Late Rally Not Enough Men's Hoops Opener

November 19, 2011

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#5 Middlebury 76, Gwynedd-Mercy 70
2011 Ramapo Tip-Off Tournament

BOX SCORE

MAHWAH, N.J. -- Gwynedd-Mercy lost in its season opener, falling to fifth-ranked Middlebury, 76-70, in the first game of the Ramapo Roadrunner Tip-Off Tournament Saturday evening.

Two Griffins led the team in scoring as senior Dan DelConte (Blue Bell, Pa./Wissahickon) and sophomore Brandyn Wims (Philadelphia, Pa./Cardinal Dougherty) each scored 13.

Gwynedd (0-1) stormed back from a late 18-point deficit to get within four with under 30 seconds in the contest.

Peter Lynch had a game-high 19 points for the Panthers (1-0) who are ranked by d3hoops.com. Teammate Joey Kizel added 18.

The Griffins tried to keep pace with Middlebury in the first half, finding itself down by as many as 17 points before battling to a 40-27 hole at the half. Lynch's jumper gave MC its biggest lead of the game, 71-53, with 2:02 left and then GM began to rally. Gwynedd took advantage of the double bonus and found itself on the free-throw line and forced some key turnovers.

DelConte would drain a three-pointer to cut it to 11, followed by buckets from Doug Berzins (Royersford, Pa./Spring-Ford) and Mike Williams (Pottstown, Pa./Pottstown) and suddenly it was a 73-66 game. DelConte again struck to pull GM at 74-70 with 28 ticks left, but could pull no closer.

Berzins finished with 10 points. Senior Brandon Sharp (Hammonton, N.J./St. Joseph) added 11 points, four rebounds, and three assists.

Gwynedd shot 42.6% (23-of-54) including a 6-for-12 stint from downtown. The Panthers finished at a 52% shooting clip (26-of-50) while holding a 35-28 edge on the boards.

GM will play in the consolation game tomorrow at 1 p.m. against either the host Roadrunners or Yeshiva.

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