Nothing ever comes easy for Purdue when the Boilermakers travel to Columbus. Thursday night was no different -- except for the result.

Purdue's Caleb Swanigan, a 77 percent free-throw shooter, stepped up to the foul line and made one of two free throws with 5.3 seconds left.

Ohio State's Trevor Thompson, also a 77 percent free-throw shooter, had just stepped up to the foul line and failed to connect on his free throw 10 seconds earlier.

And with that, the No. 20 Boilermakers eked out a 76-75 victory over a determined Buckeyes squad at Value City Arena on Thursday in Columbus.

The Boilermakers (13-3, 2-1 Big Ten) won only once in their previous 14 trips to Value City Arena and the Buckeyes had won four straight in Columbus against the Purdue.

But thanks to the Boilermakers' All-America candidate Swanigan, the curse, the hex or whatever Purdue wants to call it, is over in Columbus.

"Being able to hang in there, it's one of those games that could have went either way," Purdue coach Matt Painter said. "We are fortunate to be on the winning side of it. We've had a lot of games in this arena where it's went to overtime or been close at the end and could have went either way."

Swanigan, who was coming off a 28-point, 22-rebound performance in a loss to Minnesota on Sunday, had 16 points and 11 rebounds. When it came down to crunch time, Purdue went to its big man, and he came through in a big way.

For the first time in nine games, Vince Edwards got the start for Purdue as Painter decided to go small and bring 7-2 center Isaac Haas off the bench.

Edwards scored 16 points, but more importantly seemed to make a crucial shot or grab a critical rebound to stymie each Ohio State threat. He made 6 of 10 from the field while recording seven boards and four assists.

"Just to get this win after losing in OT to Minnesota is huge," Edwards said. "We had to grind it out as a team and finish as a team."

Jae'Sean Tate led the Buckeyes (10-5, 0-2) with 17 points on 8 of 14 shooting. Marc Loving poured in 14 points to go with eight rebounds, Thompson had 11 points and Kam Williams added 10.

The 6-4 Tate earned praise for his performance from Painter and Ohio State coach Thad Matta.

"A lot of people look at it like we ultimately have the advantage because we are bigger," Painter said. "But Jae'Sean Tate is a very productive player. He's always given us trouble, he plays hard."

Matta credited Tate with doing what was needed for the Buckeyes to pull off the upset.

"I thought J.T. was ultra-competitive," Matta said. "I thought he did a tremendous job. He knew what we wanted to do offensively, and he took advantage of it. I liked his effort."

Trailing 72-69, the Buckeyes pulled within 1 on Loving's layup with 1:45 left. But the Boilermakers' P.J. Thompson made a 3-pointer to give Purdue a small cushion. Until that 3 attempt, the Boilermakers were 0 for 8 from deep in the second half after making 7 of 14 in the first half.

"We feel like we've worked as hard as we possibly can and left it all on the floor," an emotional Loving said. "Guys are going to be emotional because it's just the love of the game. We want to win."

Ohio State was able to keep within arm's reach thanks to its free throw shooting. The Buckeyes made 17 of 20. But in the end, free throws were Ohio State's undoing.

NOTES: Ohio State was without junior F Keita Bates-Diop because of leg soreness. Bates-Diop (10 points, six rebounds per game) already had missed five games in November and December with a high ankle sprain. After the game, the Ohio State said Bates-Diop would miss the rest of the season with a stress fracture ... Purdue's first victory at Value City Arena came Feb. 17, 2010 as the No. 4 Boilermakers defeated the No. 9 Buckeyes 60-57. ... Thursday's game was the only regular-season meeting. ... Ohio State won at least 10 Big Ten regular-season games over the last 11 seasons, the longest streak in school history and the longest streak among Big Ten schools during Thad Matta's 12-year tenure with the Buckeyes. ... Nine of Purdue's 13 victories this season have come by at least 21 points, including five by at least 30. ... Ohio State next plays Minnesota on Sunday while the Boilermakers host No. 13 Wisconsin.