LOS ANGELES — The 6-seed Arizona Wildcats lead 2-seed Ohio State 38-34 at Staples Center as the first half came to a close.

Powered by a strong first half from Mark Lyons (10 points) and a little bit of foul trouble from OSU point guard Aaron Craft, the Wildcats led for all but the first 14 seconds of the first half.

Craft had two early fouls, but finished the half with six points and two assists in 16 minutes.

There were 19 total fouls called in the half, and 16 free throws. The Wildcats converted on 9-of-10 shots from the charity stripe, while OSU hit 6-of-7.

Forward DeShaun Thomas was his usual, high-scoring self. With a rotation of Arizona defenders switching on-and-off covering him (Solomon Hill, Kevin Parrom, Nick Johnson, even backup guard Jordin Mayes), Thomas scored a game-high 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting.

The Wildcats shot 50 percent (12-of-24), 62.5 percent from three (5-of-8) and outrebounded OSU 17-15.

The Buckeyes shot 40 percent (12-of-30) and 50 percent from three (4-of-8), but won the turnover battle with five to Arizona’s seven.

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