GWYNEDD VALLEY, PA.- The ninth-seeded William Paterson men's basketball team (13-12) took down Gwynedd Mercy (15-11) 80-76, on the road, advancing to the Eastern College Athletic Conference Tournament quarterfinals Mar. 2.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• WP jumped out to a 14-11 lead at the 12:44 mark of the first half.
• A three-pointer from senior guard Nick Rodriguez (Redding, Calif./Shasta) gave the Pioneers a 37-36 lead with 2:01 left in the half.
• A late three from the Griffins gave them a 42-39 lead heading into halftime.
• After a back-and-forth start to the second half, graduate student guard Domenic Mignone (Rutherford, N.J./Rutherford) gave WP a 62-59 lead a the 10:44 mark of the half.
• Junior guard Adryan Lopez (Garfield, N.J./Lyndhurst) extended the Pioneer lead to seven, at 78-71, with 3:35 left to play.
• Gwynedd Mercy cut the deficit to 78-76 with 2:23 left in regulation, but WP scored on the following possession.
• Neither team scored in the final two minutes.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

• Junior forward Yvens Monfleury (Newark, N.J./American History) finished with a season-high 20 points, while grabbing nine boards and swatting three shots.
• Lopez ended with 14 points and six rebounds.
• Junior forward Michael Gilmore (Teaneck, N.J./Pine Forge Academy) added a career-high 18 points, shooting 6-for-8 (.750) from the field.

UP NEXT:

• The #9 seed Pioneers' will face #1 seed Alvernia on Friday, March 4, at 12:00 p.m., at Rutgers-University, Newark Campus.

FOLLOW THE PIONEERS:

• www.wpupioneers.com/socialmedia