The Ohio State men’s basketball team (18-11, 10-8 Big Ten) was looking for a signature win coming down the stretch of this regular season, The Buckeyes made their case for an NCAA tournament bid Sunday, topping the #8-ranked Purdue Boilermakers (22-7, 12-6 Big Ten) at the Schottenstein Center, 82-74.

In Sunday’s contest, OSU took a 36-31 lead to the locker at halftime, shooting 12 of 21 (57.1%) from the field before the break, compared to the Boilermakers making only 11 of 28 (39.3%). In the second half, the Buckeyes led by as many as 14 points, while Purdue came within six points with 31 seconds remaining.

Ohio State’s John Mobley Jr., a Reynoldsburg native, led all scorers with 21 points, including five treys, while Bruce Thornton added 20. Also scoring in double figures for the Buckeyes were Amare Bynum (14) and Pickerington Central’s Devin Royal (12). Royal paced the Buckeyes with nine rebounds.

Ohio State plays at Penn State (12-17, 3-15 Big Ten) Wednesday. The Buckeyes beat the Nittany Lions, 84-78, in Columbus on Jan. 26. Wednesday’s game, which tips off at 7:30 p.m., can be seen on Peacock. OSU finishes the regular season with a home game against the Indiana Hoosiers (17-12, 8-10 Big Ten) Saturday at 5:30 p.m. (Fox).