LOS ANGELES, Calif. – The Wichita State men's basketball team defeated La Salle, 72-58 on Thursday night to reach the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 32 years.

Malcolm Armstead scored 18 points, Carl Hall added 16 points and freshman Ron Baker 13 for the ninth-seeded Shockers, who proved their upset of No. 1 seed Gonzaga in the third round, was no fluke. They never trailed in this matchup of schools whose past NCAA deep tourney success was long buried in the history books.

Wichita State (29-8) tied the school's 2010-11 team for most victories. That group won the NIT title. These Shockers hope to match what the 1965 team did — reaching the Final Four.

La Salle (24-10) briefly fought back in the second half — getting within 11 points — but the Shockers made sure the history of No. 13 seeds never making the final eight remained intact.

Jerrell Wright and Tyrone Garland led the Explorers with 16 points each. Ramon Galloway, who averages a team-leading 17.4 points, was held to 11 for a program that won the 1954 NCAA championship and reached the 1955 national title game.

Wichita State dominated inside, owning a 47-29 rebounding edge and outscoring La Salle 40-26 in the paint, helped by Hall, who had 14 points in the first half.

The Shockers limited La Salle to 36 percent shooting (20-56) and 39 percent from beyond the arc (7-18).

The Explorers never got within single digits, and Armstead scored nine straight points to push Wichita State's lead to 62-47. Another 6-0 spurt, capped by Cleanthony Early's dunk, made it 68-48.

The Shockers hit two straight 3-pointers to open the second half and push their lead to 22 points.

La Salle answered with a 10-0 run to close to 44-32, with Wright scoring the first seven points and Galloway making a 3-pointer.

The Explorers got shocked to start the game, with Wichita State outscoring them 14-2. The Shockers ended the half on a 9-1 run, including five by Baker, to lead 38-22 at the break. La Salle was held to 27 percent shooting, while Wichita State shot 53 percent and dominated the paint, 24-10.

The Shockers will face the No. 2 seed Ohio State Saturday for a chance to go to the Final Four. Tip-off is slated for 6:05 p.m. CT on CBS.

-Wichita State-