COLUMBUS — Kaleb Wesson scored 19 points to lead No. 19 Ohio State past No. 23 Illinois 71-63.
E.J. Liddell tied a career high with 17 points for the Buckeyes, who have won four in a row and nine of their last 11.
Ayo Dosunmu had 21 points and five assists to pace Illinois, which saw its Big Ten championship hopes fade a bit more after starting the day a half game behind the leaders.
Ohio State is playing well at a critical time with the Big Ten tournament looming.
Also looming is 16th-ranked Michigan State. The Buckeyes travel to East Lansing for their season finale Sunday.
Michigan State has won four straight games and with a win Sunday would claim a third straight Big Ten regular-season championship. The Spartans also would lock up the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament next week.