Minneapolis ? James Augustine had 16 points, 10 rebounds and a career-high seven assists to lead No. 10 Illinois over Minnesota, 71-65, on Tuesday night as the Illini stayed in the race for the Big Ten title.

Dee Brown scored 14 points and Rich McBride had 12 for Illinois (24-5, 10-5), which trails Ohio State by just a half game for the conference lead.

Vincent Grier scored 19 points and Moe Hargrow added 17 in their final home game for the Golden Gophers (14-12, 5-10), who have lost 15 straight to Illinois dating back to 1999. Spencer Tollackson and Adam Boone had 10 points each.

Illinois finishes the Big Ten regular season at Michigan State on Saturday and the Gophers are at Northwestern.

The game was tied five times in the first 5 minutes of the second half, before Illinois went on a run. The Illini scored 10 straight points to take a 53-45 lead with 12:02 left.

The Gophers were held scoreless for nearly five minutes and looked out of it until a block by Zach Puchtel on Shaun Pruitt’s dunk attempt sparked Minnesota. J’son Stamper hit a jumper and Boone hit a three-pointer to bring the Gophers within 60-56 with 4:23 left. But Jamar Smith hit a three for Illinois at 2:56 to make it 63-56 and Minnesota couldn’t get closer than four points the rest of the way.

Minnesota's J'son Stamper, right, pulls a rebound away from Illinois' James Augustine, left, as Minnesota's Maurice Hargrow, center, gets caught in the action. Illinois defeated Minnesota, 71-65, on Tuesday night in Minneapolis.

Grier scored nine points in the first 10 minutes of the game, as Minnesota got out to a 22-14 lead. Illinois scored eight straight over the next two minutes to tie it at 22.

No. 12 Boston College 80, Wake Forest 65

Boston – Craig Smith had 23 points and eight rebounds and Jared Dudley scored 22 to help Boston College clinch a bye for the first round of its first Atlantic Coast Conference tournament. BC, which defected from the Big East over the summer, could improve its position even more Saturday: A victory over Virginia Tech in the regular-season finale could help the Eagles (23-6, 10-5 ACC) avoid top-ranked Duke until the conference championship game.

No. 21 LSU 64, South Carolina 61

Columbia, S.C. – Glen Davis scored 24 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lift No. 21 LSU over South Carolina, giving the Tigers at least a share of the Southeastern Conference title.

Davis, the SEC’s leading scorer, was held to just six points in the opening half, but LSU (21-7, 13-2) pounded the ball inside in the second half to capture its first league title in six years. The Gamecocks (14-14, 5-10) lost another close one, which has been typical of their season.