No. 20/19 Houston defeated USF to stay in first place in American Athletic Conference men's basketball play on Wednesday (Feb. 12).

SMU 79, UConn 75 - Box Score

DALLAS (AP) -- Feron Hunt scored a career-high 23 points and was 4-for-4 at the free throw line in the last 16 seconds as SMU held off UConn, 79-75, Wednesday night.

Hunt scored double his season average going 8-for-9 from the floor with a pair of 3-pointers and seven rebounds. Kendric Davis added 19 points on 7-for-11 shooting with six assists, Emmanuel Bandoumel scored 13 points with six rebounds and three steals as the Mustangs (17-6, 7-4 American Athletic Conference) shot 55% as a team (28-for-51).

James Bouknight scored 21 points to pace UConn (13-11, 4-7), which trailed by as many as 15 after halftime before rallying to within seven points or fewer for the final six minutes.After Hunt buried a three that gave SMU a 59-44 lead, Bouknight scored on a drive to begin an 18-10 rally for the Huskies and he capped it five minutes later with a 3-pointer making the score 69-62.

UConn came within a basket six times down the stretch but SMU had an answer each time and Hunt sealed it from the line in the final seconds.

Jalen Gaffney added 13 points and Brendan Adams 11 for UConn.

Temple 72, Tulane 68 - Box Score

NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- Quinton Rose scored six straight points in the final 1:23, lifting Temple into the lead for an eventual 72-68 comeback win over Tulane on Wednesday night.

Rose finished with 23 points, Monty Scott added 16 for Temple (13-11, 5-7 American Athletic Conference), which snapped its five-game road losing streak.

Rose and Scott combined to score Temple's last 10 points as the Owls, who trailed by as many as 13 in the second half. Rose stripped the ball from Tulane's Teshaun Hightower at the top of the circle and raced downcourt for a one-on-none dunk that tied the game 66-66, then followed with four straight free throws. Scott added two more from the line with one second left.

Jake Forrester added 10 points. Alani Moore II had eight points with six assists. Nate Pierre-Louis tied a career high with 14 rebounds plus seven points.

Hightower had 23 points and eight rebounds for the Green Wave (10-14, 2-10), who have now lost eight games in a row. Christion Thompson added 18 points and eight rebounds. Nic Thomas had 10 points.

The Owls leveled the season series against the Green Wave with the win. Tulane defeated Temple 65-51 on Jan. 11.

(-/rv) Tulsa 70, ECU 56 - Box Score

TULSA, Okla. (AP) -- Martins Igbanu had 24 points and 10 rebounds as Tulsa topped East Carolina, 70-56, on Wednesday night.

Darien Jackson had 11 points and five steals for Tulsa (16-8, 8-3 American Athletic Conference). Jeriah Horne added 10 points, seven rebounds and three blocks. Lawson Korita had 10 points.

J.J. Miles scored a season-high 23 points and had six rebounds for the Pirates (10-15, 4-8). Brandon Suggs added 13 points. Jayden Gardner had 10 points and 11 rebounds.

The Golden Hurricane improve to 2-0 against the Pirates for the season. Tulsa defeated East Carolina 65-49 on Jan. 15.

No. 20/19 Houston 62, USF 58 - Box Score

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) -- Quentin Grimes scored nine of his 22 points in the final 3:28, helping No. 20 Houston hold off USF, 62-58, on Wednesday night.

Grimes made six straight free throws and also sank a 3-pointer that gave the Cougars (20-5, 10-2) some breathing room down the stretch in the matchup between the top two defensive teams in the American Athletic Conference.

Fabian White Jr. scored 10 points for first-place Houston, which led 45-34 before USF rallied to within 53-51. Grimes put the game away with help from DeJon Jarreau, who rebounded his own miss and layed the ball in for a 58-53 lead with 21 seconds to go.

Laquincy Rideau led USF (11-13, 4-7) with 21 points. David Collins scored 13, but missed four throws in the final minutes to hinder the bid for an upset.

The victory, combined with a 68-49 win over the Bulls at home on Jan. 26, gave Houston a sweep of the season series between the teams.