No. 9 Ohio St beats No. 21 Purdue in OT, reach Big Ten semis

<p>INDIANAPOLIS &mdash; Seth Towns scored six of his season-high 12 points in overtime, helping No. 9 Ohio State beat No. 21 Purdue 87-78 Friday in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals.</p>
<p>With two wins in two days, the Buckeyes (20-8) will now face longtime rival and conference regular-season champion No. 4 Michigan in Saturday’s first semifinal game. Duane Washington Jr. scored 20 points for Ohio State, which led by 18 at halftime.</p>
<p>Trevion Williams finished with 26 points, 14 rebounds and five for Purdue (18-9), which had its five-game winning streak end. Jaden Ivey added 19 points.</p>
<p>For the Buckeyes it was another harrowing close call. Just 24 hours after Minnesota cut a 14-point lead to one in Ohio State’s tourney opener, they gave away the 49-31 halftime lead.</p>
<p>Then came Towns’ flurry. He opened overtime by making one of two free throws and made it a two-possession when his 3-pointer with 2:53 to play to make it 78-74.</p>
<p>BIG PICTURE</p>
<p>Ohio State: The Buckeyes played well enough to barely win Thursday. And did the same again Friday. But they’ve need to find a finishing touch if they hope to contend for the tourney title.</p>
<p>Purdue: Coach Matt Painter’s team had been one of the hottest in the Big Ten but was doomed by a miserable first half in Indy. It’s only the second loss the Boilermakers have suffered inside the state border. And they won’t have to leave the state again this year.</p>
<p>UP NEXT</p>
<p>Ohio State: Faces No. 4 Michigan in Saturday’s first semifinal.</p>
<p>Purdue: Will wait to see who they play when the NCAA Tournament bracket comes out Sunday. </p>
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