By Andy Proffet
ISL Correspondent 

BLOOMINGTON — Bob Knight wasn’t at Assembly Hall for Indiana’s ceremony honoring his 1975-76 undefeated national championship team.

But if he was watching, he might have been impressed by this year’s Hoosiers, fighting their way to a win over a Wisconsin team that had ample opportunities to spoil Tuesday’s celebration.

Even a 15-0 run in the first half wasn’t enough for the Badgers, who lost 59-58.

It wasn’t a masterpiece, but it was IU’s third win in as many Big Ten games. The Hoosiers have won eight straight overall to improve to (13-3) on the season.

And they did it without James Blackmon Jr., the sophomore who was second in scoring for Indiana. He underwent surgery on his right knee Tuesday afternoon, the knee he injured in practice.

An IU spokesman said the surgery went well, but Blackmon is expected to miss the rest of the season.

That means more playing time for others, especially O.G. Anunoby. The freshman showed his shooting touch Tuesday night, shooting 3-of-3 from beyond the arc and making both his free throws in an 11-point, 17-minute performance.

“I saw O.G.’s potential in the summer,” Yogi Ferrell said. “He was just a shy, quiet guy in the summer — he knows it — back then, but we’ve been on him about bringing that out; we’re going to need that to win.

“And these three Big Ten games that we’ve played, I feel like O.G. has been a great factor for us in these wins.”

Ferrell was the biggest factor in IU’s win Tuesday night. His 19-point game included the Hoosiers’ final eight points.

The 3-0 conference start is IU’s first since the 2012-13 team that won the Big Ten regular-season title and reached the Sweet Sixteen. The last 4-0 conference start came in 2007-08, Kelvin Sampson’s final year as coach.

The Hoosiers host Ohio State Sunday afternoon looking for 4-0.

Follow Andy Proffet on Twitter @AndyProffet.