The Centre men's basketball team opened postseason play with a 77-60 victory over Berry in a Southern Athletic Association Tournament quarterfinal on Friday in Danville, Ky.

Tyler Wesley (Crestwood, Ky.) was a force in the post for the Colonels, scoring a game-high 22 points with 17 rebounds and tying a season high with seven blocks. Teammates Collin Lopez (Louisville, Ky.) and Blake Scinta (Louisville, Ky.) added 17 and 15 points respectively.

Hunter Smoak had 16 points to lead Berry, which wraps up its season with a 5-21 record.

The lead changed hands five times early in the first half, with Berry taking its last lead on a Lake Graham jumper at the 10 minute mark. Centre took control from that point, however, holding Berry to just one field goal over the next seven minutes while Wesley scored six straight points with a dunk that got the momentum going in a 16-2 run. 

The Colonels led 29-16 at the end of that surge and went on to take a 35-24 lead to the half. Centre went on to build to its lead when Lopez scored four straight, and Wesley dunked again in an 8-0 spurt that put the Colonels up 59-40 just inside the 9:00 mark. As time wound down, Centre took its biggest lead at 23 points when consecutive baskets by Scinta put the Colonels up 75-52.

The Colonels shot 53 percent (29-of-55) in the game while holding Berry to 32 percent (19-of-59) shooting. Centre also held a 43-30 rebounding advantage and turned the ball over 15 times to the Vikings' 20. 

With the victory, Centre improves its record to 21-4 on the season. The Colonels advance to Saturday's semifinals where they will take on Rhodes, a 78-64 winner over Sewanee in Friday's second quarterfinal, at 6 p.m.