No. 3 seed Illinois’ 17-0 run early in the second half propelled the Fighting Illini to a 65-55 win over No. 2 seed Houston on Thursday in the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Division I men’s basketball tournament.

Illinois led 24-22 at the half but took a 44-26 lead at the under-12 timeout after a dominant spurt.

Houston did stop the bleeding and began hitting some threes to cut the lead to 50-41 with 5:52 left.

However, Tomislav Ivisic and Keaton Wagler hit back-to-back threes and Andrej Stojakovic hit a bucket for an 8-0 run in response and a 58-41 Illinois edge with 3:41 left.

Houston got hot late and cut the lead to seven on two separate occasions with under two minutes left, but the Cougars couldn’t cut the deficit any closer.

Houston was largely ice cold offensively, making just 34 percent of its field goals and 9-of-32 three-pointers. The Cougars also didn’t attempt a free throw until there was 3:27 left in regulation and shot just two overall compared to Illinois’ 21 attempts.

Wagler, projected No. 6 overall in the latest Bleacher Report mock draft, finished with 13 points and 13 rebounds. David Mirkovic led Illinois with 14 points alongside 10 rebounds. Stojakovic had 13 points off the bench.

Ultimately, this was a very impressive win over a tough Houston team that was playing in its home city, and fans and analysts were impressed with the result.

Illinois head coach Brad Underwood got his due credit.

Other players did as well, including Wagler, Stojakovic and Mirkovic.

Illinois now advances to the Elite Eight, where it will face Big Ten rival Iowa. This marks the second time Illinois has made the Elite Eight in three years, as Terrence Shannon Jr. led his squad there in 2024.

The Fighting Illini are also looking for their first Final Four appearance since 2005, when future NBA star guard Deron Williams led a team that started the season 29-0 and ended it as the national championship finalist.

Tipoff in Houston to determine the South regional champion will go down on Saturday at 6:09 p.m. ET. The game will air on TBS and truTV.