UNIVERSITY PARK, Texas -- Another Red Out game. Another win for the SMU men's basketball team.

Victories over Connecticut at Moody Coliseum while wearing red uniforms have become routine. And while Wednesday's result wasn't in blowout fashion, it still records as a win for the Mustangs.

SMU defeated UConn, 79-75, in front of a rowdy Moody Coliseum crowd. It was a big win for the Mustangs, who stayed alive for a first-round bye in the American Athletic Conference, which will take place roughly a month away.

SMU improved to 17-6 overall and 7-4 in the AAC. The Mustangs also improved to 6-0 against the Huskies in Red Out games at Moody. UConn fell to 13-11 and 4-7.

"That was a big win. That was one we needed to have," SMU coach Tim Jankovich said. "The other day, we talked about no big games ... but that was a big win."

This was a game where Feron Hunt reminded everyone of what he brings to the team. Hunt came off the bench but played 31 minutes and had a career night.

Hunt made 8 of 9 shots and finished with a career-high 23 points and seven rebounds. Hunt was one of three players who had double figures in scoring for SMU, which shot 55% from the field, 53% from the 3-point line and 88% from the free throw line.

The Mustangs needed every bucket against a determined UConn team. SMU had a double-digit lead in the second half, but UConn on two different occasions rallied to cut the lead to four. The Huskies even managed to get within two with less than two minutes left.

For a few minutes, Wednesday looked like a repeat of the Temple game last Saturday. But unlike Saturday, SMU remained calm and finished the job.

The Mustangs were paced late by Hunt, who made four clutch free throws in the final 16.3 seconds of the game to keep a small lead. He rattled home two free throws with 9.9 seconds to seal the win.

Kendric Davis had another solid game, finishing with 19 points and six assists. Emmanuel Bandoumel had a quiet-but-productive night, finishing with 13 points and six rebounds.

UConn's James Bouknight, the reigning AAC Player of the Week, had a team-high 21 points in the loss

SMU next will host Houston on Saturday. It will be a rematch of the Jan. 15 matchup, which the Cougars won, 71-62. Tipoff is set for 5 p.m. at Moody Coliseum.