Arizona guard Bennedict Mathurin drives into the lane against Oregon State during the first half of Thursdayโ€™s game in McKale Center.

The third-ranked Arizona Wildcats turned on the jets in the second half once again to run past Oregon State at McKale Center and win 83-69.

Arizona shot over 50% from the field in both halves to continue its hold onto first place in the Pac-12.

These numbers explain how the Wildcats notched their 23rd win of the season.

20: In four career games against the Beavers, Benn Mathurn has finished with 31, 14, 28 and โ€” after Thursdayโ€™s performance โ€” 20 points. The sophomore has scored 20 or more points in three consecutive games, matching a stretch in December earlier this season.

6: Arizona got its first double-digit lead of the game when Mathurin and Azuolas Tubelis scored the first 11 points of the second half to make it 55-45 at 17:11. The Wildcats made six straight baskets to begin the half.

52-28: UA outscored the Beavers 52-28 in the paint. It helped Arizona that OSUโ€™s big men got into foul trouble. When starting forward Warith Alatishe got his fourth, it allowed the Cats to get to the rim with ease.

9: For the first time this season, the Wildcats have posted back-to-back games with less than 10 turnovers. The Cats turned it over nine times against both Washington and Oregon State.

500: With 26 assists against Oregon State, Arizona eclipsed the 500-assist mark in a season for the 10th time in program history. UAโ€™s average of 20.3 assists per game leads the country.

23: The Wildcats led by as many as 23 points in the second half until the final two minutes, when UAโ€™s walk-ons came into the game. Itโ€™s the fourth straight game the Cats have led an opponent by 20 or more points.

2 of 9: The Beavers started the game shooting 5 of 8 from 3-point range. They eventually cooled off, going just 2 for 9 (22%) from 3 in the second half.

12: 12 of Arizonaโ€™s 13 conference wins have come by at least 10 points.

2: The Wildcats are one of two teams in the country with top 10 KenPom.com efficiency ratings on both offense and defense, the other being No. 1-ranked Gonzaga.


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Contact sports producer Alec White at 573-4161 or awhite1@tucson.com. On Twitter: @alecwhite_UA