ABILENE, Texas (Interstat) — Malik Thomas scored 23 points to lead Virginia to a 72-68 victory over SMU in a men’s basketball game Saturday at Moody Coliseum. The Cavaliers improved to 16-2, while the Mustangs fell to 13-5.

Virginia led 40-37 at halftime and maintained a narrow edge throughout the second half. Thijs De Ridder added 17 points for Virginia. SMU was led by Jaron Pierre with 16 points and BJ Edwards with 13 points and five assists.

The Cavaliers shot 12 for 31 from 3-point range, while SMU was 5 for 13 from beyond the arc. Virginia also capitalized at the free-throw line, making 10 of 12 attempts. A crowd of 6,630 attended the Atlantic Coast Conference game.