The Ohio State Buckeyes entered Thursday night's game against the Cincinnati Bearcats as the prohibitive favorite considering they entered the 2012 NCAA Tournament as the No. 2 seed. Thad Matta's team looks like it'll stave off any sort of March Madness after taking a 32-24 lead into halftime.
March Madness Scores: Ohio State Buckeyes Lead Cincinnati Bearcats At Halftime
The Bearcats were able to hang with the Buckeyes for the majority of the first half, but sophomore forward Deshaun Thomas lifted Ohio State with a pair of three-pointers 25 seconds apart to extend a 27-20 lead into a 33-20 lead with 2:17 left in the first half.
Thomas was astounding in the opening stanza as he scored 20 points thanks to a trio of three-pointers. Jared Sullinger pulled his weight for the Buckeyes as well with 10 points and nine rebounds in the first half.
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Justin Jackson scored a team-high eight points off the bench for the Bearcats in the first half while Cashmere Wright scored seven points in the first half during the battle of Ohio's best. Cincinnati turned the ball over nine times in the first half.
For more on the 2012 NCAA Tournament bracket, stick around SB Nation’s NCAA Tournament hub. There you’ll find a complete printable NCAA Tournament bracket and tons of analysis on who was snubbed, who got the best bracket and who will make it all the way to New Orleans and the Final Four.
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