PJ Haggerty scored a game-high 26 points and grabbed eight rebounds, and No. 19 Memphis held on to post an 86-83 American Athletic Conference win over host Rice on Sunday in Houston.Tyrese Hunter added 19 points and five assists for the Tigers (18-4, 8-1), which took a one-game lead in the conference over North Texas and UAB. PJ Carter came off the bench to can 5 of 7 3-pointers and tally 19 points as Memphis connected on 55 percent of its field goals, including 11 of 21 from the 3-point line.Carter made two foul shots with 4.2 seconds left to give the Tigers a three-point lead. After the Owls were called for a five-second violation on the inbounds pass, they forced a turnover on Memphis’ inbounds pass but Carter blocked a desperation shot just before time expired.Three players scored in double figures for the Owls (11-11, 2-7), led by Trae Broadnax with 19 points and six assists. Jacob Dar added 17 points and eight rebounds, including a 3-pointer with 11.7 seconds remaining to draw Rice within 82-81, and Alem Huseinovic kicked in 13 points.The Owls pulled within 60-59 with 10:52 left in the game when Denver Anglin drilled a 3-pointer off Broadnax’s feed. But Dain Dainja dunked at the 9:57 mark to start a 9-2 run that Hunter ended with a 3-pointer for a 69-61 advantage with 8:02 remaining. The Tigers led by as many as 11 points in the last three minutes before Rice’s final comeback.