HOUSTON (AP) -Lawrence Ghoram scored 17 points, including three 3-pointers, and had eight rebounds to help Rice defeat SMU 69-57 Wednesday night.
Connor Frizzelle had 13 points and Trey Stanton added 12 points for Rice (6-10, 1-1 Conference USA).
Derek Williams led SMU (5-9, 0-2) with 14 points, Mouhammad Faye scored nine and Paul McCoy had seven rebounds.
Rice opened with a 7-0 run as SMU missed its first 14 shots. The Owls led 37-22 at the half, but SMU used a 14-0 run to close the gap to 39-36. Rice responded with a 9-2 run, including two 3-pointers by Frizzelle, and steadily pulled away.
Ghoram scored 12 of his 17 points in the first half.
