Frazier shoots Illini into quarterfinals

~ The point guard scored a career-high 21 points in a 66-60 victory over Penn State.

CHICAGO -- Chester Frazier's game is usually speed, not long-range shooting.

After surviving a first-round scare in the Big Ten tournament, Illinois is plenty glad that Frazier kept taking and hitting open 3-pointers.

"They tend to shade toward Rich [McBride] more. I'm not so good from deep," Frazier said Thursday after the Illini nearly blew a 16-point lead before hanging on to beat Penn State 66-60.

"They took away the flashes, and I made some open shots. Not a big deal, just made some shots."

Frazier, the Illini's point guard, finished with a career-high 21 points and was 5-for-9 on his 3-pointers after shooting just 31 percent during the regular season.

Frazier shot well, but Mike Walker of Penn State was even better, hitting a tournament-record seven 3-pointers and scoring a career-high 22 points. He had 19 points in the second half when he was 6-for-9 on 3-pointers.

"He hit seven threes, all big shots," Frazier said. "I think he has a lot of guts for those shots, and he's a heck of a player."

The Illini (22-10) move on to the quarterfinals in a Friday night matchup against Indiana. Illinois now is 30-6 all-time at the United Center where it has won 17 straight dating back to 2001.

Thought to be a so-called "bubble" team for the NCAA tournament, the Illini feel good about their chances and figure a win over the Hoosiers would make them a lock.

"I think we're in good shape, but that doesn't mean we're in. You still have some other tournaments left. Some craziness can still happen," Illinois coach Bruce Weber said.

"I will not feel good unless we get into Saturday or Sunday."

Frazier and McBride opened the second half with 3-pointers to start a 14-3 run. Frazier's driving layup and another 3 against the Nittany Lions' zone produced a 41-25 lead.

But Penn State (11-19) kept scrapping.

The Nittany Lions closed to within 58-53 on Brandon Hassell's three-point play with 2:30 remaining, stole the inbounds pass and made it 58-55 on a basket by David Jackson.

Jamelle Cornley's jump hook in the lane cut Illinois' lead to 59-57 with 1:35 left.

But Shaun Pruitt took a pass and hit a layup for Illinois and then rebounded on the other end after a Cornley miss. Brian Randle's two free throws put Illinois up six.