COLUMBUS, Ohio – Jamar had a great afternoon. He hit 5-of-6 three-point shots, scored 22 points and even got three rebounds. Jamar was the key player in pulling off the win.

Jamar Butler, that is.

Butler is a sophomore guard for Ohio State. On Sunday, Butler had a career scoring night in which he made 8-of-11 from the field including a career-high five three-pointers.

“Jamar has improved his defense and it’s helped him on the offense,” Ohio State coach Thad Matta said. “He has been playing well all year.”

Butler is just a season more seasoned than Illinois’ Jamar Smith.

Smith scored eight points for the Illini, shooting just 2-of-7 from three-point range, and had the responsibility of guarding the Buckeyes’ sharpshooter.

“I feel like a lot of the shots he shot I was there in his face,” Smith said. “He just made some tough shots.”

Frazier brings intensity

When Illinois needed a boost in the second half, Illinois head coach Bruce Weber turned to freshman point guard Chester Frazier. Frazier played 13 minutes of the second stanza, scoring four points, grabbing three rebounds and dishing one assist.

“He changes the tempo of the game with his pressure,” Weber said.

Frazier said he brings the same level of intensity to each game, whether at home or on the road. He said he knows the team needs leadership on the court, and that he tries to provide that despite being a freshman.

“Everybody’s got to bring some leadership to the table starting now,” Frazier said. “The Big Ten tournament’s coming up, the NCAA tournament’s coming up, so we’ve got to come together now.”

All tied up

Despite Sunday’s loss, Illinois still leads Ohio State 100-61 in the all-time series. In Columbus, however, the competition is now tied at 39 wins per team.

Ohio State’s last win against a ranked team was also the last time Illinois played in Columbus, when the Buckeyes beat the Illini 65-64 on March 6, 2005.

Coaches vs. Cancer

The Illinois and Ohio State coaching staffs wore gym shoes on Sunday in support of the Coaches vs. Cancer charity. Basketball coaches around the NCAA chose casual footwear in an effort to bring attention to the cause.

Quote of the game

“If we think we’re an offensive juggernaut, that we’re going to go in places and just outscore people, we’re not going to do that. We’re a hard-nosed, blue-collar team with a couple pretty good players and some other guys that raise their game.”

– Illinois head coach Bruce Weber on his team’s offense