Brandon Paul scored a career-high 43 points including, a 3-pointer with less than a minute to play, to help Illinois upset No. 5 Ohio State 79-74 on Tuesday night.
The Illini (15-3, 4-1 Big Ten) led 71-70 when Paul sank his 3-pointer with 43 seconds to play. He followed that up with four free throws that put the game out of reach.
Ohio State (15-3, 3-2) led 39-34 at halftime and was up 64-61 with just over five minutes to play.
Paul's 43 points was the third-highest scoring performance in Illini history.
Meyers Leonard added 14 for Illinois.
Deshaun Thomas scored 23 points and Jared Sullinger added 21 for Ohio State.
NCAA Top-25 Men's Basketball
------
#3 North Carolina Tar Heels 73, Miami (FL) Hurricanes 56
#4 Baylor Bears 75, #18 Kansas State Wildcats 73
Illinois Fighting Illini 79, #5 Ohio State Buckeyes 74
#7 Michigan State Spartans 95, Iowa Hawkeyes 61
Providence Friars 90, #15 Louisville Cardinals 59
#19 Florida Gators 70, Georgia Bulldogs 48
#21 Creighton Bluejays 63, Northern Iowa Panthers 60
#22 San Diego State Aztecs 73, Chicago State Cougars 65
#25 Harvard Crimson 70, Monmouth Hawks 61
