DAYTON, Ohio — Let this be a lesson to the 64 NCAA Tournament teams yet to take the floor:

A quick start means a lot.

A great finish is even better.

Reginald Jackson was at his best early and late to lead Hampton — just 12-17 and headed nowhere 12 days earlier — to a 74-64 wire-to-wire victory over Manhattan in a matchup of 16 seeds on Tuesday night at the First Four.

In the nightcap at the University of Dayton Arena, BYU led by 17 at half but Mississippi regrouped in the second half behind Stefan Moody, outscoring the Cougars 25-0 off turnovers in a stunning 94-90 win.

“Welcome to March Madness,” said Rebels coach Andy Kennedy after his team went from downtrodden to a second-round matchup with Xavier in exactly 20 minutes. “This was a tale of two halves.”

The Rebels (21-12) move on to a date with sixth-seeded Xavier on Thursday in Jacksonville, Florida, on Thursday afternoon.

Meanwhile, the Hampton Pirates, who have won five in a row just to get to the .500 mark, now get to play mighty Kentucky, No. 1 overall, 34-0 on the year and chasing history.