COL BKB: Memphis 76, Southern Miss 67

HATTIESBURG, Miss., March 1 (UPI) -- Freshman guard Derrick Rose scored 23 points Saturday to lead the third-ranked Memphis Tigers to a 76-67 victory over Southern Mississippi.

The win enabled Memphis to clinch the Conference USA season title outright for a third straight year and the fourth time in the last five seasons.

Chris Douglas-Roberts added 22 points for the Tigers (28-1, 14-0 C-USA), who have won 37 straight conference games.

Jeremy Wise had 26 points for Southern Miss (15-13, 7-7), which faced its highest-ranked team ever. Craig Craft added 14 points and Sai'Quon Stone had 11 points for the Golden Eagles.

Southern Miss had a 12-3 run early in the second half and led 43-37 with just over 15 minutes remaining.