The loss of OG Anunoby for the season was a crushing blow to Indiana's spirit, but the Hoosiers responded in a tremendous way Saturday with an 82-75 win against Michigan State.
Tom Crean's current situation is similar to last year, when the loss of James Blackmon Jr. forced the Hoosiers to recalibrate in Big Ten play. In the first game without Anunoby, it was Blackmon who turned in one of the best games of his Indiana career.
Blackmon dropped six three-pointers on the Spartans and hit some crucial free throws to finish with a career-high 33 points in the win, with Robert Johnson putting up another big performance with 17 points.
Michigan State isn't in a great place right now, and you could sense there was a chance to catch Indiana off-guard after the devastating injury news, but Blackmon would not have it. The junior guard hit a couple of shots early to give the Hoosiers a 10-point lead in the first half and though Sparty climbed back into the game late they never retook the lead.
Now Indiana, a team that has a good chance to be a sleeper in the NCAA Tournament, has won three in a row for the first time since early December. Getting this win was huge for their collective spirit, considering Anunoby is a potential first-round pick in next year's NBA Draft. The Hoosiers have caught some extraordinarily bad injury luck in the last couple seasons, but if last year's turnaround ended in the Sweet 16 it's not crazy to think Crean can do it again in March with this group.
Up next for Indiana are back-to-back road games at Michigan and Northwestern.
