GWYNEDD VALLEY, Pa. – Junior Chris LaBelle scored a career-high 32 points and set the school record for single-game free throws made but a second half charge fell short as the Centenary University men's basketball team fell at Gwynedd Mercy, 98-83 on Wednesday night.
LaBelle went 16-for-20 from the foul line to set the school record for single-game free throws. The previous record had been 13 made shots from the charity stripe. It had been accomplished six times, the last time coming when Myles McLeod connected for 13 against Cairn in February of 2016.
LaBelle's 32 points in the game where the most by a Cyclone in a single-game since Billy Veras had 36 against Clarks Summit last year.
Gwynedd Mercy jumped out to an early 12-4 lead as Somah Slewion hit a jumper at 14:54. Rich Dunham connected on a jumper at 12:21 as the home team took a 21-10 advantage.
The two teams traded baskets as Dunham made a pair of free throws at 6:06 which gave the Griffins a 25-13 edge.
The Cyclones scored seven straight points and cut the Gwynedd Mercy lead to 25-20 with 5:06 to go until the half. LaBelle had five of the seven points during that stretch.
The two sides continued to battle as a Slewion field goal at 1:57 gave the home team a 40-24 lead.
Centenary scored eight of the final 10 points in the period and cut its deficit to 10, 42-32 at the half. LaBelle accounted for all eight of the Cyclone points in that stretch.
Centenary opened the second half on a 7-0 run and cut the Gwynedd Mercy lead to three, 42-39 with 18:22 showing on the clock.
The two teams traded baskets as Dunham jumper at 14:50 gave the Griffins a 57-44 lead.
A Jordan Perkins jumper at 11:27 extended the Gwynedd Mercy advantage to 64-49.
Trailing 71-53, Centenary went on an 24-11 run and cut the Griffins' advantage to five, 82-77 with 4:04 to play. LaBelle had eight points during that stretch while Veras also struck for eight points.
Gwynedd Mercy scored 16 of the final 17 points in the game to secure the 98-83 win. Jeff Seigafuse scored eight points during that final run.
The Griffins shot 51.5 percent from the floor in the game and made 22-of-34 shots from the foul line. Centenary posted a 43.9 field goal percentage and connected on 26-of-32 opportunities from the charity stripe. The Griffins finished with a 36-35 edge in the rebounding battle.
In addition to his 32 points, LaBelle added seven rebounds, three steals and one assist. Veras finished with 12 points and four rebounds while freshman Owen Roberts III came off the bench to score 13. Sophomore Divine Anderson was the fourth Cyclone in double figures as he contributed 12.
Dunham led Gwynedd Mercy with 20 points and eight rebounds.
The Cyclones are back in action on Tuesday, Nov. 19 when they host Marywood at 8 p.m.
