STEPHENVILLE – Charles Hill's 24 points and nine rebounds and EJ Reed's double-double of 16 points and 11 rebounds helped carry No. 2 Tarleton to an 84-77 victory over Adams State on Saturday night for the Texan Tip-Off Classic.
 
The Texans (2-0) faced an early 17-4 deficit to the Grizzlies (0-2), but Tarleton got back into gear late in the half to defend its home court.
 
Back-to-back layups by Hill pulled the Texans to within five at 30-25 with 5:24 left in the first half. Adams State went 8-of-14 on 3-pointers in the first half to Tarleton's 2-of-11, but Chantz Chambers' corner three with 29 second left made it a 1-point game and gave the Texans momentum heading into the second half.
 
Reed's two free throws gave the Texans its first lead at 38-37 at 18:01 mark. Tarleton went 26-of-33 from the free-throw line on the game, including 20-of-25 in the second half.
 
Leading 50-49, Reed's offensive rebound and tip-in followed by Chambers' fast-break layup gave the Texans its biggest lead at 58-49 with 9:02 left. Reed was stellar defensively, as the senior forward also matched a career high with four blocks.
 
Second-chance points and points in the paint were major factors for the Texans in the game, as Tarleton had 26 second-chance points (19 offensive rebounds) to six points on second opportunities to Adams State's. Tarleton also had 38 points in the paint compared to Adams State's 18.
 
The Grizzlies pulled to within 66-63, but Hill had five straight points and Deshawn Riddick drilled a 3-pointer for an 8-0 run and the first double-digit lead of the game for Tarleton at 74-63 with 3:23 remaining.
 
Tarleton's free-throw shooting in the final minutes and Hill's coast-to-coast layup off a long inbounds pass from Reed sealed the win, as the Texans went 6-of-8 from the line.
 
The Texans had 27 bench points, led by Riddick's 10 points and Chambers' nine. Michael Hardge also had 10 points for Tarleton to give the Texans four players with double-digit points.
 
Since the Tip-Off Classic began in 2004, the Texans are 23-1 all-time in their home tournament and have now won eight straight games in the Classic.

Hill and Hardge were named to the Tip-Off Class All-Tournament Team and Reed was named the Tournament MVP.
 
Tarleton will take on Delta State on Wednesday, Nov. 18 at 7:30 p.m.