HOUSTON — Nick Boyd scored 18 points, Johnell Davis added 14 points and nine rebounds and No. 22 Florida Atlantic extended its winning streak to five games with a 69-56 victory over Rice on Wednesday night in a matchup of Owls.
Boyd scored 11 points in the first half as FAU built a 33-26 halftime lead. Davis and Boyd combined to shoot 10 of 17 from the field.
Alijah Martin added 14 points and eight rebounds for FAU (16-4, 6-1 American Athletic Conference), which outrebounded Rice 43-34 and held a 36-14 advantage in points in the paint. The Owls shot 44%.
Alem Huseinovic scored 16 points and Mekhi Mason added 13 for Rice (7-12, 1-5). The Owls, who have lost six of their last seven, shot 35%. Max Fiedler had 18 rebounds and eight assists.
Rice closed within 33-29 to open the second half, but FAU responded with an 11-2 run to extend its lead to 44-31 lead on a layup by Davis with 16 minutes remaining.
Trailing 51-39 with 10½ minutes remaining, Rice used a 9-2 spurt to cut the lead to five on a jumper by Mason with 6:45 left.
Rice would get no closer than five, and FAU scored five straight points to increase its lead to 62-52 with 3:12 left on a 3-pointer by Martin.
The Owls defeated Rice for the sixth time in their last seven matchups.
FAU hosts North Texas on Sunday.
