CINCINNATI (AP) _ Kevin Frey scored 15 of his 22 points in the second half Saturday night as Xavier pulled away to a lackluster 79-65 victory over Rhode Island.

Xavier (19-5) improved to 10-3 in the Atlantic 10 and moved into second place in the conference, jumping ahead of Massachusetts once again. The Musketeers were coming off a 59-49 loss at Massachusetts last Wednesday.

A surprisingly close game wasn't decided until Xavier put together a run midway through the second half, then held on. Frey scored six consecutive points as Xavier pushed the lead to double digits in the closing minutes.

The troubled Rams (5-21, 1-12) were playing their second game since coach Jerry DeGregorio announced he would quit at the end of the season, then was hospitalized for exhaustion.

Assistant coach George Blaney, who ran the team in a 77-47 loss to George Washington last Wednesday, had the Rams ready to give Xavier all it could handle in the first half, which ended tied at 40.

Romain Sato, who set a school record with eight 3's in Xavier's 99-82 win at Rhode Island on Jan. 13, drew steady coverage and finished with 11 points. David West added 16 points and 11 rebounds.

Rhode Island's Zach Marbury, who sat out the George Washington game with a kidney infection, played 12 minutes and had six points, 12 below his average. Tavorris Bell led Rhode Island with 16 points.

The crowd of 10,250 murmured and Xavier coach Skip Prosser fumed, walking off the court with his head down, after Rhode Island outshot and outrebounded the Musketeers in a tight first half that had five ties and nine lead changes.

Rhode Island shot 54 percent, outrebounded Xavier by two and led by as many as six points in the half.

The Musketeers started taking the ball to the basket in the second half, drawing three fouls in the first minute. Xavier took control with an 11-2 spurt that featured points from six players and put the Musketeers ahead 60-52.

Frey scored six consecutive points as Xavier pushed the lead to double digits down the stretch. He was 7-of-18 from the field, missing a pair of dunks.