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Trayce Jackson-Davis blocked Hunter Dickinson's layup attempt with 16:49 left in the second half, then Jalen Hood-Schifino brought the ball up the floor.

Meanwhile, Michigan head coach Juwan Howard looked disjointed; he flippantly interlocked his hands over his head to signal a base defense, then let his arms fall down to his sides.

Jackson-Davis would take a pass from Hood-Schifino, he'd drive to the right side of the hoop and convert through contact. Indiana had the lead for the first time since the first mintue of the game, 40-39.

The Hoosiers wouldn't go away.

"Games like this in the past, a lot of them went differently, especially with Michigan," Jackson-Davis admitted. "They've had our number the past few years. Coming into this game, being down most of this game, we earned this one. We kind of stole this one. That's what coach Woodson was preaching before the game. We have to treat this like the playoffs; steal one on the road and then they come and see you."

The halftime adjustment was apparent. Defense, defense, defense. Just like every halftime adjustment Indiana head coach Mike Woodson has ever made. It's so rare that teams go on the road in the Big Ten and win pretty, or win at all. Everybody wearing cream and crimson knew Saturday night was going to be 40 minutes of body blows.

"It's hard on the road, I told the guys in the locker room this is probably the biggest game, since I've been here as a coach, that we've won," Woodson told reporters following Saturday's win. "You play a team like Michigan that's good here at home and you get a win. It's huge, it speaks volumes for our ballclub."

Saturday's 62-61 win over Michigan in Ann Arbor opens a door for Indiana. The likelihood that they would get that ever-sought-after double bye in the Big Ten tournament goes up. But, the fact that they won a Big Ten road game helps water down a very wide-held criticism of this ball club under Woodson.

This was only the sixth conference road win for the Hoosiers since Woodson took over as head coach. They've won at Minnesota twice, Nebraska, and Maryland. They beat Illinois in Champaign a couple weeks ago and now this huge win.

This is becoming a trend, they aren't just winning the road games their suppose to win, they're winning the ones they aren't suppose to.

"It just shows our character, our toughness, you know? Playing hard, going on the road and beating a team like Michigan in this hostile environment is big time," Hood-Schifino said.

"They're starting to feel a little good about their coach," Woodson laughed. "They're playing for me, and that means a great deal. Maybe we can continue to win these kind of games if we play like that."

Saturday was a special effort by the Hoosiers. Michigan didn't score for the final 5:12 of the game. They only scored 24 points in the second half after going for 37 in the first. Woodson forced Michigan to play an Indiana brand of basketball. Relentless, suffocating defense, or "kills" as Jackson-Davis calls them.

When that happens the Hoosiers will probably win seven days a week and twice on Sunday.

"We were just preaching chipping away," Jackson-Davis said. "We finally broke through with about four minutes left, we were just getting stops. Every time we went to the media timeout we just said, 'get a kill, get a kill, get a kill,'... That's what you gotta do on the road when you wanna close out games, that's what we did."

It's these kinds of games where every little play means so much. It's where a guy like Trey Galloway, who struggled most of the game, can jump a pass with just over a minute left and virtually seal the game for the Hoosiers.

Miller Kopp can score three points and only shoot four times but have a stellar defensive possession in the final seconds and none of his offensive numbers really matter.

Saturday was a perfect reflection of the game that Indiana is supposed to play outside of Assembly Hall. They will hardly ever be pretty.

They have three road games remaining, Northwestern this upcoming Wednesday then Michigan State the following Tuesday. Finally, they wrap with Purdue at Mackey.

Hoosier nation is likely much more confident in those games now than they were before Saturday night's win. Winning on the road is a possibility.

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