HOUSTON -- Deon Lyle knocked down eight 3-pointers and put up a season-high 33 points as UTSA crushed Rice, 79-60 on Saturday to close out the Conference USA regular season and prepare for the conference tournament.
With a fifth-place finish, the Roadrunners face the No. 12 seed, Texas-El Paso, in a first-round game Wednesday in Frisco, Texas. Rice (7-24, 4-14) will miss the conference tournament.
UTSA (18-13, 11-7) rolled to an 18-point lead by intermission and cruised to the win.
Lyle hit 11 of 24 shots from the field, including 8 of 19 from distance.