DAYTON, Ohio (AP) — T.J. Warren scored 16 of his 25 points in the second half on Tuesday night, showing why he was the ACC’s player of the year, and North Carolina State led most of the way in a 74-59 victory over Xavier in the NCAA tournament’s First Four.

N.C. State (22-12) didn’t have much time to celebrate. The 12th-seeded Wolfpack headed to Orlando, Fla., for a game on Thursday against St. Louis in the Midwest Regional.

Warren had the most to do with it. The sensational sophomore made up for a freshman tournament flop on the same floor a year earlier, preventing Xavier (21-14) from getting any traction in the second half.

Center Matt Stainbrook led Xavier with 19 points and nine rebounds despite an injured left knee.

Warren and N.C. State took all the drama out of it in the last 11 minutes, helping the Wolfpack pull away.

Albany 71, Mount St. Mary’s 64

DAYTON, Ohio (AP) — D.J. Evans scored 22 points, including two clinching free throws with 12.6 seconds left, to lead Albany to its first NCAA tournament victory, 71-64 over Mount St. Mary’s on Tuesday night in the First Four.

The Great Danes (19-14) advance to meet overall No. 1 seed and top-ranked Florida on Thursday in Orlando.

It was a wild game of incredible turnarounds, with the Great Danes bolting to leads of 13-0 and 21-2, only to have The Mount (16-17) bounce back with a 21-2 run of its own to pull even.

Peter Hooley had 20 points and Gary Johnson 13 for Albany, winless in its three previous NCAA trips.

Will Miller led Mount St. Mary’s with 21, all on 3s. He didn’t get a shot off in the last 3:32.