Indiana‘s 73-58 upset win over rival Purdue on Sunday came with a likely piece of college basketball lore front and center.
Forty years ago, legendary Indiana men’s basketball coach Bob Knight was famously ejected from the Hoosiers’ annual home matchup with the Boilermakers after he tossed a chair across the court in frustration.
On Sunday, the chair made an unlikely return to the Assembly Hall sidelines to commemorate the game. Sitting in the chair for the in-state clash? None other than current Indiana coach Mike Woodson, who played under Knight from 1976 to 1980 during his own college career.
“What you guys don’t realize, that probably is the chair,” Woodson said after the game. “I’ve had it awhile. I know a lot of people say they have the chair.”
Evidently, the historic chair’s return brought some fortune to Bloomington. Indiana entered the game having lost six of its last seven contests and the past three in its series with Purdue. A 48-point second half erased a 12-point halftime deficit for the Hoosiers.
The win moves Indiana closer to the NCAA tournament field, having begun the day as one of the “next four out” in ESPN’s Joe Lunardi’s Bracketology.