No. 16 Nebraska holds off Illinois 72-65

Published Feb. 27, 2014 10:44 p.m. ET

foxsports

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) Jordan Hooper, a Nebraska native and lone senior on the roster, scored 29 points on Senior Night as the No. 16 Cornhuskers held off Illinois 72-65 Thursday for their ninth-straight win.

Tear'a Laudermill added 15 points, Emily Cady had 10 points with 12 rebounds and Rachel Theriot had 10 assists for the Cornhuskers (22-5, 12-3 Big Ten).

Amber Moore had 19 points for Illinois (9-19, 2-13). Ivory Crawford added 13 points and 10 rebounds and Taylor Gleason had 13.

Nebraska, which led 38-31 at the half, had a tough time shaking Illinois, though after the Illini tied it at 40 the Huskers built a 60-51 lead.

After Moore's 3-pointer pulled Illinois within two with 3:03 left, Sarah Livingston missed two free throws. After Laudermill made two, Crawford missed two more. Illinois was 3-10 from the line but made 10 3's. Nebraska also had 10 but was 14-17 from the line.