Neitzel’s fellow senior, center Drew Naymick, finished the game with 12 points of his own, as he stepped up to hit long range 2-pointers down the stretch.

Illinois’ Shaun Pruitt, who started off the game hot on 5-of-5 shooting, scored just two second-half points, finishing with 13.

With the score tied at halftime, MSU shot out of the gate to take a six-point lead. Although it seemed small, the Fighting Illini failed to slice the margin any smaller than three throughout the course of the contest.

When Illinois would make a charge, junior center Goran Suton would snag a crucial rebound or Naymick would knock down a much-needed jumper.

It clicked when it needed to for MSU head coach Tom Izzo’s Spartans.

MSU overcame a 10-point deficit in the first half when freshman guard Chris Allen buried a 3-pointer to tie the game, 27-27 with 3:59 to play.

The Spartans’ pressuring half-court defense caused the Fighting Illini to cough up the ball, allowing Neitzel to lay in a contested, transition slash to the hoop. The Green and White took its first lead of the game on the shot, 29-27 at the 2:45 mark.

MSU and Illinois remained neutral entering the locker room tied 31-31, as well as shooting a solid percentage from the floor at 48 and 53.8 percent, respectively. But the Fighting Illini pushed MSU around inside the paint, scoring 18 of their 31 down low.

Sophomore forward Raymar Morgan led the Spartans in the first half with a team-high eight points. Illinois’ Pruitt couldn’t miss, tallying a 5-for-5 field goal shooting performance in the first 20 minutes, finishing the half with 11 points.

But the Fighting Illini’s booming crowd couldn’t cool down the fired-up visiting Spartans, who shot 45.8 percent from the field on the night, including 90.9 from the free throw line and 5-of-12 from beyond the arc.

MSU continues play against Ohio State at 12 p.m. Sunday in Columbus, Ohio.