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Caleb Mills poured in 18 points off the bench as host No. 25 Houston built a big first-half lead and easily held on for a 75-62 win over reeling Tulane on Thursday in American Athletic Conference play.

The Cougars led by 18 at halftime but Tulane cut the advantage to as few as 10 points on two different occasions in the second half, the latest on a 3-pointer by Jordan Walker with 10:54 to play. The Green Wave were within 62-50 with six minutes left before Houston reeled off a 9-2 run over the ensuing two minutes to secure the win.

Quentin Grimes added 15 points and Nate Hinton scored 12 points and took 12 rebounds with seven assists for Houston (18-5, 8-2 AAC). The Cougars outscored Tulane 38-18 in points in the paint and won despite hitting just 5 of 11 free throws.

The Cougars have won 16 of their past 19 games.

Teshaun Hightower paced the Green Wave with 17 points, with K.J. Lawson scoring 13 points and Nobal Days hitting for 10 for Tulane. The Green Wave (10-12, 2-8) have lost six straight games, with all of the losses coming by at least 13 points.

The Cougars rolled to a 39-21 lead at halftime despite making just four of their first 14 shots. But Houston used its defense to turn around things, allowing Tulane to convert just two of its first 18 shots while it finally found its shooting touch.

The Green Wave missed 15 straight attempts from the floor over an 11-minute stretch of the half as Houston built a 29-10 advantage at the 4:40 mark of the half.

Grimes led the Cougars with 11 first-half points while Hightower scored eight to pace Tulane. Houston outshot the Green Wave 46.9 percent to 24 percent over the first 20 minutes and had a 23-14 rebounding edge.

Houston played without starting point guard DeJon Jarreau, who was suspended for a game after video review showed he bit Cincinnati's Mamoudou Diarra on the leg during a fight for a loose ball in the Cougars' 64-62 loss on Saturday.

--Field Level Media