LJ Cryer scored 15 points in 24 minutes of court time, but defense made the real difference in No. 3 Houston's decisive 75-39 victory against Rice on Wednesday in a battle of Houston rivals.

The host Cougars (9-0) led by 16 points at halftime, by 30 midway through the second half and waltzed to the finish to beat Rice for the eighth straight time and ninth in the past 10 meetings. Houston was atop the NCAA's initial NET rankings released Monday and played to its ranking, holding Rice to just 28.9 percent shooting from the floor and to just one field goal over the game's final seven minutes.

Emanuel Sharp added 12 points for the Cougars, with Ja'Vier Francis and Damian Dunn scoring 10 each for Houston in its win.

Alem Huseinovic led Rice (3-6) with 10 points. No other player had more than seven points for the Owls, whose two-game winning streak came to an end.

The Owls led 9-8 after a 3-pointer by Mekhi Mason at the 15:12 mark of the first half. Houston responded by scoring 12 of the game's next 14 points, with the run capped by a jumper by Terrance Arceneaux with 8:32 to play in the half while assuming a 20-11 lead.

Rice got a basket by Huseinovic to cut into its deficit, but the Cougars came back, reeling off the next 10 points to go up 30-13. The 17-point cushion was Houston's biggest of the first half, which finished with a second-chance jumper by Francis that handed the home team a 34-18 lead at the break.

Sharp led all scorers before halftime with nine points, while Huseinovic's eight points paced the Owls in the first half. Houston outshot Rice 40.6 percent to 29.2 percent over the first 20 minutes and forged a 24-13 edge on the glass.

The Cougars roared out of the gate in the second half with a 12-2 run punctuated by a layup by Francis that pushed their advantage to 45-20 with 15:45 to play.

--Field Level Media