With Illinois leading Michigan State 44-40 with 6:41 to play and in need of some energy after the Spartans went on a 20-10 run, a pre-recorded message from Dee Brown asked the Assembly Hall faithful to make some noise. At a pivotal point in Tuesday night’s match-up, the sold-out crowd rose to their feet, and a Shaun Pruitt block and Chester Frazier jumper gave the Illini the energy they needed to defeat the Spartans 57-50.

Down the stretch, senior Warren Carter converted on a tricky lay up. At the other end, the Illinois defense forced Drew Neitzel to put up a desperation three pointer. The Illini, though, in the last 1:10 of the game missed four of 10 free-throw attempts.

“If we could have made free-throws, we could probably have won by 10 or 12 points,” head coach Bruce Weber said. “But right now, they’re not going down.”

The Illini’s second-half collapse was eerily similar to the letdown they experienced in East Lansing, Mich., on Jan. 14, when Michigan State eclipsed an 11-point halftime lead to get the win over Illinois (16-8, 4-5). And with Illinois once again holding an 11-point halftime advantage, keeping the lead was a topic brought up by the Illinois players and coaches.

“It was definitely mentioned at halftime,” said Pruitt, who added 15 points and five rebounds. “Brian Randle wrote it on the board and said we were in the same position like we were up at their place and didn’t want it to happen at our place.”

Frazier led the Illini with a career-high 17 points (6-of-8 shooting) to go along with six rebounds, while Rich McBride added 12 points. After missing games against Indiana and Purdue, Randle returned to the starting lineup, scoring four points and bringing down three rebounds.

The Illini limited Neitzel, who erupted for 24 second-half points in the Spartans’ weekend loss to No. 5 Ohio State, to 10 points.

“We took Drew out, and I think we took the heart and soul out of their team,” Pruitt said.

Leading 22-17 with 2:19 to go in the first half, Illinois put together a string of six unanswered points as it headed to the locker room. Pruitt opened the series with a lay up, followed by a McBride steal that led to a Frazier jumper. He would add another basket to put the Illini up 28-17 after 20 minutes of play.

With Michigan State committing 15 first-half turnovers, Illinois was able to capitalize with 13 points. The points off turnovers led to a number of confidence-boosting plays for Randle, Frazier and Jamar Smith – all players who have been feeling the after effects of painful injuries.

The Illini host Minnesota on Saturday before traveling to Northwestern and Indiana. While they have a favorable schedule, Pruitt said Illinois must play every game like it was against an opponent of Ohio State’s or Wisconsin’s caliber.

“We need to stay focused,” McBride said. “We have to keep the same mindset.”