Texas A&M 81, Montana 64: Jalen Jones scored 25 points and grabbed eight rebounds to lead host Aggies in the first round of the NIT.

Freshman Alex Robinson finished with a season-high 15 points to go along with eight rebounds, Jordan Green scored 15 and Peyton Allen added 12 for Texas A&M (21-11), which snapped a three-game losing streak. The Aggies, who shot a blistering 72.7 percent in the second half and 58.2 percent for the game, hosts Louisiana Tech in the second round.

Jordan Gregory scored 20 points, including 5-of-11 from 3-point range, grabbed seven rebounds and had five assists to lead Montana (20-13), which was co-champion with Eastern Washington in the Big Sky Conference. Brandon Gfeller added 18 points, including 6-of-11 from behind the arc, and Martin Breunig scored 12 for the Grizzlies, who shot 40.4 percent from the field overall and 13-of-35 from 3-point range.

Texas A&M, the No. 2 seed which was making its first NIT appearance since 2005, showed no signs of a letdown after being passed over for an NCAA Tournament at-large spot, bolting to a 33-15 lead in the first 15 minutes. But Gfeller connected on 4-of-4 3-pointers over the span of less than four minutes to fuel a 18-5 run and the Grizzlies closed to within 38-33 at halftime.

Gfeller's fifth 3-pointer gave Montana its first lead 43-41 early in the second half. But Texas A&M regrouped a few minutes later and went on a 22-3 run en route to a 68-51 lead, and the Grizzlies never got closer than 13 points the rest of the way.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Texas A&M played its third straight game without leading scorer Danuel House (14.8), who was sidelined with a sprained left foot but may be back for the second-round game ... The Aggies finished with a 44-16 edge in points in the paint ... Montana fell to 0-5 all-time in the NIT while A&M improved to 7-6.