GWYNEDD VALLEY, PA. -- With their 82-71 semifinal victory over Baruch, Gwynedd Mercy will play for the 2020 ECAC Men's Basketball Championship as the Griffins overcame a 14-point first half deficit to move on.
Gwynedd will face Rutgers-Newark in the final tomorrow starting at 1 p.m. The Scarlet Raiders handled Drew in the day's other semifinal, 71-54.
Donaven Spencer nearly registered a double-double, finishing with 11 points and a game-high nine rebounds. Rich Dunham netted 18 poins and added seven steals. Shane Ford (13 points) and Nathaniel Walker (10 points) also went for double figures.
The Bearcats got 27 points from Ryan Graziano, who hit seven three-pointers in the contest. His 14 first-half points helped Baruch get out to an early 24-10 lead. Gwynedd started to find their stride and would close out the first half on a 14-5 run to trail by two at the break.
Ford's three pointer at the 15:14 mark of the second put the Griffins ahead for good. That triple ignited a game-changing 20-5 spurt over the next five minutes which was capped by a big three from Spencer.