NORTH LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – After overwhelming two ranked opponents to stake a claim as the nation’s top basketball team, Illinois showed it was merely mortal with a less-than-spectacular game against Arkansas.

It’s no big deal to coach Bruce Weber.

“There’s a time to yell at them and time to hug them,” Weber said after the fifth-ranked Illini beat Arkansas 72-60 on Saturday. He was pleased with the way things turned out against a team he knew would be tough.

“I wanted (us) to be scared, because you don’t know what level the team will play on,” said Weber, who had penciled in Arkansas as a big game for his team weeks ago.

Illinois beat No. 1 Wake Forest 91-73 last Wednesday and on Nov. 27 beat No. 24 Gonzaga, 89-72. Against unranked Arkansas, the Illini led by only four – 57-53 -with just under eight minutes left. Then Arkansas went cold.

“Our goal was to do the best we could in the first half and wear them down early and still have a chance to get in the game in the second half,” Arkansas coach Stan Heath said. “There were a few possessions where we really hurt ourselves by missing the shot, or getting the foul but not making the free throw.

“Honestly, though, I’m not disappointed in the way we played overall,” Heath said.

Illinois’ Roger Powell scored 19 points and had 11 rebounds to lead his team. Ronnie Brewer had 21 for Arkansas, but was the only Razorback in double figures.

“Overall, several guys didn’t play well, but we kept them from scoring, too,” Weber said. “Eventually, somebody made a nice screen or somebody made a nice pass and Roger was able to finish it.”

Illinois was never able to put together a long string of points. A 9-2 run made it 26-18 in the first half, as Arkansas ran a step behind while the Illini patiently passed the ball around.

“Throughout the game, we were with them,” Brewer said. “We knew we could play with them, but we just were a couple of plays short.

“At the end of the game, we just weren’t knocking down shots and we didn’t make free throws,” Brewer said.

Arkansas missed 15 free throws and, from the floor, shot 37 percent for the game. Illinois missed 14 free throws and shot 42 percent from the floor, but in the game’s final 10 minutes made 14 of 19 free throws as Arkansas fouled in an effort to conserve time and keep the game close.

After Brewer’s dunk with 7:07 left made it 60-55, Illinois added 12 free throws and Arkansas five. Neither team made a basket again.

“We didn’t play pretty and the stats aren’t pretty,” Weber said.

The Illini had won four games at home and another in Indianapolis, a neutral site, against Gonzaga, before traveling outside the Midwest for the first time Saturday. Arkansas was playing three hours away from its Fayetteville campus, but the crowd couldn’t have been considered neutral.

“That’s a low roof up there and when they got their Woo-Sooie or whatever it is going, it was pretty loud,” Weber said.