SMU 70, Midwestern State 61: Nic Moore had 23 points, five rebounds and four assists as host SMU won its seventh straight in a battle of Mustangs.

Keith Frazier scored 14 points for SMU (9-3), which overcame 38.3 percent shooting and 19 turnovers against the three-time defending Lone Star Conference champions. Ben Moore had 10 points and 13 rebounds as SMU starts preparations for its American Athletic Conference opener on New Year's Day against USF.

Derrell Gibbs and Bretson McNeal scored 11 points apiece for Division II Midwestern State (10-4), which had its six-game winning streak snapped. Xavier Blackburn had nine points and six boards but the team shot just 31.3 percent in the second half, including 1-of-11 from beyond the arc.

Midwestern State surprised SMU early with three 3-pointers - two from Gibbs - and a 15-7 lead seven minutes into the contest, but Moore scored six points during a 12-0 run that provided SMU an eight-point edge. Shots from the arc by McNeal and Tavarion Nix got Midwestern State within 36-34 at the half and another Gibbs 3-pointer provided the visitors a 48-45 lead with 12:02 left.

SMU dug in on the defensive end, forcing three consecutive turnovers and turning them into seven points - a layup and 3-pointer by Frazier and a layup by Markus Kennedy - as SMU turned a three-point deficit into a 52-48 edge with 9:34 to play. SMU never trailed again and Moore's runner pushed the edge to five with 2:26 left, helping SMU close out its eighth win in nine games.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Midwestern State sank 6-of-12 shots from the arc in the first half after connecting on just 5-of-25 from the arc in its previous game against St. Gregory's. … Kennedy, playing in his second game after returning from suspension, had five points and five rebounds - four offensive. ... SMU won the battle of the boards 47-38, including 19-16 on the offensive glass.