Illinois head coach Bruce Weber wants a do-over. And he’ll get it.

After watching his team lose an eight-point halftime lead against Purdue two weeks ago, spurred by sloppy play and inconsistencies all around, and seeing hopes of a Big Ten run crumble, his team can avenge a sour 74-67 loss against the Boilermakers at 2:30 on Saturday at Assembly Hall.

The Illini (10-12, 2-7 Big Ten) are winners of two of the last ten games, falling to Ohio State and Michigan State in Big Ten matchups over the last ten days. Purdue (16-5, 7-1), on the other hand, has won nine out of its last ten contests, including a four-point win over No. 11-ranked Wisconsin, and is one of the hottest teams in the Big Ten.

Weber said the Illini haven’t deflated yet despite the mounting losses.

“We’ve kept our spirits,” Weber said before Friday’s team practice. “We’re maybe playing harder than we were a couple weeks ago.

“My question is: if we don’t get a win here sooner or later, am I going to lose them?”

Brian Randle and Shaun Pruitt scored fifteen points apiece in the Jan. 19 loss, but the energy of Purdue forward Nemanja Calasan and guard Keaton Grant’s offensive firepower proved too much for the Illinois defense.

“We played them pretty well for 20, 30 minutes at their place and they took it to us in the second half,” Trent Meacham said. “They’ve been playing really well; it’s going to be a tough game.

“They play hard, they play a lot of guys, we’re going to have to be ready to go.”

Grant, Robbie Hummel, and E’Twaun Moore are Purdue’s three leading scorers, all racking up more than 10 points per game.

Freshmen Hummel and Moore, along with Scott Martin, form a potent guard combination that, some say, reflects what Illinois could have two years down the road when 2009 guard commitments Brandon Paul, DJ Richardson, and Joseph Bertrand roam the court. Jeremy Richmond and Crandall Head, both guards, have already committed for the 2010 recruiting class.

“They’re a real good team, young and talented, and they go by the freshmen, so we just got to go pressure the freshmen and make them try to make plays,” freshman guard Demetri McCamey said. “We played with a lot of energy last game, but it was those mental mistakes again that cost us the game.”

Illinois has had two strong defensive performances in its last two games, holding Northwestern under 40 points in a 70-37 win and Michigan State to 51 points on only 37 percent shooting.

Chester Frazier started at point guard against Michigan State to track the preseason Big Ten Player of the Year, Drew Neitzel. Frazier held Neitzel to 15 points on only 4-of-12 shooting. It’s possible Frazier will continue to start but not certain given the strong, although inconsistent, play of McCamey.

“I think it’s going to be a good game,” Mike Tisdale said. “We got to come out and play hard like we did at the first half at Purdue.

“If you looked at how many games we were leading at halftime and didn’t finish it would be amazing, ” he added. “Coach always says if we played hard for 20 minutes (a half) we’d be undefeated.”

Maybe the desperation to turn things around is one of many reasons Weber is trading in his loafers for a pair of sneakers as part of the American Cancer Society and Coach’s vs. Cancer campaign this weekend. At this point in the season, Weber’s change of footwear could be what the Illini need to start the two game homestand out on the right foot.

Or maybe not.

“Once the game starts nobody pays attention anyway,” the coach said, downplaying the strategic significance of the change. “But it’s a great awareness thing. It’s just a positive step in the fight against cancer”