Even with a big win, it's hard to overlook that Arizona once again had a rough night on the boards.

In a game that was the stage for a political campaign, the Wildcats' rebounding game was definitely not the highlight as No. 13 Arizona was outrebounded 32-31 in Saturday's 84-60 win over Oregon State that saw Republican presidential candidate Bob Dole at courtside as one of 14,221 at McKale Center.

Despite a 7-2 mark in their last nine games, UA has been outrebounded for the fifth time in that stretch. Before center Joseph Blair was declared academically ineligible after the Arizona State game Jan. 10, UA was outrebounded just three times in 14 games.

The Beavers rank dead last in rebounding average (28.3) and rebound margin (-7.9) in the Pac-10, while the Wildcats lead the league in rebounding with a 38.9 average.

OSU controlled the tempo early with a ball-control offense that repeatedly took the shot clock below 10 seconds. Arizona combated that in the second half with halfcourt traps that spread the court. Most of OSU's baskets came off of breaking Arizona's trap and getting easy lay-ups, causing few rebounding possibilities. OSU only took 27 shots in the first half and missed 17. The Beavers finished with 55 shots on the game.

"When you look at the flow of the game, I don't know how many (rebounds) were available to get," Corey Williams said. "When you trap and spread the floor like we did, that will give them some opportunities."

The Beavers were allowed to stay in the game until early in the second half with their second chances. Oregon State had eight first-half offensive rebounds compared to Arizona's four, and limited the Wildcats' big man, senior Ben Davis, to only one.

"They were playing a little harder than we were, they were crashing the boards in the first half," said Davis, who finished with a game-high 11 rebounds.

At halftime OSU pulled down 18 rebounds to the Wildcats' 13, resulting in only a five-point lead for Arizona.

"We did a better job on the boards," OSU head coach Eddie Payne said. "We are just out there hanging on, and our players have done a pretty good job of that all year."

Although Arizona outrebounded the Beavers in the second half, Oregon State continued to get more offensive rebounds. A team can be successful despite getting outrebounded by the Beavers because at 3-21, 1-14, Oregon State does not yet have the talent to make a team pay for being outrebounded.

"We just got complacent, but we did a good job in the second half," Reggie Geary said.