BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — When Bob Knight arrived to coach the Indiana men’s basketball team in 1971, there were two banners that flew from soon-to-be-opened Assembly Hall and an Indiana basketball tradition whose glory had faded.

By the time Knight left the program in 2000, there were five banners to hang, a national reputation re-established for the Hoosiers and an imitable legend created.

Knight, who won 659 games as the Hoosiers coach from 1971-2000 and a then-record 899 wins in his career, died Wednesday. The Indiana icon was 83.

The announcement of Knight’s death was made on his website at 6:14 p.m.

“It is with heavy hearts that we share that Coach Bob Knight passed away at his home in Bloomington surrounded by his family. We are grateful for all the thoughts and prayers, and appreciate the continued respect for our privacy as Coach requested a private family gathering, which is being honored. We will continue to celebrate his life and remember him, today and forever as a beloved Husband, Father, Coach, and Friend,” read the statement at bobknight.com.

The statement went on to say Knight could be honored with a donation to the Alzheimer’s Association or Marian University.

When Knight’s death was announced at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall prior to Indiana’s women’s exhibition game Wednesday, there were a few audible gasps in the crowd before a moment of silence was observed.

Knight, who had taken ill in the last half-decade, had relocated to Bloomington after living in West Texas for several years, a legacy of his final coaching stint at Texas Tech.

Knight molded Indiana in his own image: gritty, tough, tempestuous, smart and fully committed to winning. His methods were not appreciated by all, even his own players at times, but he got results.

Knight, who played for Ohio State’s national championship team in 1960, amassed a 102-50 record at Army before he came to Indiana.

Upon arrival in Bloomington, Knight began winning and never stopped. His first Indiana team had a 17-8 record, but it improved dramatically from there.

By the mid-1970s, with the Hoosiers running the then-innovative motion offense, Indiana hit its peak, one of the greatest peaks in college basketball history.

The Hoosiers went undefeated in the 1975 and 1976 regular seasons. After a tournament upset in 1975, Indiana won the 1976 national championship with an 32-0 record — still the last undefeated national champion.

From 1973-93, the Hoosiers only failed to win 20 games five times and won 30 or more three times in an era where not as many games were played.

In this period, the 1981 national championship, with a team led by Isiah Thomas, and the 1987 national championship were part of the Hoosiers’ most glorious era of basketball. Additional Final Four trips were made in 1973 and 1992.

Knight generated tremendous loyalty from the majority of his players and from Indiana’s fans. He ran a clean program and expected as much from his players off the court as he did on it. Many credit Knight with success they’ve had in their post-basketball lives.

“As great as that record of success is, his impact is even more profound when looking at the enormous successes that his former players, coaches, and managers have enjoyed — both in the sport and outside of it — following their time working alongside Coach Knight and learning from him. His influence will continue to be felt through them for generations to come,” Indiana athletic director Scott Dolson said in a statement.

Through all of the good, Knight was a lightning rod for controversy. Sometimes with his words, sometimes with his actions. Often with both. His temper was legendary and it spared few. It was endearing to some, vilified by many others.

By 2000, Indiana was still winning but not at the same national championship level it had been, and Knight’s list of incidents kept growing. Not long after a videotape that showed Knight choking ex-Indiana player Neil Reed in a practice became public knowledge, he was put on a zero tolerance behavior policy by then-Indiana president Myles Brand prior to the 2000-01 season.

Knight didn’t make it to the first practice of that season. After a verbal incident with a student, Knight was let go in September 2000. It was a shocking end for an icon many thought would be at Indiana until he decided to leave on his own.

While Indiana’s fans were split by Knight’s departure, a fissure that has only recently begun to show signs of healing, Knight moved on. He took the job at Texas Tech. He helped the Red Raiders achieve a 138-82 record from 2001-08. He was succeeded by his son, Patrick, who also played for Knight at Indiana in their last glory period under Bob Knight in the early 1990s.

Knight went on to be an analyst for ESPN. He famously shunned Indiana for many years, still upset about his forced exit.

In February 2020, Knight, who was in declining health, agreed to come home to Assembly Hall to honor the 1980 Big Ten co-champions.

Coaxed by his former players to break the ice, Knight was welcomed with a standing ovation from an adoring crowd and with much gratitude from his former players.

Since then, Knight has been a semi-regular presence around Indiana, though mostly outside of the eye of the public given his deteriorating health. He was a regular attendee at men’s basketball practices as recently as last season.

One of those 1980 players Knight came back for in February 2020 was Indiana legend and now-coach Mike Woodson.

“I am so blessed that he saw something in me as a basketball player. He influenced my life in ways I could never repay. As he did with all of his players, he always challenged me to get the most out of myself as a player and, more importantly, as a person,” Woodson said in a statement.

During Hoosier Hysteria on Oct. 17, Woodson paid tribute to his former coach and implored the crowd to pay tribute with words that ring true in the wake of Knight’s death.

“When all of you go home tonight, do me a favor. Get on your knees and say a prayer for Bob Knight and his family. I wouldn’t be standing here without him. Make no mistake about it. Bob Knight is Indiana basketball, man,” Woodson said.