Reggie Jackson scored 22 points and grabbed eight rebounds as No. 1 seed Boston College powered past No. 8 seed McNeese State, 82-64, in the opening round of the 2011 National Invitation Tournament in Lake Charles, Louisiana on Tuesday night.
Boston College (21-12) took control right from the start, building an 18-7 lead just over eight minutes into the opening half. The Eagles closed out the first half on a 23-12 run to take a 41-19 lead entering the intermission.
The second half featured more of the same for the Eagles, although the Cowboys outscored Boston College, 45-41. McNeese State was able to cut the Eagles' lead to 12 points, 67-55, with 3:43 left in the game, but BC closed out the game on a 15-9 run to preserve the win.
Corey Raji scored 15 rebounds and had 11 rebounds for Boston College, which shot 52.6% from the floor and 47.8% from three-point range. Biko Paris finished with 14 points and seven assists, Joe Trapani scored 10 points and collected two rebounds and Josh Southern added 13 points and five rebounds off the bench for the Eagles.
Patrick Richard also scored 22 points for McNeese State, which was limited to 36.1% shooting (22-of-61). Diego Kapelan scored 12 points and P.J. Alawoya totaled nine points and a game-high 12 rebounds. Stephan Martin had 10 points on 4-of-12 shooting off the bench for the Cowboys.
The Eagles will face the winner of Northwestern and UW-Milwaukee in the second round.