AUBURN, Ala., March 19 (UPI) -- DeWayne Reed made five of Auburn's 14 3-pointers Wednesday and the Tigers held on to defeat Tennessee-Martin in the NIT 87-82.
Auburn built an 11-point halftime advantage and then had to fight off the Skyhawks, who captured the regular-season championship in the Ohio Valley Conference before losing in the league tournament's semifinals to Morehead State.
Morehead State went on to win the OVC tourney and also capture a play-in NCAA Tournament game against Alabama State, creating a first-round matchup with No. 1 seed Louisville.
Reed finished with 23 points and Quantez Robertson had 19 for Auburn, which had not played in either the NIT or NCAA in six years. The Tigers will next meet Tulsa, which advanced Wednesday against Northwestern.
Lester Hudson led Tennessee-Martin with 33 points and 12 rebounds.
Auburn has won 10 of its last 11 games, but lost to Tennessee in the semifinals of the Southeastern Conference Tournament.
