Mark leads the way as No. 15 Houston routs Bryant

HOUSTON (AP) — Tramon Mark tied a career high with 22 points, Josh Carlton added 17 and No. 15 Houston won its third straight, beating Bryant 111-44 on Friday night.

Fabian White Jr. had 13 of his 16 points in the first half, and Carlton scored eight as the Cougars (7-1) built a 52-21 lead at halftime.

Kyler Edwards had 12 points and 10 rebounds, and Marcus Sasser scored 12 points for Houston, which won its 30th straight home game. The Cougars shot a season-high 62% and made 10 of 23 3-pointers.

Houston forced Bryant (3-5) into 19 turnovers, which the Cougars turned into 31 points, and held a 63-21 advantage in points in the paint.

Houston scored a season high in points and had its largest margin of victory since beating Valparaiso by 77 on Feb. 24, 1968.

Chris Childs scored 13 points and Peter Kiss and Hall Elisias each had nine points for Bryant. The Bulldogs shot 27% and were 6 of 33 on 3-pointers

Houston jumped out to a 20-5 lead in the first 6 1/2 minutes, capped by a jumper from White, who had 11 points in the opening run.

After the Bulldogs cut the lead to six on a 3-pointer by Kiss to cap a 9-0 run, the Cougars responded with a 17-2 spurt to up the lead to 37-16 on a layup by Carlton with 5 1/2 minutes left in the first half.

BIG PICTURE

Bryant: The Bulldogs struggled with Houston’s size and speed, and had trouble containing the Cougars with their traps or full-court press. … Elisias, who entered third in the nation averaging four blocks per game, finished with none.

Houston: For a third straight game, the Cougars put the game away by halftime. Houston has led by 22 at the half in each game of its three-game winning streak. Houston shot 64% in the first half. … The Cougars finished with 63 bench points and held a 47-28 rebounding advantage.

UP NEXT

Bryant: At Cincinnati on Sunday.

Houston: Hosts Alcorn State on Monday.