Gwynedd Valley, Pa. – (2/27/2026) – #2 Gwynedd Mercy University (19-7) earned their spot in the 2025-2026 Atlantic East Conference (AEC) Men's Basketball Championship with a commanding 96-77 semifinal victory over #3 Centenary University (11-15). The Red and Gold held the lead for most of the game, but it was a dominate second half performance that pushed them past the Cyclones with ease. A dominate second half performance also determined the #1/#4 AEC Semifinal as the Neumann University (18-9) rallied from a 40-26 halftime deficit to defeat top-seeded Marymount University (16-9) by a 75-68 final. As a result, the Red and Gold will host the Knights for the 2025-2026 AEC Men's Basketball Championship on Saturday, February 28; tip-off is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. at the Griffin Complex.
 
Gwynedd Mercy University evened their regular season record versus Neumann University with a 75-74 overtime, Valentine's Day victory. The contest reached halftime with the senior guard Devin Benson (Williamstown, N.J.) separating the Griffins for a seven-point lead, 33-26 (0:08). Benson kept his hot hand in the second half, where graduate guard Dylan Harris (Bloomsburg, Pa.) helped him shoot the Red and Gold through a 65-65 (0:08) regulation, and an overtime where senior guard Jalen Snead (Philadelphia, Pa.) and sophomore guard Bruce Smith (Philadelphia, Pa.) facilitated glory.
 
Benson went for a career - and team - high 20 points; he came off the Gwynedd Mercy University bench ready to do damage as he hit six threes (6-of-10, .600), including four (10:11, 9:48, 8:29, 3:23) in a clutch second half performance. Harris' day ended with 16 points. He also hit four (4-of-12, .333) three before sinking a game-winning jumper in overtime; 75-74 (0:00). Snead helped fill the stat sheet with six points, five steals, and team-highs in rebounds (10) and assists (7). Smith covered every category with 12 points, four rebounds, two assists, one block, and one steal. His offensive board and one of his helpers we instrumental in setting up Harris for the game-winner. The Griffins forced 24 turnovers and scored 21 of their points off the Knights miscues. The Red and Gold bench outscored their counterparts 34-7.
 
The Red and Gold led early, 8-3 (17:20), in the January-17 road game, but ultimately trailed the Knights by as many as eight points, 30-22 (6:34), before scoring the final bucket of the first half; 38-38 (0:16). In the second half, three pointers from junior guards Mazen Sayed (Chichester, Pa.), 50-48 (12:44), and Zaiyin Keys (Chichester, Pa.), 58-56 (8:29), gave the Griffins the led on two separate occasions, but neither advantage was long-lived as a Neumann University used slight advantages in rebounding (41-37), points in the paint (30-24), and second-chance points (12-8) to defeat Gwynedd Mercy University by a narrow 72-68 margin. Smith was the right Griffin at the right time for most of the contest; he recorded his first double-double in the Red and Gold with 21 points and 10 rebounds. Sayed came off the Gwynedd Mercy University bench for 13 points, six rebounds, two assists, and a steal.
 
Harris, 3-2 (19:04), and senior guard D.J. Johnson (Norristown, Pa.), 6-2 (17:48), buried a pair of early threes to get Gwynedd Mercy University off to a good start. Smith was the man late in the first half, scoring 14 of the Griffins' last 22 points in the period. He finished the frame with 14 points, nine rebounds, and an assist.
 
Sayed piloted the Red and Gold's rallying attempts. He scored 10 of his 13 points in the later frame with a pair of threes (2-of-2, 1.000) and four free throws (4-of-5, .800). Johnson was the only other Griffin in double figures; he paired 11 points with five rebounds and an assist. Harris was 3-of-7 (.429) from long range. His nine points came with four rebounds and a steal.
 
In the AEC Semifinal vs. #3 Centenary University…
 
Snead led all scorers with 28 points, including the first-half layup that put the Griffins in the lead (16-18, 10:36) and provided them with a momentum they never lost. Harris followed with 24 points thanks six three-pointers (6-of-10, .600), while Johnson added a dozen (12) second-half points, six assists, seven rebounds, and a steal.
 
So far this season…
 
Johnson (25gp-25gs) has led Gwynedd Mercy University with 13.6 points (340 points) and 5.8 rebounds (146 rebounds) per game while totaling 84 assists (3.4/game), 66 steals (2.6/game), and nine blocks (0.4/game). He has been flanked by several co-stars; Smith (25gp-25gs) has averaged 12.1 points per game (PPG, 303 points) while making a team-high 124 field goals (124-of-265; .468), Harris (26gp-26gs) – the Griffins' second-leading scorer with 12.9 PPG (335 points) - has pieced together one of the greatest shooting seasons in program history with a program-record 81 made three pointers (81-of-183, .443) to date and a 97.6% (40-of-41) success rate at the charity stripe, and Snead (26gp-26gs) has been the Griffins' every-man with 11.1 points (288 points), 4.6 rebounds (119 rebounds), 5.0 assists (103 assists), 2.2 steals (56 steals), and 0.4 blocks (10 blocks) per game. Off the bench, Sayed (26gp-0gs) has been a pest to Red and Gold rivals with 9.4 points (245 points), 4.8 rebounds (124 rebounds), 2.6 assists (68 assists), 0.9 steals (24 steals), and 0.1 blocks (3 blocks) per game.
 
Gwynedd Mercy University has littered the AEC Men's Basketball Weekly Reports as Johnson has earned four Defensive Player of the Week awards (Nov. 10, Jan. 12., Feb. 16) and five Weekly Honor Roll appearances (Dec. 15, Jan. 5, Jan. 26, Feb. 9, Feb. 23) this season. Snead was named the Player of the Week on November 24 and a Weekly Honor Roll mention on November 24, January 26, and February 23. Meanwhile, Smith garnered an Honor Roll spot on January 19.
 
Heading into the AEC Championship…
 
Gwynedd Mercy University is 19-7 overall and 9-4 at home so far this season. They are shooting 44.8% (729-of-1,629) from the floor, 36.4% (237-of-651) from three-point range, and 71.8% (364-of-507) from the free throw line. They average 79.2 points (2,059 total points), 37.9 rebounds (986 total rebounds), and 15.2 assists (395 total assists), while totaling 263 steals (10.1/game) and 58 blocks (2.2/game).
 
Defensively, they have held their opponents to a 41.7% (673-of-1,614) shooting percentage, a 29.7% (179-of-603) three-point success rate, and witnessed them hit 65.4% (322-of-492) from the free throw line. The Griffins have allowed their opponents to crash the boards (39.2 rebounds/game) a little better than their opponents. They hold a 263-216 advantage in steals and have forced 458 turnovers, but have only totaled 58 blocks.