SMU gets 1st win as ranked team in 29 years

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http://scores.espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=400537304

PISCATAWAY, N.J. -- Nic Moore scored 16 of his 21 points in the second half and No. 23 SMU won as a ranked team for the first time in 29 years, beating Rutgers 77-65 Friday night.

Nick Russell had 16 points and Cannen Cunningham scored 10 off the bench as the Mustangs (20-5, 9-3 American Athletic Conference) reached the 20-win plateau for just the second time in 13 years.

Myles Mack had 17 points and Kadeem Jack scored 15 for the Scarlet Knights (10-15, 4-8), who were swept in the season series against surging SMU.

The Mustangs led for the game's final 32 minutes to win their fourth straight and for the ninth time in 10 games. Playing its first game as a ranked team since the 1984-85 season, SMU held Rutgers without a field goal over the final 6:17 of the first half and went into halftime with a 36-29 lead.

The Scarlet Knights used a 7-0 run to rally within 41-40 with 15 minutes to play, but Moore drilled three 3-pointers during a 14-2 run to extend the Mustangs' advantage to 12.

Rutgers, which lost to SMU 70-56 in Dallas on Jan. 21, never got within six points the rest of the way.

Moore drained five of his nine 3-pointers, helping SMU shoot 8 for 18 from beyond the arc.

The game was originally scheduled to be played Thursday night but was moved back a day because of the snowstorm that blanketed the Northeast. It was the first time Rutgers postponed a home men's basketball game due to weather since December 2003.