Ohio’s U.S. Senate candidates debate a third and final time tonight in Cincinnati, and if it’s anything like the first two, Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown and Republican State Treasurer Josh Mandel will sprinkle their rhetoric with jabs at each other’s campaign.

Supporters of both candidates made a raucous cheering contest out of the first debate in Cleveland. Hostility between the two peaked during the Columbus debate last week when they called each other liars.

Both candidates said Wednesday they hope the last debate stays focused on the issues.

“There are a lot of issues citizens want to hear about and they want to hear our positions,” Mandel said. “One of them is Obamacare — they want to know why he cast the deciding vote on Obamacare and why I oppose it and what my ideas are for health care. They want to know why he opposes responsible drilling for oil and gas here in Ohio and why I support it. they want to know why he hasn’t passed a budget in 3 years and how I’ve voluntarily cut my budget two years in a row in the treasurer’s office and how I’ll balance the budget in Washington.”

Mandel hopes to talk about health care, energy production and balancing the budget. Brown’s key issues are the auto bailout, his China currency bill and extreme budgets proposed by Mandel.

Brown spokesman Justin Barasky said Brown has been talking about issues that matter to Ohioans and Mandel can’t be expected to do the same.

“I have a feeling we’ll see the same kind of Josh Mandel we saw in the first two debates — an angry, frustrated, candidate who knows hes losing and is desperately trying to change the dynamic of the debate by calling Sherrod a liar,” Barasky said. “Josh Mandel is a dirty campaigner and it’s because the record he has to run on is embarrassing.”

Brown, 59, is serving his first term in the Senate, after beating incumbent Republican Mike DeWine for the seat in 2006. He previously served in the U.S. House and General Assembly and as Ohio Secretary of State. Mandel, 35, is serving as state treasurer and previously served two terms in the Ohio House and two tours in Iraq in the Marine Corps. Mandel began running for U.S. Senate just months after being sworn into his four-year term as treasurer in 2011.

A Quinnipiac University poll released Monday found Brown leading Mandel 51 to 42 percent. Other recent polls have shown the candidates only 4 or 5 points apart.

The veteran liberal Brown and up-and-coming conservative Mandel inherently clash on nearly every issue.

Brown supported the $800 billion auto industry bailout; Mandel opposes it. Brown touts the Affordable Care Act and medical cost savings for seniors; Mandel has called for a repeal of the law and proposed several cost-saving measures.

Mandel’s position on the auto bailout emerged in the first debate, and he released his health care plan earlier this week.

With less than two weeks until Election Day, Thursday night’s debate will be the last chance for both candidates to refine their positions and deliver their message to a statewide audience.

The debate, sponsored by NBC and AARP, will be broadcast on all Ohio NBC stations at 7 p.m. NBC White House Correspondent Chuck Todd will moderate and three Ohio broadcast journalists will ask questions.