The 1978–79 Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball team represented Indiana University. Their head coach was Bobby Knight, who was in his 8th year. The team played its home games in Assembly Hall in Bloomington, Indiana, and was a member of the Big Ten Conference.
The Hoosiers finished the regular season with an overall record of 22–12 and a conference record of 10–8, finishing 5th in the Big Ten Conference. Coming off an NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen appearance, Indiana missed out on an invitation to the 1979 NCAA Tournament. Instead, IU was invited to participate in the 1979 NIT, where Bobby Knight and the Hoosiers advanced to the championship game and won their first NIT title.
Roster No.NamePositionHt.YearHometown20Steve ReishG6–2Fr.Union City, Indiana23Don CoxG/F6–6So.Indianapolis, Indiana24Randy WittmanG/F6–6Fr.Indianapolis, Indiana25Tommy BakerG6–2So.Jeffersonville, Indiana30Ted KitchelF6–8Fr.Galveston, Indiana31Scott EellsF6–9Sr.Hoopeston, Illinois32Landon TurnerF/C6–10Fr.Indianapolis, Indiana33Eric KirchnerF6–7So.Edelstein, Illinois34Steve RisleyF6–8So.Indianapolis, Indiana40Glen GrunwaldF6–9Jr.Franklin Park, Illinois41Butch CarterG6–5Jr.Middletown, Ohio42Mike WoodsonF6–5Jr.Indianapolis, Indiana43Jim RobersonC6–9Sr.Rochester, New York44Phil IsenbargerF6–8So.Muncie, Indiana45Ray TolbertF/C6–9So.Anderson, Indiana
Schedule/results
!colspan=8| Regular season
!colspan=8| NIT
Notes During the NIT, Indiana and Ohio State received byes during the quarterfinals and advanced directly to the semifinals.
Awards and honors Butch Carter, NIT co-Most Valuable Player Ray Tolbert, NIT co-Most Valuable Player
References