Purdue 68, No. 14 Illinois 61: Terone Johnson scored a career-high 25 points - including five during a game-deciding run in the second half - and the host Boilermakers held off a late charge for their eighth straight victory over the Fighting Illini.

Johnson drove the baseline en route to a three-point play to cap the 16-3 spurt and give Purdue a 55-48 lead with 6:39 remaining in the Big Ten opener for both teams. D.J. Byrd added 15 points, including three 3-pointers during the run, for the Boilermakers (7-6).

Brandon Paul scored 15 points for Illinois (13-2), including a pair of 3-pointers to pull the Fighting Illini to within 61-58 with 1:45 remaining. Johnson responded with a basket and, after a long 3-pointer by D.J. Richardson made it 63-61 with 30 seconds left, Purdue sealed it on Byrd's three-point play off an inbound feed from Johnson with 21 seconds to go.

Joseph Bertrand scored 12 of his 14 points off the bench in the first half, and his layup with 2:48 left were the final points before intermission, giving Illinois a 33-31 lead. Purdue's last bucket came from Donnie Hale with 5:29 remaining as the teams combined to miss 15 of their 16 shots from the field during the rest of the period.

Illinois took its largest lead of the second half at 45-39 when Tyler Griffey nailed a 3-pointer with 12:01 remaining before Purdue took control. The Fighting Illini, who entered third in the nation with 9.4 3-pointers made per game, finished 35.6 percent from the field and 10-for-26 (38.5 percent) from beyond the arc.

GAME NOTEBOOK: The Fighting Illini have allowed 43 offensive rebounds in their last three games, including 12 to the Boilermakers. Byrd grabbed the last one with 21 seconds left and Purdue leading 63-61 after Jacob Lawson missed two free throws and called a timeout as he fell out of bounds. ... The teams combined to make 23 of their first 46 shots from the field in the first half. ... Illinois had won its last four Big Ten openers in a row, and 11 of its last 13.