IOWA CITY, IOWA — Indiana head coach Tom Crean and his senior point guard Yogi Ferrell embraced after a hard-fought game.

Crean put his hand on the back of Ferrell’s head and the two exchanged words as they rock back and forth from excitement.

Why?

Because, after two seasons surrounded by doubt, uncertainty, and some adversity, these two men won their second Big Ten title outright together, and they couldn’t have done it without the other.

It’s practically a mirror image of Crean and Victor Oladipo’s embrace after winning the conference title in 2013 after a win at Michigan. 🙂

3 years apart. 2 legends. 1 coach who kept the faith, no matter what. Outright Big Ten champs! #iubb pic.twitter.com/OqsNUYplAc — Assembly Call (@AssemblyCall) March 2, 2016

Ferrell wreaked havoc on both ends of the floor as he scored 20 points, dished out five rebounds, and grabbed three boards as he led his Hoosiers over Iowa Tuesday night at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

His biggest shot of the night came with a hand in his face and 37 seconds remaining on the clock. Ferrell made the basket and extended the Hoosiers lead to five, which became crucial points down the stretch as the Hawkeyes inched their way back to make it a three-point game with time winding down.

Without that 3-pointer, the game could have gone in an entirely different direction down the stretch.

Indiana faced some adversity along the way. The Hoosiers were called for 25 fouls against 17 for Iowa and were outrebounded 42 to 39, including an 18 to 11 disadvantage on the offensive glass.

The Hoosiers led by 14 with around 14 minutes left in the game, but Iowa was not ready to call it quits. The Hawkeyes stormed back and chipped away at the Indiana lead.

But the Hoosiers were not daunted. They did not falter.

“We never wavered,” Crean said. “I had to remind them a couple times that, ‘We’re still in the lead,’ or, ‘It’s a 1-point game,’ but they believed. That’s so much a part in this, belief and resiliency.”

Even though it was Ferrell who was leading the way, what made this Hoosier squad tough to beat were the contributions from everybody on the roster.

Four Hoosiers scored in double digits. Besides Ferrell’s aforementioned 20 points, Troy Williams had 15, Thomas Bryant chipped in 12, and Nick Zeisloft finished with 11. For an Indiana squad that has seen their starting unit struggle at times, an outing in which the starters finish with 62 points must be promising.

Everybody was getting involved both down low and from downtown. The Hoosiers finished the game with 34 points in the paint and 33 from beyond the arc.

Ferrell is now the second player in Big Ten history to score 1,800 points, grab 400 rebounds, and have 600 or more assists. This game was also his 30th scoring 20 or more points in his career.

Unfortunately, Indiana did not leave the game unharmed. Freshman Juwan Morgan suffered an injury to his left shoulder in the game’s final minute. It’s unclear how serious the injury is, but after the game Crean said that it was a recurring injury.

Indiana now has the Big Ten title all to its lonesome. Crean praised this team’s ability to fight through difficult circumstances throughout the season and is looking forward to what lies in store.

“If we can build on this resiliency that they have had throughout this season,” Crean said. “Especially from early December into mid-December, and then certainly as we got into the Big Ten season, we can keep getting better, and we are. I think we’re a product of their hard work and improvement. I think it shows, and I think there’s more to get.”

Next Up: Indiana closes out the regular season at home against Maryland on Sunday as the Hoosiers aspire to improve their seeding for the upcoming tournament.