HOUSTON (AP) — In the past, the Houston Rockets would sometimes fall victim to so-called trap games, losing against subpar teams.

This season these Rockets have largely avoided such losses, and they did so again on Sunday night with a 104-97 win over the short-handed Dallas Mavericks.

“That’s the difference between 50 wins and 60-plus and average teams and great teams,” James Harden said. “We’re not where we want to be, but that’s the goal.”

Harden scored 27 points, Chris Paul added 25 and the Rockets easily handled the Mavericks for their eighth straight win and 12th in the last 13.

The Rockets led for most of the game, but the Mavericks kept it close until a couple of runs in the third quarter allowed Houston to pull away.

COLLEGE BASKETBALL

NO. 6 CINCINNATI 76, SMU 51

DALLAS (AP) — Sixth-ranked Cincinnati is still undefeated in the American Athletic Conference, with its longest winning streak and highest ranking in coach Mick Cronin’s 12 seasons.

The key now for the Bearcats is staying focused on the immediate future — and not what could happen in March.

“We obviously know where we’re at, but we have to keep on going,” senior Kyle Washington said. “We just know how many games we lost, and we know when practice is and when’s the next game. And that’s the truth.”

Washington scored 17 points on 8-of-12 shots and had eight rebounds in his 18 minutes as the Bearcats won their 16th straight game — including all 12 AAC games — with a 76-51 victory over short-handed SMU on Sunday.

The Bearcats (23-2, 12-0 AAC) missed their first seven shots in the game, but were down only 5-2 when they finally scored just more than 3 minutes in on a dunk by Nysier Brooks. That started a 9-0 run that put them ahead to stay, and they had as much as a 35-point lead midway through the second half.