quick start to build a double-digit lead.

Zachary Duymich's three-pointer capped a 10-0 Centenary run for a 12-2 lead. Kyle Smith would hit another trey and a bucket from Jake Logue made it a 23-9 advantage with 11:15 in the half.

A three from Arron Goodman followed by a baseline jumper from Courtney Cubbage would pull GM within six (26-20) with 6:13 to go. Duymich struck again from downtown to restore a 10-point edge (33-23) at the 3:48 mark, but the Griffins climbed back in it, as Goodman's triple from  the top of the three-point arc got the crowd on its feet and more importantly got the team within 33-30 with seconds before the half.

The surge continued into the second half as consecutive baskets in the opening possessions from Cubbage gave Gwynedd its first lead of the contest.

Both teams battled as Centenary used eight of its 13 three-pointers in the second half to keep the Griffins just out of reach. Down six (56-50) at the 8:43 mark, Matt Sommers and Rip Engel hit a trifecta of three's, to push Gwynedd ahead. After Logue would hit his third three of the night for a 61-59 Centenary lead with 5:48 remaining, rookie Rich Dunham countered with his second longball of the evening on the ensuing possession to put the Griffins ahead for good.

The Cyclones gave it one last push as two free throws from Rashaan Spencer made it a one-point game (78-77) with 47 ticks to go. Cubbage would hit a tough leaner in the paint to up the lead back to 80-77. After a three-point miss from Spencer, Cubbage would snare the rebound and get fouled. He hit one of two at the line with eight seconds left for the four-point cushion which turned out to be the difference.

Engel finished with 18 points and four assists, and would nail four of the team's 11 three-pointers. Goodman and Cubbage each had 17 points and double-digit rebounds. Elleby also had double figures in rebounds with 11. Sommers totaled three three-pointers for nine points while Dunham finished with eight.

Spencer, who picked up two fouls early in the first half, would score 17 of his game-high 21 points in the second stanza. Logue would contribute 18 points (4-for-8 3FG), Tom Weiler chipped in 12 and Duymich added 11. Paul Jones pulled down a team-high 11 boards while adding four assists.

Gwynedd shot 58% (17-of-29) in the second half alone, connecting on 7-of-13 from downtown and 11 triples in all. The squad outrebounded Centenary, 49-32.