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One game he’s the goat. A five-star, nine-horned, one-legged goat at that.

The next game he’s the hero, and we can all moan about the endless dribbling out top and about anything you want to, including being more than a little bit lucky. But let’s be decent enough to give Chester Frazier his due. He was the hero Tuesday night in Illinois’ 57-50 victory over Michigan State.

Frazier tied a career-high with 17 points, made 6 of 8 shots including four shots that beat either the shot clock or the halftime clock, and hit two big free throws near the end to help hold off Michigan State on a night when Illinois made it far too interesting by making just 16 of 31 free throws.

And there’s more to his heroic story. He suffered a new toe injury in practice and on Tuesday morning Weber was told by the training staff that Frazier could not play. During the day, and in warmups, his toe responded enough so that the training staff basically asked Weber if he’d rather have Frazier against Michigan State or against Minnesota on Saturday. Weber said he’d rather have him against the Spartans, even if that meant giving up on any chance of him playing Saturday.

Before the national anthem, Weber asked Frazier if he could play. He was limping during warmups and he told Weber he could not start, but to let him sit on the bench and let the game get rolling and he’d see. Frazier entered the game at the 14-minute mark and helped share in the defensive role against Michigan State’s Drew Neitzel.

Frazier and Rich McBride were mostly responsible for pressuring Neitzel all over the court and Neitzel finished with 10 points, nine below his average. He was 2 of 12 shooting.

After the game, Michigan State coach Tom Izzo pulled Frazier aside.

“He showed me more guts than anyone I’ve seen since Mateen Cleaves,” Izzo said of his former point guard, the heart and soul of a team that led the Spartans to the 2000 national championship. “Everyone knows he’s hurt. Watching him before the game, he could hardly walk.

“I told him at our place he’s the toughest player in the league. I told him that again tonight. It was a gutsy effort.”

Shaun Pruitt added 15 points but provided most of the anxiety at the free throw line by making just 5 of 14, including 3 of 11 in the second half.

“They call me ‘Shaq,’” Pruitt said, lowering his head sheepishly at the comparison to Shaquille O’Neal and his reputation as one of the NBA’s worst free throw shooters.

It was not a good night for Warren Carter, who had just five points and never really got into the flow. But he did have a huge basket on a flying baseline reverse that increased Illinois’ lead from 49-46 to 51-46 at a time when Michigan State was inching perilously close.

And Brian Randle, who was not expected to play, actually started after telling Weber he could play through the pain in his injured foot. Randle gave Illinois 20 minutes, some defense, four points and three rebounds.

Jamar Smith’s shooting slump continues, although he didn’t push the issue. He was clearly bashful about shooting and finished 0-for-2, both three-pointers.

It may not have been pretty. But if you watched Michigan State come roaring back against Ohio State on Saturday night, you know the Spartans are capable of playing well on the road. And at this point, who really cares if it’s pretty? The name of the game is wins and this is one Illinois badly needed to start a stretch run in Big Ten play.

I imagine Michigan State fans are growling pretty loudly today, especially after watching the 15 first-half turnovers that had Izzo practically yanking out his hair.

Weber said he’s received e-mails from all kinds of people with suggestions regarding the free throw shooting. Experts, theorists, witch doctors, you name them, he’s heard from them.

He also said he does not expect Frazier to play Saturday, the tradeoff for playing against the Spartans.

Weber said no one took the Purdue loss harder than Frazier, and in that regard I’m glad he bounced back so strong. No one wants to see a kid have two of those in a row.

One game he’s the goat. A five-star, nine-horned, one-legged goat at that.

The next game he’s the hero, and we can all moan about the endless dribbling out top and about anything you want to, including being more than a little bit lucky. But let’s be decent enough to give Chester Frazier his due. He was the hero Tuesday night in Illinois’ 57-50 victory over Michigan State.

Frazier tied a career-high with 17 points, made 6 of 8 shots including four shots that beat either the shot clock or the halftime clock, and hit two big free throws near the end to help hold off Michigan State on a night when Illinois made it far too interesting by making just 16 of 31 free throws.

And there’s more to his heroic story. He suffered a new toe injury in practice and on Tuesday morning Weber was told by the training staff that Frazier could not play. During the day, and in warmups, his toe responded enough so that the training staff basically asked Weber if he’d rather have Frazier against Michigan State or against Minnesota on Saturday. Weber said he’d rather have him against the Spartans, even if that meant giving up on any chance of him playing Saturday.

Before the national anthem, Weber asked Frazier if he could play. He was limping during warmups and he told Weber he could not start, but to let him sit on the bench and let the game get rolling and he’d see. Frazier entered the game at the 14-minute mark and helped share in the defensive role against Michigan State’s Drew Neitzel.

Frazier and Rich McBride were mostly responsible for pressuring Neitzel all over the court and Neitzel finished with 10 points, nine below his average. He was 2 of 12 shooting.

After the game, Michigan State coach Tom Izzo pulled Frazier aside.

“He showed me more guts than anyone I’ve seen since Mateen Cleaves,” Izzo said of his former point guard, the heart and soul of a team that led the Spartans to the 2000 national championship. “Everyone knows he’s hurt. Watching him before the game, he could hardly walk.

“I told him at our place he’s the toughest player in the league. I told him that again tonight. It was a gutsy effort.”

Shaun Pruitt added 15 points but provided most of the anxiety at the free throw line by making just 5 of 14, including 3 of 11 in the second half.

“They call me ‘Shaq,’” Pruitt said, lowering his head sheepishly at the comparison to Shaquille O’Neal and his reputation as one of the NBA’s worst free throw shooters.

It was not a good night for Warren Carter, who had just five points and never really got into the flow. But he did have a huge basket on a flying baseline reverse that increased Illinois’ lead from 49-46 to 51-46 at a time when Michigan State was inching perilously close.

And Brian Randle, who was not expected to play, actually started after telling Weber he could play through the pain in his injured foot. Randle gave Illinois 20 minutes, some defense, four points and three rebounds.

Jamar Smith’s shooting slump continues, although he didn’t push the issue. He was clearly bashful about shooting and finished 0-for-2, both three-pointers.

It may not have been pretty. But if you watched Michigan State come roaring back against Ohio State on Saturday night, you know the Spartans are capable of playing well on the road. And at this point, who really cares if it’s pretty? The name of the game is wins and this is one Illinois badly needed to start a stretch run in Big Ten play.

I imagine Michigan State fans are growling pretty loudly today, especially after watching the 15 first-half turnovers that had Izzo practically yanking out his hair.

Weber said he’s received e-mails from all kinds of people with suggestions regarding the free throw shooting. Experts, theorists, witch doctors, you name them, he’s heard from them.

He also said he does not expect Frazier to play Saturday, the tradeoff for playing against the Spartans.

Weber said no one took the Purdue loss harder than Frazier, and in that regard I’m glad he bounced back so strong. No one wants to see a kid have two of those in a row.

And you thought that Ohio State game was the low water mark?

Lucky for the Illini basketball team Saturday’s 64-47 loss at Purdue only counts as one defeat, because if they handed them out based on style points, Illinois would have dipped from 3-4 to the Big Ten to about 3-8 in one afternoon. Talk about ugly. That was four-loss ugly.

After a 4-4 tie, Illinois watched as Purdue went on a 21-0 run. That’s right, 21-0, a period during which Illinois missed all eight of its shots and recorded six of its 11 turnovers. That made it 25-4 and basically, it was over.

Oh, sure, Illinois made a run or two and, if it had not left eight free throws unconverted in first half, the score at intermission could have been a lot closer than 34-20. But every time Illinois would make a play or two, Purdue would answer with something from David Teague (28 points) or Carl Landry (17 points) or Illinois would chip in with a bungled play or an awful shot.

Shaun Pruitt had his seventh double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds, although virtually no one bothered to get him the ball early in the game. And Warren Carter had 12 points.

But Chester Frazier, Jamar Smith, Rich McBride, Trent Meacham and Calvin Brock were a combined 5-for-31 shooting and Frazier had four turnovers to go with his four assists. That’s OK. Carter had six turnovers.

Frazier was a fantastic rebounder, which is nice and shows how hard he’s willing to play, but at 6-2 and as the point guard, this team needs him to do other things. Like run the offense. Like distribute the ball. Like limit his own shots. And on this day, I thought it was the worst point guard performance by an Illini since Sergio McClain in (what?) 1999. And that wasn’t really Sergio’s fault. He was a 6-foot-3 power forward forced to play point guard when Lon Kruger could see no alternatives. He probably knew he was out of position but was willing to give it a try. And I don’t actually remember it clearly enough to say that Sergio was worse at the point than Chester was on Saturday. I just recall it made me cringe to think about him playing that far out of position.

Purdue didn’t even bother to guard Frazier, and the Purdue fans took great delight in what amounted to a defensive strategy that taunted his inability to shoot. They were practically rolling in the aisles near where I was sitting and at one point, a healthy contingent of Illini fans was reduced to chanting, “Let’s go Bears!,” a Super Bowl taunt of their own aimed at Colts’ fans. I’m guessing most of those loyal Illini fans made the drive to West Lafayette expecting to see a whole lot more.

This was a dismal day that even included a technical foul against Bruce Weber when it appeared Shaun Pruitt was bumped out of bounds (no call as made). Not Weber’s best day, either.

Can Illinois bounce back on Tuesday against Michigan State? Sure, but you have to wonder about a team’s overall maturity and ability to recognize the urgency of the situation if they come to Purdue and get clocked before all of the fans have found their seats. Losing on the road is one thing. Losing like Illinois did Saturday is another.

And where is the outside shooting going to come from? I’d triple-team Pruitt, double-team Carter and leave everyone else uncovered, daring them to shoot. You’d see the most packed-in zone defense ever attempted.

Smith’s shooting slump has now reached epic proportions. Over the past seven games he has made just 5 of 44 shots including 2-for-33 from 3-point distance. The player who should be Illinois’ best shooter has become its worst and with Frazier a non-threat from the perimeter and with Brian Randle bolted to the bench until further notice, Illinois’ offensive options are few.

Illinois beat Indiana with defense, effort and by riding the comforts of the home court edge. But is there another game on the schedule you can guarantee this team will win? Maybe Minnesota in Champaign next Saturday. Maybe Northwestern in Champaign on Feb. 18. Maybe. But for me, that’s it.

This team is capable of losing any of the other six.

What’s needed is a great stretch run, a 6-2 finish in league play. Saturday’s performance did nothing to make anyone believe that’s likely.

It goes without saying that Bruce Weber and Matt Painter think a lot alike. They’ve been two peas in the same basketball pod for many years and they share similar basketball philosophies now, both on and off the court.

Weber recruited Painter to Purdue when Painter was a high school player. Then Weber hired Painter as his assistant coach at Southern Illinois University. And if SIU had not named Painter to replace Weber as the Salukins’ head coach, Weber had every intention of hiring Painter to be his assistant at the University of Illinois.

As it turned out, Painter was a smashing one-season success at SIU, then headed off to Purdue as the interim head coach in waiting during Gene Keady’s final season. Weber lobbied long and hard for Purdue to recognize Painter as the proper heir apparent.

On Saturday, they’ll be going head-to-head, each trying to win an important Big Ten Conference game in West Lafayette, Ind.

It’s important because both teams are paddling as fast as they can to swim upstream and grab one of the Big Ten’s berths in the NCAA Tournament. And in separate teleconferences Thursday, each coach said they have their sights set on a 9-7 league record. That, they believe, would get them into the tournament.

Said Painter: “If we go 9-and-7, we were 11-3 in the non-conference and we had a solid non-conference season. At 9-7 w’ll have beaten some pretty good people who are in the tournament. But at 8-8 I’d be very nervous.”

Weber agreed that 9-7 is the goal. The minimum goal. “Yeah, I think nine would give us a chance. I definitely agree with that. And win your first game in the Big Ten Tournament. That would give us 22 wins.”

Weber said he normally talks to Painter “a minimum of once a week, sometimes more than that. This week, we probably won’t communicate. But in between, we try to help each other out, talking about other teams, ourselves. We stay in touch quite a bit.

“I think he’s a great basketball mind. He loves basketball. I guess you’d say he’s a (basketball) junkie and was way back when he was a player. Whether it was recruiting publications, watching games, knowing players, he had a great feel for it.

“He wasn’t the most athletic kid, but he understood how to play the game. That’s helped him as a coach. He is very dedicated and motivated and goes beyond the limits of time he puts into it. He’ll do a good job.”

If Illinois loses at Purdue Saturday, it will need to go 6-2 down the stretch in the Big Ten to reach 9-7. Looking at the schedule, I’m figuring losses at Indiana and at Iowa. That means Illinois would have to win home games against Michigan State, Minnesota, Northwestern and Michigan as well as road games at Northwestern and Penn State.

All of that is doable, but the Penn State game will be scary, as will the home games against Michigan State and Michigan and the road trip to Northwestern.

That’s why Saturday’s Purdue game is big. Win that one and you’ve at least got a little more wiggle room. Purdue has had its struggles, but it is undefeated at home and should be well-rested after a one-week rest.

I’m going to leave all the Bruce Weber-Kelvin Sampson-Eric Gordon stuff to everyone who wants to rehash all of that stuff. I don’t.

I saw a possible breakthrough effort by a short-handed Illini basketball team Tuesday night and that’s what caught my interest, in part because it came against Sampson’s very good, 23rd-ranked Indiana basketball team and in part because it was exactly the kind of game Illinois hasn’t been able to win this season.

It’s not the first time Illinois had had a gutsy performance against a good team. Illinois did that without question against Arizona in Phoenix. Illinois did that most recently Saturday against No. 2 Wisconsin. But as every Illini fans knows, this team has not been able to close the deal, leading many of these games in the second half, only to fade down the stretch.

This time, despite playing without Brian Randle (foot), Illinois got the job done, winning 51-43, mainly with unrelenting defense that made D.J. White work like a dog around the basket and by hounding Indiana’s dangerous outside shooters around the arc.

The turning point came after Indiana had taken an 18-11 lead with 12:17 to go in the first half. From that point until Indiana finally scored its first basket in the second half, the Hoosiers went 17 minutes, 24 seconds and scored exactly one basket and three free throws. And Indiana’s 18-11 lead turned into a 31-23 Illini lead. A team that came in averaging 76 points scored 43, its low for the season.

Four players deserve special mention. Shaun Pruitt, who sprained his knee late in the Wisconsin game, didn’t know until the afternoon shootaround that he would play. And he played outstanding, scoring 10 points and grabbing 13 rebounds while making D.J. White work hard for his dozen points. That was Pruitt’s sixth double-double of the season and he’s getting better. I really hope he can stay healthy, because he’s such a hard-worker around the basket. There’s no way Illinois wins this game without him.

Rich McBride scored 15 points and it was his back-to-back 3-pointers early in the second half that gave Illinois a little cushion to play with. McBride is playing hard on defense and has averaged over 13 points the last five games. And he had the single best assist of his career when he whipped a pass inside to Carter, who scored on a sweet backdoor dunk with 6:26 to go, putting Illinois up 39-35.

Carter finished with 14 points and six rebounds and was 6-for-6 from the free throw line.

And Chester Frazier’s stat line wasn’t great (seven points, three assists, three turnovers), but his energy helped set the tone against Indiana. He played hard and Sampson said he thought Illinois got its identity from Frazier (and his relentless effort).

For those of you who did not attend or watch the game, I’ll say that the crowd was loud and rowdy, booed Sampson at every opportunity and behaved fairly well (from what I could tell). There were a number of security people milling around behind the Indiana bench and near the small, designated Indiana fan section and aside from some conversations the security folks had with a few fans, I am not aware of any incidents.

The Illini players said Weber never once mentioned anything about the Sampson feud and neither coach wanted to talk about it after the game.

The teams meet again Feb. 10 in Bloomington, Ind. and I’d guess the Indiana crowd will be revved up and plenty loud.

For the Illini, the opportunity at hand is to try to win on the road Saturday at Purdue before returning for back-to-back home games against Michigan State and Minnesota.

Randle, by the way, is doubtful for Saturday, Weber said. He’ll be placed in boot for a couple of days and I suppose there’s an outside chance the rest could allow him to play a little bit. But Weber said he now expects Randle to be in pain the rest of the season and will play only when he can deal with the pain. They won without him Tuesday, but got no points and two rebounds from the bench. That’s a dangerous formula in the long run.

Weber started Jamar Smith, but his shooting woes continue. He was 1 for 6 overall and 1 for 5 from 3-point range. Over the past six games he is 4-for-37 shooting including 2-for-28 behind the arc. Ouch.

It was no secret that Illinois’ offense had bogged down something awful in the second half of its game against second-ranked Wisconsin Saturday. Too many times the offense drifted late, late, late into the shot clock, too often ending up with Chester Frazier taking a tough 3-pointer or someone else forcing up a shot.

As it was happening, I kept asking myself, “How is Illinois staying in this game?”

What kept Illinois in the game in the second half was committing just one turnover after halftime. Just one. But with the poor offense and 14-for-23 free throw shooting, Illinois couldn’t pull off the upset, even though it took a 60-57 lead with five minutes to play.

Close, but no cigar.

Credit Shaun Pruitt with playing the way he needed to for Illinois to have a chance. He scored 19 points (tying a career high) and had a career-high 14 rebounds. I thought Warren Carter played hard. He just didn’t shoot the ball well (4-for-11). And I give Rich McBride a lot of credit. Not only did he make 4 of 7 3-pointers for 15 points, he played his tail off on defense. McBride really gave a great effort and I applaud him for it.

I also think Chester Frazier played hard and did what he could. I just wish he could do more to generate offense late in the shot clock.

It’s Brian Randle, again, who has me ticked off. To Randle’s credit, he scored the first seven points in the 10-2 run that gave Illinois that late lead. But that was one spurt. He has eight points and two rebounds for the game. He played just seven minutes in the first half and did not have a point or a rebound after sitting much of the time with two fouls.

What angers me is that I think this is the one Illini player who can be such a difference-maker and he seems hesitant, for reasons I don’t understand, to take on that role. He attacked the basket only one time and it got him a three-point play. Why not attack the basket 15 times? Why not attack the basket the same way Alando Tucker attacks the basket, using his athleticism to jump over people and force the action? Why wait and watch?

And Jamar Smith’s confidence has melted into a pool of mud. As Bruce Weber said after the game, “I think most people felt Jamar would be a major focal point of our offense and right now he’s having trouble hitting the rim.” I can’t believe a kid who has his shooting skills can suddenly throw up air balls and shots that are three feet off course. I’m sure his ankles have something to do with it, but he needs to see a shrink as much as he needs attention from the trainer or shot doctor.

It’s going to be another tough one Tuesday against Indiana, which knocked off Connecticut 77-73 Saturday.

NOTES: Marcus Arnold never got off the bench Saturday. Weber used freshman Brian Carlwell in rotation with Pruitt. And Pruitt was hobbled with just over three minutes to go when an Indiana player collided with him, bruising his knee.
. . . Randle, Calvin Brock, McBride and Carter took turns defending Tucker, who scored 17 points but was 6-for-18 shooting. Wisconsin made 18 of 21 free throws, Illinois 14 of 23. That’s a lot of potential points to leave out there on the floor.

I don’t pretend to know much about these recruiting ratings everyone seems to be so concerned about. I really don’t. I don’t read those things because I don’t believe those things. I know some of the people who come up with them and they don’t know any more about whether one point guard is better than another than the average guy. The believe me, the average guy doesn’t know that much.

But I do know that when Alando Tucker was at Lockport Township High School, I heard a lot of college coaches say he was either an undersized power forward or a small forward without a jumper. That’s why there was not a long line of major colleges standing around hanging on his commitment. As it turned out, Bruce Weber recruited Tucker for Southern Illinois University, kind of hoping he’d slip through the cracks. He knew Illinois, Iowa and Purdue had just signed people and thought maybe, just maybe, Tucker might fall to the Salukis.

But Wisconsin jumped on Tucker, reconizing him as a player who might fit their system and the rest is history and arithmetic. Tucker will almost certainly win the Big Ten Player of the Year award and is a strong candidate for the national Player of the Year award, depending on his his Badgers’ team does the rest of the way.

He has made himself into a fantastic player. He’s a great athlete who has overcome injuries, held onto his athleticism and developed the missing jumper that scared some schools away. I love watching him play. He can make the craziest, difficult shots in addition to all the normal stuff. He’s a tremendous competitor, really good for the league.

Brian Randle gets the assignment of guarding him (Saturday) and admits it’s a tough challenge. For Randle, the real challenge is to defend without drawing fouls and he said he gets into trouble because he’s also going for the shutout. “I have to understand that some people are going to score and not to take it personally,” he said before practice on Friday. “That’s one of my problems. I don’t want anyone to score so I foul them rather than let them score. Then I get shutout because I’m on the bench.”

Bruce Weber has reminded Randle that he’s not much use on the bench. They need him on the floor and they need him to do his share of scoring in addition to defending.

Weber revealed that Randle has been bothered by a foot injury and it turns out he has been diagnosed with plantar fasciitis, which creates pain from his heel to his sole on his left foot. Randle shrugged it off when I asked him about it but the trainers are treating it aggressively.

Once upon a time “Paint the Hall Orange” was a big deal because we got to see what the Assembly Hall looked like with everyone dressed in orange. Nowadays, fans have made that standard dress, so it won’t be a big deal in that regard. But Bruce Weber will pull from his closet one of his six orange blazers. “One is kind of tangerine, another is a different shade, all kinds of orange,” he said, rolling his eyes.

I know what the fans would say: “Just pick a winner, coach.”

It’s hard for me to hang a grade on Illinois’ 64-52 victory at Minnesota Wednesday night.

On the one hand, it was a victory and it was a road victory, and if we’ve learned anything this season, it’s that neither can be taken for granted. Illinois played very well in the first half, building a 23-point lead and led 38-22 at intermission. They really stormed the offensive boards and finally got some transition baskets.

On the other hand, the second half was a sleep walk. Where I have trouble grading the performance is that I really think Minnesota was playing so poorly that Illinois lost interest. Maybe you had to be here, but this place was as quiet as any Big Ten arena I’ve ever been in. Only at halftime, when they introduced new head football coach Tim Brewster, did it get rowdy. Even when Minnesota mounted a little charge later in the second half, it never really got loud. I don’t think the fans believed they were witness to a monumental comeback and they weren’t. Minnesota never got it to single digits and Illinois won by a dozen.

The main thing is that Illinois won a Big Ten road game and it’s worth remembering that Purdue came in here and got beat by six.

It was good to see Warren Carter come out and attack and he admitted it’s something he has gotten away from lately, not on purpose, but because he’s still adjusting to being a main man after years of sitting on the bench.

“Coach really challenged me after the Michigan State game,” Carter said. “Players talked to me and coaches talked to me. I just realized that this team needs me to be aggressive, like I was earlier in the season, if we’re going to be successful.”

Not only does he need to continue to play that way, he needs to remind Brian Randle to do the same. Randle played like it in the second half, scoring Illinois’ first four baskets. And he played very good defense on Minnesota’s 6-9 forward Dan Coleman, limiting him to 2-for-13 shooting and 10 points, six of which he got at the free throw line.

What this does is restore a little confidence and give Illinois something to feel good about going into Saturday’s Assembly Hall showdown against second-ranked Wisconsin. I expect this to be the Assembly Hall at its best this season, although the intensity should be duplicated Tuesday when Indiana comes to town.

The players were already talking about it and there’s clearly a lot of respect for the Badgers. Randle said he expects to be guarding Alando Tucker, the Badgers’ All-American.

“We’re good friends so I’ll probably text message him and say, ‘What’s up?’” Randle said. “He’s a great player. I guarded him last year up there (a game Illinois won 66-51) and we played very well. But he gave me problems. I’ll probably watch the tape of that game and see what new things I can come up with.” Tucker led Wisconsin with 19 points in that game, but Randle had 12 points and 13 rebounds.

As bad as things have seemed, Illinois could emerge in fairly good shape if it can take care of business at home. That’s easier said than done because Wisconsin is terrific and Indiana has been playing very good. But it could happen. If Illinois can defeat Wisconsin and Indiana in the next two games, it would be 4-3 in the Big Ten, 16-6 overall. It would still have home games remaining against Michigan State, Minnesota, Northwestern and Michigan and road games with Purdue, Northwestern, Indiana, Penn State and Iowa.

If the Illini were 4-3 after the next two home games, it’s not hard to imagine five more victories down the stretch. And 9-7 in the league with 21 victories overall would probably get them into the NCAA Tournament.

But Illinois could easily lose these two upcoming home games, so I’m taking nothing for granted. At least the victory at Minnesota slapped a few smiles back into place Wednesday night and those have been missing on this team for a while.

After playing a surprisingly effective first half, during which Illinois built a 14-point lead after Michigan State, I witnessed one of the worst halves of basketball I’ve even seen from an Illini team Sunday.

Bad passes, bad shots and bad decisions wiped out Illinois 34-23 halftime lead in nothing flat and opened the door to Michigan State’s 63-57 victory at the Breslin Center.

No, wait: Make that REALLY bad passes, REALLY bad shots and REALLY bad decisions. Just awful passes, the kind of “what the heck are you thinking, dude?” passes that strain the imagination. Warren Carter had some, as did Brian Randle, Chester Frazier, Shaun Pruitt and Rich McBride.

And when Illinois began falling behind, it became a game when fire-power was needed to close the gap, but Jamar Smith, who is a logical choice to fill that role, was playing so poorly and shooting so unreliably there was no clear-cut lineup that made sense.

In fact, Bruce Weber said he turned to his assistants and said, “Isn’t there anyone else?” when considering his options. Smith was 2-for-8 shooting, making two breakaway layups but missing all six of his 3-pointers. And that came after going 0-for-7 shooting against Iowa.

“Some of it is confidence,” Weber said. “And some of it is (sprained) ankles. But I’d say now some of it has become mental. He’s so busy thinking about his shot he isn’t even paying attention to the defense. How many times do you see a 3-pointer blocked?” And yet that happened to Smith on Sunday.

Inconsistent is this team’s middle name right now. It can play very well, as it did in the first half. Or it can play very, very poorly, as it did in the second half. It has had second-half leads against Maryland, Arizona, Xavier, Michigan and Michigan State and been unable to hang onto any of them.

There is no go-to player, no one who can reliably be trusted to hit big baskets or, more importantly, end big runs by the other team. After exciting me with his play against Iowa, I thought Randle reverted to watching. I keep thinking Jamar Smith will step up and drain big shots but that hasn’t happened lately. Warren Carter is simply too inconsistent.

This game and the Michigan game were both Big Ten road games there for the taking. But it takes more than a half to get the job done. The confidence to finish off these teams was a trademark of the Dee Brown-Deron Williams-Luther Head Illini squads but that’s clearly missing with this group.

And Michigan State has very vulnerable. I love Tom Izzo but he’s in transition with a group that is scrambling to keep its head above water.

Can Illinois win Wednesday at Minnesota? Sure. Absolutely. But it also could build a 12-point lead, then fall flat on its face and lose by double digits. That’s possible, too. The inconsistency makes this team too susceptible to any result and any opponent. As a result, anything can happen. For now, though, it’s hard to bet on the positive result.

NOTES – Marcus Arnold played two minutes with a mask on his surgically repaired broken nose.
. . . Pruitt was Illinois’ leading rebounder with seven. Michigan State won the battle of the boards, 29-27.
. . . McBride was 4-for-9 shooting the 3-ball one game after going 5-for-10 vs. Iowa.

As I’ve done a few times, I’m posting my column for Saturday a little early to give bloggers a chance to read something new.

Also, Marcus Arnold underwent surgery Friday morning to repair multiple breaks in his nose, an injury he sustained in Wednesday night’s game against Iowa. Coach Bruce Weber did not even know Arnold has broken his nose (it happened in the first half) and Arnold didn’t mention it to trainer Al Martindale until halftime or in the second half, Weber said Friday. He did not practice Friday and is doubtful for Sunday’s game, Weber said.

A familiar face returned to practice Friday and that’s the subject of Saturday’s column. Here ’tis:

CHAMPAIGN – He thought it was nothing more than a bruise.

An elbow to the back, where his ribs encase his right lung, was not an entirely unusual occurrence in a typically physical Illini basketball practice.

Sure, it hurt. But when freshman Rich Semrau took a shot during practice on Nov. 26, he figured it was just another layer of pain to go with the sickly feeling he already had from what he assumed was the flu.

Semrau had not played during Illinois’ games on Nov. 24 and 25 in Hoffman Estates, weakened by illness and already on a diet of antibiotics.

“It just hurt,” he said of the blow that would eventually end his season. “No bruise showed up so I thought I got hit in a muscle, maybe a charley horse.”

Try not to worry about it. Maybe it will go away. That’s how athletes think.

Before long, however, the pain in Semrau’s upper back was all he could think about. Stabbing pain. Sharp pain. Debilitating pain.

“It was real bad,” he said Friday as a bystander at Illini basketball pratice. “I wasn’t able to sleep. I couldn’t lay down.”

Three days later, Semrau decided he could no longer tolerate the pain. Hospital x-rays and a CAT scan didn’t pinpoint the problem. But later that night, team trainer Al Martindale accompanied Semrau back to the Carle Hospital emergency room, realizing more tests were needed.

“Eventually they took a stomach CAT scan and found some liquid in my lungs,” Semrau said. The liquid was blood. And the blood was infected.

It turned out that the blow to Semrau’s lung created a blood clot, which became infected by bacteria from his original illness.

Surgery was performed on Nov. 30 and Semrau, the freshman from Ohio who had worked all summer to build his weight, strength and stamina, suddenly found himself facing the helpless feeling of sliding down a slope.

“The low point came right after the surgery,” he said. “I just kind of broke down in my hospital room. I never expected it to be this bad. The pain, the emotional stress…” And the knowledge that his first volley of semester exams were right around the corner.

All of the disappointment, physical pain and feeling of isolation crashed into him at once.

Several days later, Semrau would return to his home in Grafton, Ohio, driving there with his parents while a pouch of antibiotics strapped around his waist pumped medicine into his still-healing body. Two tubes that drained the infection from his lungs had been removed but his weight was plunging on a free fall.

The 6-foot-9 forward, who weighed 230 pounds at Thanksgiving, saw his weight plummet to 195. On Friday, his second day back on campus, he checked in at 202.

The good news is that Semrau is back among his basketball family, and the smile he wore around the Ubben Basketball Complex Friday was a strong indication that he’s on the road to recovery.

“I feel good,” he said. “I’m glad I’m back on campus, that’s the main thing right now. I’ve been smiling more today than I have in a month. I love it here. This is really going to help me recover quick.”

Semrau’s basketball season is over. He qualifies for a medical redshirt and will still have four seasons of athletic eligibility, even though he participated in five games, averaging 12.6 minutes and 3.6 points.

While in his hospital bed, Semrau was visited by his coaches, his teammates and parents of those teammates. Visits and prayer with teammates Trent Meacham and Brian Randle proved particularly uplifting, he said.

“It really helped me because I think I’m a strong Christian,” Semrau said. “I have good faith. And our Fellowship of Christian Athletes leader came in and prayed with me. That really helped me get through it.
“God has a purpose for everything in life and if this is to help me out, I’m going to have to accept it and go forth. My parents talked to me about the same thing. I met with my pastor at home and he said this is something God planned for me.”

Meacham, who spent his freshman season playing at Dayton before transferring to Illinois, said he couldn’t
imagine going through what Semrau endured, especially away from home.

“We wanted to support him. As his teammates, we’re family,” Meacham said. “That’s like my brother. We have been praying for him every day, keeping his spirits up. That’s one of the biggest things, keeping his spirits up and letting him know we’re there for him and that he’ll be stronger because of it.”

Before any of this happened, Semrau shared a dorm room with fellow freshman Brian Carlwell. Now, with doctors concerned about any further infection, Semrau and Carlwell will get separate rooms.

That’s fine, but Carlwell said he has missed his former roommate.

“We’ve all been missing him around here,” Carlwell said. “It’s good for him to be back. You can see how happy he is. He said while he was home, the highlight of his day was being able to take a walk with his father.”

Semrau still is not up to much physical activity.

“It’s hard to move my right arm very high,” he said, gingerly lifting it to shoulder level. “I’ll be taking my finals next week, but I still have no real energy. There’s no time table. I’m just going to do what Al and (strength and conditioning coach) Jimmy (Price) and the doctors tell me.”

Semrau could have been devastated by this setback in his first semester of college life, but on Friday he was clearly grateful to be back among his basketball brothers, the worst of it long behind him.

“Oh, man, that’s our boy!” Jamar Smith said, giggling and pointing at Semrau. “He’s been gone too long. He’s a real cool kid and I’m glad he’s back.”

With much recovery yet to come, Semrau is, too.

Ask and ye shall receive!

Ask to see the “real” Brian Randle and, “Voila!,” there he was Wednesday night, the reincarnation of the exceptional athlete I know can change the texture of a basketball game because he can jump over the moon, because he can be in-your-face tough defensively, because when he plays with urgency and passion he can ignite his teammates and the crowd.

After weeks of playing with caution and seeming to be afraid to cut it loose athletically, Randle said he was motivated by days of personal reflection, by the presence of his father’s brothers and sisters in the Assembly Hall crowd, and by challenges from his teammates and his head coach.

Randle’s 16 points, six rebounds, six assists and immeasurable energy helped lift the Illini to a 74-70 victory over Iowa. Was it a work of art? No. And is there more bad news on the injury front? Of course. But none of that seemed to matter, so long as a three-game losing streak was finally over and Randle was finally back and flying high again.

The inside trio of Randle, Warren Carter and Shaun Pruitt were a combined 20 of 24 shooting, each racking up 16 points. And with Rich McBride going 5-for-10 from 3-point distance, Illinois had enough balance to get past Iowa’s zone defense and survive a furious Hawkeye rally at the end.

OK, it’s just one victory. It’s at home. And it was against an Iowa team that is now 9-7. Now, can they do it on the road? Can they do it Sunday at Michigan State?

I don’t know, but I’m at least encouraged to finally see Brian Randle flying around the gym again. As I said in previous blogs and columns, his return to this type of player was the No. 1 key to Illinois trying to become a confident team that can still be in the running for an NCAA Tournament berth.

That is still tempered by the most recent injury news. Starting point guard Chester Frazier did not play Wednesday, finally succumbing to a succession of injuries that have gone from his toe to the soles of his feet and, now, to his groin. He is day-to-day and could play Sunday but may miss two weeks, Bruce Weber said.

Those of you asking for more playing time for Trent Meacham might want to reconsider that notion after watching him run the club against Iowa. He was 0-for-5 shooting and had three turnovers when Weber put him on the bench with more than 15 minutes to play. During the next almost 14 minutes, Jamar Smith and McBride shared the point guard duties and that’s when Illinois salted this game away.

Smith sprained his other ankle against Ohio State Saturday but played nevertheless. But he was 0-for-7 shooting. He did bring some energy, however, and managed to be called for a technical foul when he clapped his hands too close to an Iowa player, which the ref interpreted as taunting.

Carter didn’t take a shot in the first half, then went 6-for-7 in the second half.

Two side notes:

It was Lou Henson’s 75th birthday Wednesday night and he received a standing ovation when that was announced to the crowd. The crowd then serenaded him with an impromptu “Happy Birthday.”

Also, longtime “Voice of the Illini” Jim Turpin, who still holds a seat on press row, experienced chest pains during the first half and was taken to the hospital in an ambulance. After the game, we were told Turpin would remain in the hospital overnight but that the prognosis was very good. Please keep Jim in your prayers.

Weber said he thought Turpin had his chest pains near the end of the game, “because I had them, too.”

He was probably speaking for a lot of Illini fans.

Also, recruit Mike Tisdale, the 7-footer from Riverton, underwent surgery Wednesday morning after getting his pinkie finger smashed in a game on Tuesday. He’s expected to be out about a month.

“I guess that’s just part of being an Illini,” Weber said, not doubting that the injury bug has now somehow managed to find his recruits.

Still sick and did not go to the Illinois-Ohio State game. Wasn’t much fun watching from the couch. Still waiting for anyone to play up to their potential. When the season began, I think we all pencil in certain expectations for each player and for the past three games, almost no one has measured up.

Brian Randle has stopped playing basketball. He’s sort of loitering, waiting for something in his fragile body to pop, tear or come unhinged. The one thing he needs to do he may not be capable of doing, and that’s playing angry, playing emotionally, playing with urgency. Instead, he loiters, listening for his inner structure to creak or crack.

I single out Randle because I think he’s one of the few guys on this team capable of being the leader Bruce Weber needs now. He’s smart. Teammates look up to him. He’s a gifted athlete. He could ignite this team by simply playing hard and slashing to the basket, defending and rebounding. The confidence that has vanished from this team could be propped back up if Randle started to play, really play.

There’s enough blame to go around and it’s not fair to only mention Randle. But I do so as a kind of compliment, because others do not have the potential to lead this team out of this funk. He does. I just wish he’d take it upon himself and try to make it happen.

Just thought I should post something so you have a bulletin board on which to post your thoughts. Iowa is next. Win that one or board up the Hall.

Apologizes for not having a blog the last few days.

I’ve been laid low by bronchitis and pneumonia and did not even make the trip to Ann Arbor. I’m a wheezing, coughing mess who hopes to be back in the saddle for Saturday’s Ohio State game.

I’ll leave this brief explanation up to be used for feedback and venting on the Illinois-Michigan game and any other matter you’d like, then, hopefully, post something fresh after the Ohio State game.

Sorry for the inconvenience. And for those of you in Decatur, sorry for the lack of radio shows and vodcasts. Not a good week for your faithful correspondent.

Hope to be back Saturday. Thanks.