For long stretches Thursday night, Michigan State coach Tom Izzo was sure his Spartans were dogging it.

Looking flat and struggling to find a rhythm, No. 17 Michigan State trailed Illinois by as many as 10 points in the first half and had no answer for center Shaun Pruitt’s 6-foot-10 frame in the lane.

Turns out the Spartans weren’t flat, but ill. But they found a way to overcome Illinois and illness to get a road win, 59-51.

“We had some guys getting sick there during the game,” Michigan State coach Tom Izzo said, saying he only found out about problems with forward Raymar Morgan—the team’s top scorer this season—and guards Kalin Lucas and Durrell Summers. He wasn’t sure just what was wrong.

“I don’t know,” Izzo said. “They’re all throwing up.”

What the ailing Morgan couldn’t provide, senior guard Drew Neitzel did. He overcame a slow start to score 17 points and lead the Spartans.

Illinois led most of the first half. But Michigan State (24-7, 12-5 Big Ten) took its first lead with 2:29 left in the first half on a layup by Neitzel, 31-29, and never trailed again.

“I thought we had a pretty good game out of Neitzel considering he was guarded by one of the best defensive players,” Izzo said, referring to Illinois guard Chester Frazier.

Spartans center Drew Naymick added 12 points, including a pair of key second-half jump shots that helped bury Illinois.

The Illini (12-18, 4-13) were led by Pruitt’s 13 points and six rebounds.

The teams were tied 31-31 at the half, but the Spartans pulled away early in the second half. The 6-foot-10 Naymick hit back-to-back jump shots to open the half and build a 35-31 lead.

“That first five minutes of the second half was just a killer for us,” Illinois coach Bruce Weber said. “(Naymick) hits two in a row there, Neitzel gets a 3.

“Now it’s a seven-point run,” the exasperated Weber said, “and we’re chasing them.”

After trailing 23-13 with 9:25 left in the first half, the Spartans outscored the Illini 29-13 over the next 17:42.

Neitzel, who didn’t score for the first 6 1/2 minutes, found just enough scoring touch to drive Michigan State. He was a cool 5-of-13 from the field, but three of his field goals were from 3-point range.

Illinois closed within three points with just over seven minutes left in the game. But Neitzel drained a 3 less than 20 seconds later to open the Spartans’ lead back to six points.

The loss had a familiar refrain for Illinois.

The Illini have been a first-half team all season, and they’ve struggled to score in the second half of games.

On Thursday, Illinois was just 6-of-19 from the floor in the final 20 minutes.

“Like most of the season,” Weber said, “when you don’t shoot the ball well and don’t make free throws it hurts you.”

Neitzel had a hand in shutting down Illinois’ outside shooting, too. Illini point guard Demetri McCamey had just three points.

“They hit a couple tough shots in the first half but we did a pretty good job on them, especially in the second half,” Neitzel said.

Illinois forward Brian Randle, who Weber last week said he expected would miss the rest of the season with a shoulder injury, entered the game in the second half. The oft-injured senior finished with seven points in 10 minutes.

Michigan State will end the regular season Sunday at Ohio State before the Big Ten tournament starts next week.

The Illini close the regular season at home Saturday against Minnesota.

He stood beaming on a crowded court, celebrating as students chanted his nickname.

“Po-lar bear! Po-lar bear!”

Brian Butch hasn’t always had it this good in his time at Wisconsin.

The up-and-down details of Butch’s collegiate career didn’t matter much Wednesday night when he helped the 10th-ranked Badgers trounce Penn State 77-41 to claim at least a share of the Big Ten title.

Playing in his final home game, the senior had 12 points and five rebounds— a typical rock-solid night for a team that lacks stars but somehow manages to keep winning.

“It’s absolutely awesome, point-blank,” Butch said. “It’s all you can say.”

It is the third time in seven seasons the Badgers (25-4, 15-2) have claimed at least a share of the conference title under coach Bo Ryan—and this one was perhaps the least likely of them.

The Badgers finish the regular season at Northwestern on Saturday and a victory would give them the outright championship.

“You know, it’s a great feeling to see this group come together the way they did,” Ryan said. “Everybody probably thinks it’s easy when you look from the outside.”

Not much was expected of Wisconsin coming into the season. The Badgers had lost stars Alando Tucker and Kammron Taylor, and it was unclear just where the missing points would come from.

But sophomore guard Trevon Hughes proved he could be counted on to score, Butch had a solid season and the Badgers used their size advantage and discipline to play stifling defense.

“I think it still kind of seems surreal,” said Greg Stiemsma, who scored 10 points. “To go out like we did, to achieve what we did tonight, I think it’s really special. It’s one of those things where it doesn’t seem like it should happen. I don’t know if it’s fate or whatever it is, but things fell into place for us.”

Butch has struggled at times to live up to the promise of his status as a prized recruit, and never became a star in the traditional sense. But the Badgers realized his value when he was injured at the end of last season, severely disrupting that highly ranked team’s chemistry.

Butch’s steady presence was an even bigger deal this season, as he played a more prominent role without Tucker and Taylor.

“You know, we had a great year last year, but we didn’t have anything to show for it,” Butch said. “I’ve been saying that the last couple weeks—this year, at least we have something to show for it so far. And we’ve got a lot of basketball ahead of us, too.”

Marcus Landry scored 15 points for Wisconsin, which entered Wednesday leading the nation in scoring defense, giving up an average of 54.9 points per game. The Badgers held Penn State (14-15, 6-11) to 7-for-27 shooting in the first half and 29.6 percent for the game.

“We just couldn’t make a shot, and we couldn’t guard them in the second half,” Penn State coach Ed DeChellis said. “They just went inside and our young kids, we couldn’t match up inside. We’re just not big enough, we’re not strong enough. They went in and took it right at us.”

Wisconsin held Penn State scoreless for a 5:21 stretch late in the first half, going on an 8-0 run to take a 27-12 lead on a 3-pointer by Michael Flowers.

Wisconsin led 34-17 at halftime, then opened the second half with an 8-1 run, taking a 42-18 lead on a driving layup by Hughes.

Talor Battle scored 10 points to lead the Nittany Lions, who were playing without leading scorer Jamelle Cornley. His replacement, Jeff Brooks, picked up three fouls in the first half.

“We just aren’t very good in there right now,” DeChellis said of his team’s post play. “We left our best post player home.”

Tanner Bronson, a 5-foot-11 senior walk-on who has become a fan favorite, got into the game with 4:51 remaining and the Badgers leading by 40 points. He hit a 3-pointer with 2:29 left, eliciting a standing ovation.

“I just do what I can, I guess,” Bronson said, in a short postgame speech to the crowd.

Dan Dakich received what likely is his dream job Friday, but under nightmarish circumstances.

The former Indiana player and assistant coach was named the interim head coach to replace Kelvin Sampson, but faces immediate controversy in the form of boycotting players and a snubbed assistant coach.

Only seven players showed up for Dakich’s first practice at Assembly Hall on Friday afternoon. Among the six missing players were starters D.J. White, Armon Bassett and Jamarcus Ellis. Every player attended a walkthrough Friday night, however.

Sampson’s lead assistant, Ray McCallum, will remain on the staff as the assistant head coach.

McCallum, a native of Muncie and a former head coach at Ball State and Houston, was joined by his wife in a two-hour meeting in athletic director Rick Greenspan’s office while the team was practicing.

McCallum declined to comment to reporters as he left Assembly Hall.

Greenspan would not say whether the players who skipped practice were angry over Sampson’s dismissal or Dakich’s promotion.

“You’d be better served to ask them,” Greenspan said. “I’m not going to speak for the players.”

The players refused comment as they entered and left practice Friday and weren’t available during the news conference later that night.

McCallum’s ties to Sampson were thought to be an issue in Dakich’s promotion. However, a university news release issued shortly before Friday’s 9 p.m. news conference praised McCallum’s “integrity and exceptional dedication to the game,” and Greenspan echoed those sentiments.

“It was very important for both Ray and Dan to point out that we have not had any concerns expressed to us in any way about any allegations about any NCAA issues,” Greenspan said. “I know for both of them that’s important for the public to understand.”

Why Dakich, then?

“I felt it was the right choice,” Greenspan said.

Dakich was not available for comment Friday but issued a statement through the university.

“Indiana University and the basketball program have played an important role in my life,” he said. “I want nothing but the best for these players and the institution. The challenge ahead is to maintain the positive momentum that has been built within the team and to keep everyone as focused as possible during this difficult time.”

Dakich will not be available to the media until after tonight’s game at Northwestern.

Greenspan said no decision has been made whether to add an assistant coach. Former Indiana star Damon Bailey aroused speculation when he showed up at Assembly Hall on Friday afternoon, but Greenspan said he was not aware of that.

Dakich, 45, becomes IU’s second interim coach in a turbulent decade for the program.

Mike Davis worked on an interim basis in the 2000-01 season after Bob Knight was fired, and then was hired full time. IU finished 21-13 overall and 10-6 in the Big Ten that season.

Dakich compiled a 156-140 record at Bowling Green (1997-2007). His contract was not renewed after last season. His teams won one Mid-American Conference title but were a combined 22-39 in his final two injury-plagued seasons.

Dakich, who averaged 3.6 points during his playing career with Knight, bears several similarities to his mentor. He was a slow-footed player who had a mediocre college career, and went on to become a hard-driving coach who sometimes alienated players with his intensity but also developed strong bonds with many of them.

Dakich also appeared to earn the respect of IU’s players during his 12 seasons as an assistant coach.

“Danny was a competitor,” 1989 graduate Joe Hillman said. “He competed and scrapped, and he got everything out of what he had. He was just a great competitive guy. He was very, very knowledgeable about the game.”

Indiana has received a list of alleged violations from the NCAA and is expected to make it public Wednesday.

University trustees president Stephen Ferguson told The Associated Press on Tuesday night that school officials this week reviewed a report, which stems from impermissible phone calls made by basketball coach Kelvin Sampson and his staff during 2006 and 2007.

The NCAA is not expected to make its ruling until this summer

There won’t be a hearing till this June,” Ferguson said. “It’s just been reviewed, and I think everyone is analyzing it now.”

Ferguson would not detail what is contained in the report.

It comes in response to October’s announcement that a university investigation found Sampson made more than 100 impermissible phone calls while still on NCAA probation for infractions he committed during his tenure at Oklahoma.

Sampson was found to have made 577 impermissible calls from 2000 to 2004 and was punished by the NCAA in May 2006, less than two months after taking the Indiana job. Sampson was banned from calling recruits and making off-campus visits for one year.

Among the restrictions imposed on Sampson was a provision that did not allow him to participate in three-way calls. But the university found Sampson was involved in at least 10 three-way calls, most patched through by then assistant coach Rob Senderoff.

Sampson said in October he was unaware he was participating in a three-way conversation on nine occasions. He also explained Senderoff was helping recruits reach Sampson, in part because Sampson’s cell phone signal often dropped. Recruits then, Sampson said, would call back Senderoff seeking assistance.

NCAA rules do not prohibit three-way calls, although Sampson’s sanctions did.

The university then imposed its own sanctions on Sampson — forfeiting a $500,000 pay raise and one scholarship next season. Senderoff also was punished by forfeiting any bonuses or salary increases for one year and later resigned.

The university now has until May to respond to the report, before going before the NCAA in June.

“The report came out in October, the university filed its response and there’s really not been anything happening (on the board) in the last five months,” Ferguson said. “There have not been any discussions.”

Sampson’s Hoosiers have ignored the potential distractions from the investigation, posting a 20-3 mark and earning the No. 13 ranking in the latest AP poll. Indiana, at 9-1 in the Big Ten currently trails only No. 19 Purdue in the conference title chase.

Surveying the Big Ten schedule prior to the season, it seemed probable that the conference’s best team would be on the floor at Mackey Arena on Tuesday night.

Few would have guessed that team would be Purdue.

The 19th-ranked Boilermakers (19-5, 10-1) look to win a 10th straight game for the first time in nearly 12 years Tuesday when they face No. 10 Michigan State, which dealt Purdue its lone Big Ten loss.

The last time the Boilermakers won 10 in a row was during the 1995-96 season, when they won 11 straight conference games on their way to their third consecutive Big Ten title.

Michigan State (20-3, 8-2) was the popular pick to win the conference in 2007-08, and the Spartans looked like a solid bet to do so Jan. 8 when they beat Purdue 78-75. In that game, coach Tom Izzo’s team shot a season-high 61.0 percent en route to its 11th straight victory.

The Boilermakers, however, haven’t lost since. They defeated then-No. 8 Wisconsin 72-67 on the road Saturday for their first win over a top 10 team since knocking off then-No. 2 Duke 78-68 on Nov. 29, 2003.

Purdue finds itself alone atop the Big Ten.

“(When) they pick you eighth or ninth in the league, it’s tough to publicly talk about winning a championship. It really is,” coach Matt Painter said.

Freshman Robbie Hummel, who had 17 points in a win over Penn State on Tuesday, scored a season-high 21 at Wisconsin and was named Big Ten player of the week.

Hummel is one of four freshmen who average at least 6.0 points for the Boilermakers. Freshman E’Twaun Moore, who leads the team with 11.2 points per game, was the player of the week immediately before Hummel.

Six of the team’s top seven scorers are freshmen or sophomores.

“Everybody still talks about us as the Baby Boilers,” said sophomore Chris Kramer, who had 12 points against the Badgers. “I think we use that as motivation, that we have something to prove still. We’re still not getting any credit for the stuff we’ve accomplished.”

Purdue has never beaten top 10 teams in back-to-back games, but will get its fifth chance to do so when it faces Michigan State.

The Spartans have won six of eight since their first meeting with the Boilermakers, but both losses were alarming ones that came against a pair of lower-tier Big Ten squads.

Michigan State allowed a season high in points in an 85-76 loss at Penn State on Feb. 2, and recorded its lowest point total in nearly 57 years in a 43-36 defeat at Iowa on Jan. 13.

Their previous low in the shot clock era came in their most recent trip to West Lafayette, a 62-38 loss to Purdue on Feb. 7, 2007.

Michigan State is coming off a 70-55 win over Northwestern on Saturday, its 18th straight home victory. Preseason Big Ten player of the year Drew Neitzel tied a season-high with 21 points, rebounding from a six-point, 2-of-10 shooting effort against the Nittany Lions.

“I just wanted to be patient and not force shots at the beginning,” Neitzel said after not taking a shot for the first 12 minutes Saturday. “But that won’t work next week at Purdue … I’ll have to be more aggressive and carry the team at times.”

Sophomore Raymar Morgan did his part to carry the Spartans earlier in the season, and he leads the team with 15.8 points per game. He’s been less of a factor lately, scoring 10 points or fewer in five of his last eight games.

Michigan State is the best rebounding team in the Big Ten (38.9 per game) and is led by Goran Suton with an 8.4 average, while Purdue is second-to-last (32.8). The Spartans outrebounded the Boilermakers 34-26 in their first meeting.

It took several missed Shaun Pruitt free throws in crunch time, and a huge performance by Armon Bassett in the second overtime but Indiana found a way to pull off a huge victory Thursday night at the other Assembly Hall.

Bassett, who had five points in regulation and the first overtime combined, scored 11 points in the second overtime, including all eight of his free throws, to lift No. 14 IU to a come-from-behind 83-79 victory over the Illini.

“He hit some big shots for us but none were bigger than all of those free throws,” said IU coach Kelvin Sampson. “Last year when we won at Connecticut, Armon hit four big free throws at the end to win that game. All I can say is it was good to see him at the free throw line tonight at the end of the game.”

It was Indiana’s first victory in Champaign since 1999, and gave the Hoosiers a sweep of Illinois for the 2008 Big Ten season. It was also the fifth victory in six road games for Indiana (19-3, 8-1 Big Ten) including four of five in the Big Ten. The Hoosiers kept pace with Purdue and Wisconsin with only one Big Ten loss.

Illinois (10-14, 2-9) appeared to have the game in hand at several points. The Illini led by as many as 12 in the second half, and by three with 40.6 seconds to play in regulation. But Eric Gordon, who was limited to one point in the first half, banked in a 3-pointer from the left wing with 23.7 seconds remaining to tie the score at 63.

Eventually the Illini’s season-long inability to make free throws caught up with them. Illinois, ranked 10th in the Big Ten in foul shooting at 60 percent, missed a chance to take the lead with 4.2 seconds remaining when Pruitt missed the front end of a one-and-one free throw opportunity.

At the end of the first overtime, with the scored tied at 69, Pruitt was fouled on an inside putback by Gordon with 2.2 seconds remaining and had two shots to give Illinois the lead. But he missed both and the game went into a second OT.

“I feel bad for Shaun,” Illinois coach Bruce Weber said. “I thought he gave us pretty good effort. D.J. (White) is good and he battled him inside. And it was a shame for him and for kids that he couldn’t make one of those free throws.”

Pruitt had 13 points but was 1-of-7 from the free throw line. Illinois finished 8-of-17, 47.1 percent.

In the second overtime, Bassett hit an early 3-pointer to put IU up 74-71 with 3:33 to play, and the Hoosiers never trailed again. Illinois cut the lead to two on a couple of occasions but Bassett kept making his foul shots to keep the Illini at bay.

His two free throws with 5.2 seconds to play put the game away at 83-79. IU finished 22-of-29 from the free throw line (75.9 percent).

For the first 20 minutes, things went about as poorly as possible for Gordon.

In 17 minutes, he missed all four of his shots from the field, was the victim of an offensive foul, had two turnovers and managed one point from the foul line. Illinois fans were clearly in his head in his return game to the place where he once gave his oral commitment before changing his mind and deciding to play at Indiana.

But he bounced back to score 17 points in the second half and added a free throw in the second overtime. He finished with 19 points on just 3-of-13 shooting from the field, and 10-of-12 from the free throw line.

D.J. White had 16 points and nine rebounds and Jordan Crawford added 18 points, on 4-of-6 3-point shooting, for the Hoosiers.

Freshman Demetri McCamey kept the Illini close with a career-high 31 points. McCamey, who had scored in double figures just four times in 24 previous games this season, was 11-of-20 from the field including 7-of-13 from 3-point range.

Not even Chris Webber could fix the problems that bedeviled the Golden State Warriors in his first game back. The veteran forward wasn’t even sure he could identify what went so terribly wrong in the Chicago Bulls‘ improbable victory.

He left that diagnosis to his teammates and coaches, who all pointed out the gaping defensive void that the Bulls walked through to victory.

Chris Duhon scored a career-high 34 points, Joe Smith had 27 and the undermanned Bulls hung on for a 114-108 victory Thursday night, spoiling Webber’s return to Golden State after a 13-year absence.

Webber had four points and two assists in 12 minutes in his first game with the Warriors since the former No. 1 overall draft pick forced a trade after his tumultuous rookie season in 1994. Wearing an orange headband and his familiar No. 4, Webber was introduced to mild applause in Golden State’s starting lineup.

“It felt good to be out there and get that first foul,” said Webber, who missed shots on Golden State’s first two possessions. “Not the result, but it felt good. Nervous is good. I think it was anxiousness more than being scared.”

The Bulls had plenty of reason to be frightened in their fourth road game in six nights while playing without three of their top four scorers. Instead, they produced one of their gutsiest efforts of the season, led by Duhon’s superb performance as the only true guard in Chicago’s eight-man rotation.

With Ben Gordon, Luol Deng and Kirk Hinrich all sidelined, Duhon’s 11-of-16 shooting, four 3-pointers and nine assists carried the Bulls early as they somehow stayed in front of the well-rested Warriors. Tyrus Thomas then took over late, getting 13 of his 15 points in the fourth quarter as the Bulls scored on nine of 10 possessions down the stretch.

“I took open shots, got my rhythm, and they continued to keep falling,” Duhon said. “Being the only guard tonight, it gives you extra confidence knowing that you could be a little bit more aggressive. Even if you miss a few shots and make a couple of mistakes, Coach is going to continue to keep playing you, so you just play a little bit more loose and don’t play mind games with yourself.”

That mentality worked for all eight Bulls. With steady production from a slow-paced offensive plan in a 37-point fourth quarter, Chicago won in Oakland for the first time in nine tries since Jan. 30, 1998, during Michael Jordan’s final season with the club.

“We really needed this one,” said Thabo Sefolosha, who had nine points and seven rebounds. “It was a close game, and we were able to finish it. A lot of players stepped up and brought a lot of things to the team. It’s great when the team plays like that, fighting together for wins.”

Al Harrington, who’s likely to lose playing time to Webber, had 20 points and hit four 3-pointers, but Baron Davis‘ 8-for-24 outing and Stephen Jackson’s 6-of-19 performance doomed the Warriors to just their second loss in six games. Monta Ellis led Golden State with 25 points, while Davis had 22 and Jackson 19.

“There’s no excuse to lose this game when their three best players aren’t even playing,” Jackson said. “Our defense was terrible. I don’t know what it was. I think (Duhon) just wanted the game more than we did, and then when they’re giving it to Tyrus Thomas in the fourth quarter to score buckets and he’s delivering, you’re not going to win.”

After Davis hit a layup to pull Golden State within 101-100 with 2:16 left, Chicago scored the next seven points — all on free throws, including four by Smith, another former No. 1 pick (1995) who didn’t do much for the Warriors.

“I don’t think the guys are quitting, I think the guys are stepping up,” Chicago coach Jim Boylan said. “We’re down quite a few players, but we’re not letting that change the way we’re playing. The guys that we have are coming out and playing hard and taking advantage of their opportunities to get some serious playing time.”

After Portland held off Chicago, Martell Webster teased teammate Brandon Roy, poking him with a tape recorder and getting right in his mug before giggling.

Nothing like a win to bring out the pranksters, but Roy tried to keep it in perspective.

“You can sense that guys are getting ready for the All-Star break and some rest, but we’ve got to fight through,” Roy said.

Roy scored 28 points and LaMarcus Aldridge 18 points for the Blazers, who led Chicago by as many as 13 points in the second half.

Chicago threatened in the final minutes. Ben Wallace’s dunk with 2:01 left narrowed it to 91-88, but Travis Outlaw kept the Blazers out in front with a pair of free throws.

After Tyrus Thomas‘ hook shot closed the gap again for Chicago with 1:14 left, Outlaw answered with his own hook shot to make it 95-90 with 26.9 seconds to go.

Thabo Sefolosha, who had a career-high 22 points, made a layup for the Bulls to pull close again.

After Jarrett Jack made just one of two free throws for the Blazers, Chris Duhon hit a baseline jumper to make it 96-94 with 7.2 seconds left. Jack then went back to the free-throw line, this time making both shots.

Andres Nocioni’s 3-pointer closed it to 98-97 with 0.8 seconds left, but officials had to rule whether Duhon’s foul on Roy came before the buzzer.

The officials added 0.5 seconds to the clock, Roy went to the foul line and made both of his shots for the final margin.

Nocioni also had 22 points for the Bulls.

Chicago guard Kirk Hinrich wasn’t in the lineup because of bruised ribs. Hinrich, averaging 13 points, six assists and 3.5 rebounds, was injured in Chicago’s 118-108 victory at Seattle on Monday. Duhon started in his place.

Ben Gordon also didn’t play because of a sprained right wrist. The guard had 20 points against the SuperSonics and was averaging 20 points, but has struggled of late with his wrist.

I knew our guys would give a great effort tonight being short-handed,” Bulls interim coach Jim Boylan said. “We came up short, but we had our chances down the stretch.”

Thomas returned after missing the game against the SuperSonics with a sprained left foot.

Portland coach Nate McMillan shook up his starting lineup, going with Jack as shooting guard and Roy at small forward. The change wasn’t because of poor play, but because the Blazers have been forced to reshuffle their rotation with the absence of 3-point shooter James Jones, who’s out until after the All-Star game to rest a sore left knee.

The Blazers, who had a 13-game winning streak in December but cooled off considerably in January, next head out on a four-game road trip starting at Detroit on Friday night.

“It’s a good feeling to come out of here with the win, especially when you’re getting ready to go out on the road for a week,” Webster said.

And Roy got Webster back for the microphone-in-the-face routine.

“We’ve just got to stay focused. Right now, Martell is having a hard time getting focused. Hopefully he’ll be ready tomorrow,” Roy said jokingly.

Joakim Noah’s dunk late in the first quarter tied it at 21 before the Blazers began to pull away. Portland answered with a 14-3 run to lead 35-23.

Aldridge’s dunk made it 41-29, and the Blazers went on to lead 49-43 at the half.

The Bulls gained ground in the second half, closing within 66-62 on Nocioni’s 3-pointer. But Roy came back with an off-balance, falling-down jumper, and Webster followed with a dunk to make it 70-62.

“I think we did pretty good and we played hard and we played with heart,” Sefolosha said. “I don’t really see what we could have done different.”

Purdue celebrated its first national ranking in four years with a win.

Robbie Hummel scored 17 points and E’Twaun Moore added 16 to help the 24th-ranked Boilermakers beat Penn State 67-53 on Tuesday night.

Purdue coach Matt Painter said his young team handled the pressure of being newly ranked well.

“I think we did a good job of just focusing on Penn State,” he said. “We didn’t talk about the ranking much, except to say once you get ranked, you want to stay ranked. It means you’re playing good basketball.”

Marcus Green scored 11 of his 14 points in the second half for the Boilermakers (18-5, 9-1 Big Ten), who won their eighth straight to move into sole possession of first place in the league.

Mike Walker scored 12 points and Danny Morrissey added 11 for Penn State (11-11, 3-7).

The win gave the Boilermakers their best conference start since the 1989-90 season.

Moore, a freshman guard, had his second consecutive strong outing. He scored 20 points in the second half of a win at Illinois last Saturday. Painter was impressed that he got his 16 points on just six field-goal attempts.

“He’s been very efficient lately,” Painter said. “It’s not just scoring the ball, it’s taking care of the basketball, getting assists, not having many turnovers. He’s picking his spots.”

Green, a reserve, scored 15 points against Illinois.

“He’s ben very consistent for us the last couple of weeks,” Painter said. “He played strong, he played solid and he made some big plays.”

Balanced scoring has been one of Purdue’s best qualities all season. The Boilermakers have had four different leading scorers during the winning streak.

“That’s what’s special about them,” Penn State coach Ed DeChellis said. “They can beat you in so many ways. They have six or seven guys that can beat you on any given night.”

Purdue won despite losing reserve forward Scott Martin midway through the first half with a sprained right ankle.

Penn State was coming off a win against then-No. 8 Michigan State on Sunday. The Nittany Lions couldn’t duplicate that success against Purdue because of 38 percent shooting in the second half. The Nittany Lions also shot 36 percent from the free throw line.

Purdue won both games against Penn State this season and its fourth straight overall in the series. The Boilermakers won 64-42 at Penn State on Jan. 23

Purdue led 39-36 before Green scored on a putback and was fouled by Jamelle Cornley. Green made the free throw, and Cornley left the game for good with a bloody lip. Cornley finished with eight points and six rebounds.

Purdue led 48-43 before going on an 8-0 run during which four different players scored. Purdue held the Nittany Lions scoreless for nearly 5 minutes during that stretch. The final points during that run were two free throws by Hummel with 7:19 to play that gave the Boilermakers a 56-43 lead. The Nittany Lions never came closer than 10 points the rest of the way.

“We went in at halftime and just made a point to have more energy,” Green said. “Turn up the intensity and let the crowd get into it.”

Purdue led 33-23 on a jumper by JaJuan Johnson with 2 minutes left in the first half, but Penn State closed with a 7-0 run to cut Purdue’s lead to 33-30 at halftime. Penn State shot 57 percent in the first half, but committed 12 turnovers.

Painter said the Big Ten start is impressive, but there’s more to accomplish.

“We have beaten some tough teams,” he said. “I’m proud of our staff and players, and we’re going to stay the course. It’s not a 10-game conference season. We have a lot of basketball left to play.”

A cortisone shot and three miserable days in bed without any desire to eat. That was Joe Smith’s unlikely prescription for a big night.

Smith returned to the starting lineup to score 25 points and the Chicago Bulls defeated the Seattle SuperSonics 118-108 on Monday night. He had been sidelined for two games last week with a sore knee and then the flu.

“Constant headache. Sore throat. Chest pains. Shivers. Sweats,” the 12th-year veteran said of what he had in the days before Chicago’s second victory in six games.

“I’m still fighting it a little bit.”

Tell that to Seattle. Its soft interior defense made Smith look like the healthiest man on the floor

Then again, the passive Sonics made almost everyone in a Bulls jersey look great. After a three-game spate of unusual defense spawned a season-best three-game winning streak, Seattle reverted to the usual, slacking ways that made it tied with Denver as third-worst in the league in allowing points (103.9 per game) entering Monday.

The Bulls, still playing without second-leading scorer Luol Deng and Monday’s final quarter without slashing point guard Kirk Hinrich, also got 20 points from Ben Gordon. Hinrich added 15 points before leaving with a rib injury, while Andres Nocioni and low-scoring rookie Aaron Gray each had 14 in Chicago’s third-highest scoring game of the season.

“They are not overly talented, so to speak, but they keep coming after you,” said Wally Szczerbiak, who led Seattle with 21 points off the bench.

“If you’re not ready to play, they are going to punch you in the mouth. We can really learn a lot from this team.”

Chicago interim coach Jim Boylan said Hinrich, who also had five assists and repeatedly pushed the ball into Seattle’s soft middle before he left, was to stay in Seattle to get tests at a hospital instead of joining his teammates on the postgame flight to Portland. The Bulls play there Wednesday.

“I don’t know the extent of the injury. I think they are just being cautious,” Boylan said.

Seattle, which also got 20 points from rookie Kevin Durant, still hasn’t won four in a row since April, 2006.

We got outplayed at every position,” said Seattle coach P.J. Carlesimo, who added he was “very disappointed.”

“If you score 108 points, you should be able to win the game. We scored 108 and weren’t even in it.”

Boylan said he wanted to start Smith, who had scored nine points in 16 minutes off the bench Saturday at Sacramento while admitting he still felt sick, because he wanted the 12th-year veteran’s scoring early in games. That is especially true with Deng still out indefinitely with an Achilles injury.

Joakim Noah had averaged 10 points while starting the previous three games for Smith, but Boylan said he likes Noah’s rookie energy coming off the bench.

Smith roamed free while getting eight points in the first eight minutes and 14 in all in the first half, as Chicago twice built 10-point leads.

Seattle got no closer than to within five after halftime. Earl Watson made a 3-pointer and Kurt Thomas scored his only basket of the night to begin the second half. Consecutive 3-pointers by Nocioni and Hinrich plus a layup by Smith put the Bulls back up 64-54.

When Seattle got to within 77-71 late in the period, Gordon converted a three-point play and Noah had a tip-in and free throw to make it 82-71.

And when Luke Ridnour’s 3-pointer got Seattle to within 91-84 with 8:41 left, Chris Duhon answered with consecutive, long 3’s — his first two baskets of the game. Smith’s easy layup while roaming free in the lane had Chicago cruising 103-91 with four minutes remaining.

Smith was 9-for-18 shooting, after making just 2 of 12 in his previous start, Jan. 27 in a loss to Phoenix.

“I was knocking down shots before the game, in warmups,” Smith said. “I knew this might be a good one.”