Rutgers fans thinking about a trip to Chicago for the Big Ten Tournament in mid-March might want to make their travel plans open ended.

Through the first two weeks of conference play, Rutgers' goal was to finish anywhere but last in the Big Ten standings. Now?

The Scarlet Knights would have a first-round Big Ten Tournament bye if the season ended today.

That’s right: Rutgers heads into February residing in eighth place in the 14-team Big Ten.

The Scarlet Knights moved into unchartered Big Ten territory at the halfway point of conference play thanks to a 66-58 triumph over Indiana before a raucous crowd at the RAC that included Gov. Phil Murphy and former Rutgers/current Miami Dolphins wide receiver Leonte Carroo.

"I now it was the coldest night of the year, but it was warm inside here,'' Rutgers coach Steve Pikiell said. "Great team win.''

Geo Baker scored 16 and made some clutch free throws down the stretch, Eugene Omoruyi notched a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds, and Ron Harper Jr. chipped in with 10 points as Rutgers improved to 11-9 overall and 4-6 in Big Ten play.

By handing Indiana (12-9, 3-7 Big Ten) its seventh straight defeat, Rutgers made some history.

The win marked the Scarlet Knights' longest Big Ten winning streak — three games — since joining the conference five years ago and it also surpassed their highest-ever win total in Big Ten play (RU won B1G games each of the past two seasons).

Rutgers trailed Indiana by 10 with four minutes to play in the first half, but used a 9-0 run to pull within 29-28 at intermission.

Indiana went a span of 9 minutes, 29 seconds without scoring between the first and second halves. The Scarlet Knights took advantage, leading 41-29 after an improbable 22-0 run.

Just your average 22-0 run. https://t.co/Jb1F0xiK4q — Keith Sargeant (@KSargeantNJ) January 31, 2019

"We just settled down (and) I knew if we could settle down and guard them,'' Pikiell said, "we could grind through. I thought we did a great job changing the narrative of the game during that stretch.''

Rutgers pushed its lead to 14 — 46-32 — with 12 minutes to play, but Indiana cut the deficit in half over the next four minutes.

The Scarlet Knights held tough down the stretch, as back-to-back layups by Omoruyi gave Rutgers a double-digit lead again.

Still, the final minutes had some tense moments. The Hoosiers pulled within five points with just under two minutes to play. That’s when Baker went to the line, draining a pair of free throws to give Rutgers a 60-53 lead.

Indiana missed three shots at the other end, and Baker gave Rutgers a nine-point lead with two more free throws (he finished 8-for-8 for the game).

"Heck of a game played by Rutgers,'' Indiana coach Archie Miller said. "I thought (Rutgers) did what they do well, they rebounded well. Give them credit. (Defensively) they made everything around the basket hard.''

Peter Kiss’ breakaway dunk with 25 seconds remaining was the exclamation point for Rutgers, which defeated Indiana for the second straight game after ousting the Hoosiers from the second round of the Big Ten Tournament last March.

The difference in the game? Rutgers out-rebounded Indiana 45-32 overall, including a 13-8 advantage on the offensive glass.

Keith Sargeant may be reached at ksargeant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @KSargeantNJ. Find NJ.com Rutgers Football on Facebook.