Brad Reese had 19 points and 10 rebounds to lead Texas Tech past Jacksonville 69-64 Saturday in the second round of the National Invitation Tournament.
The Red Raiders (19-15) overcame an 11-point first-half deficit and didn't take the lead until 14:51 remained, when a dunk and free throw by D'wayln Roberts made it 45-42.
Jacksonville tied it 62 on a basket by Ben Smith with 2:11 remaining, but the Red Raiders got stops and made free throws to close out the Dolphins.
Red Raiders coach Pat Knight let his players have it during a first-half timeout.
``I actually was calm at halftime,'' he said. ``They probably thought I was going to go off on them. I have trust in these guys. That wasn't us in the first half. They're better than this plus these guys get on each other.
Reese was 5 of 11 from the field, and 3 of 4 on 3-pointers. It was the first double-double of his career.
Tech will play Mississippi in Oxford on Tuesday.
``They've put themselves in position to win five games more than last year,'' he said. ``There are so many positives already. Whatever happens in Oxford is just going to be something added to it.''
Smith scored 17 points to lead the Dolphins (20-13).
He missed six of his seven 3-point attempts, but Jacksonville coach Cliff Warren said those misses frequently led to second-chance points.
``He's been great,'' Warren said. ``He's led us on the court and off the court the entire year.''
Texas Tech shot poorly to open the game, missing its first nine shots to fall behind 10-0. The Dolphins went up by double digits twice in the first half and the Red Raiders' top three scorers - John Roberson, Mike Singletary and Nick Okorie - combined to hit on only 3 of 10 from the field for eight points.
Jacksonville led 35-28 at halftime.
