Indiana Celebrates a Golden Standard of Perfection: Honoring the 1976 Undefeated Hoosiers
There’s something special in the air this year in Bloomington - a celebration five decades in the making. As Indiana gears up to face Oregon on Monday night, the Hoosiers will take a moment at halftime to honor a team that set a standard no one’s matched since: the 1975-76 Indiana squad, the last Division I men’s basketball team to finish an entire season undefeated.
That team didn’t just win - it dominated. Coached by the legendary Bob Knight, the Hoosiers went a perfect 32-0, steamrolling their way through the regular season and NCAA Tournament with a blend of suffocating defense, efficient offense, and unshakeable chemistry. They capped off the run with a decisive 86-68 win over Michigan in the national championship game, putting an exclamation point on a season that’s become the gold standard for college basketball excellence.
On Monday, some of the key figures from that historic team are expected to return to Assembly Hall, including Quinn Buckner, Scott May, Kent Benson, Bobby Wilkerson, Jim Crews, Scott Eells, James Roberson, Tom Abernethy, and Mitchell Radford - who will be honoring the late Wayne Radford. Before the game, those players will meet with the media alongside IU athletic director Scott Dolson, offering fans and reporters alike a rare chance to hear firsthand reflections from the men who made history.
Indiana has been wearing a commemorative 1976 patch on its jerseys all season long to mark the 50th anniversary of that iconic run. It’s a subtle reminder of the legacy that team left behind - and the high bar every Hoosier team since has chased.
The timing of this celebration couldn’t be more fitting. Just weeks ago, Indiana’s football program completed a perfect 16-0 season of its own, capturing the national title and giving IU the distinction of holding the most recent undefeated season in both football and men’s basketball. That’s not just a fun trivia nugget - it’s a testament to a university that, at its best, knows how to build champions.
Back in 1976, Indiana wasn’t just winning games - it was dismantling opponents. The team averaged a 17.3-point margin of victory, shot over 50% from the field, and forced more than 20 turnovers per game.
That’s a level of two-way dominance that rarely shows up in any era. And while the system was airtight, the talent was undeniable.
Six players from that roster went on to play in the NBA, including Scott May, who swept nearly every major national player of the year award after averaging 23.5 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game.
That kind of production, paired with the team’s collective will, made the ’76 Hoosiers not just great, but legendary.
As Indiana and Oregon tip off at 8:30 p.m. ET on Monday night, the game itself will matter - but the halftime ceremony may steal the spotlight.
Because while the scoreboard will reset at zero, the legacy of that undefeated season remains untouched. Fifty years later, perfection still lives in Bloomington.