Michigan State's Marquise Gray, right, and Illinois' Rodney Alexander chase a loose ball.

East Lansing, Mich. ? Tom Izzo turned Michigan State into a national power, building his program upon a foundation of toughness.

The eighth-ranked Spartans set a school record with a 51-41 victory over Illinois on Wednesday, but none of them were in the mood to celebrate.

“Scared isn’t the right word, but we looked a little intimated to me,” Izzo said. “It bothers me and kind of takes the luster off it.”

Drew Neitzel scored nine of his 15 points during a key stretch in the second half, helping Michigan State (19-2, 7-1 Big Ten) survive and reach its best 21-game record in the program’s 109-year history.

“The milestone will probably mean more to me tomorrow than it does right now,” Izzo said.

The Illini (10-12, 2-7) didn’t make it easy.

Illinois went on a 17-2 run after a rough start, led at halftime and responded to Neitzel’s scoring flurry by taking a 32-31 lead.

The Spartans took control with a 9-2 run, then took advantage of shooting free throws while the Illini struggled at the line as usual to hurt their chances.

“We kept it within a couple of possessions, but still the free throws are so tough for us,” Illinois coach Bruce Weber said. “We foul them, and they make two. Then we come down, drive to the basket, get fouled and don’t make free throws we need.

“I wish it wasn’t the same story, but it’s been like that all year for us.”

Illinois made fewer than 50 percent of its free throws in a single-digit losses to Purdue, Arizona and Maryland.

Against Michigan State, the Illini were 5-of-14 at the line in the second half and finished 7-of-19.

“That’s kind of the story of our season,” Trent Meacham said. “We’re in the fight every game, but we miss so many free throws.”

No. 1 Memphis 89, Houston 77

Houston – Chris Douglas-Roberts scored 30 points, and Joey Dorsey grabbed a career-high 22 rebounds as Memphis finished the night as the only undefeated team in Division I.

Robert Dozier 17 of his 21 points in the second half, and the Tigers (20-0, 6-0 Conference USA) matched the best start in school history.

Memphis won its 15th consecutive road game.

No. 6 Georgetown 74, St. John’s 42

New York – Sophomore reserve Vernon Macklin scored a career-high 18 points, and Georgetown handed St. John’s its worst Big East loss ever.

St. John’s previous worst conference loss was also to the Hoyas, 72-42 on Jan. 6, 1982, also at Madison Square Garden.

Roy Hibbert added 11 points and Jessie Sapp had 10 for the Hoyas (17-2, 7-1), who shot 52.8 percent (28-for-53) led by Macklin’s 8-for-10.

No. 16 Drake 75, Creighton 65

Des Moines, Iowa – Josh Young tied a career-high with 24 points, and Drake pushed its school-record winning streak to 18 games.

Jonathan Cox added 16 points and 10 rebounds for the Bulldogs (19-1, 10-0 Missouri Valley Conference), who finished the game on a 10-0 run.

No. 18 Pittsburgh 69, Villanova 57

Pittsburgh – Sam Young and Tyrell Biggs led a game-changing rally in which Pittsburgh turned a one-point deficit in the second half into an 18-point lead, and the Panthers bounced back from a rare home loss.

Young scored 15 points, and Biggs came off the bench for 14 points. Freshman DeJuan Blair had 10 points and 14 rebounds.

Villanova lost its third in a row.

No. 24 Mississippi 74, No. 19 Vanderbilt 58

Oxford, Miss. – Chris Warren scored 20 points, Eniel Polynice added 18 and Mississippi’s freshmen had one of their best games of the season.