Caleb Love has delivered another spectacular March Madness performance. Sunday night in Seattle, Love went into takeover mode late to give the 4-seeded Arizona Wildcats a narrow victory over the 5-seed Oregon Ducks. Arizona is on to the Sweet 16 thanks to another signature game in Love’s illustrious career.
Caleb Love is No Stranger to Elite Performances in March
In his five-year collegiate career, Caleb Love has been one of the sport’s premier guards, particularly in the clutch time. With extensive NCAA Tournament experience from his three years with North Carolina and his now two years with the Arizona Wildcats, Love has proven again and again that he has what it takes to perform in the biggest moments of the season.
In the Round of 32 on Sunday, Love was back to his vintage ways. The Wildcats had fallen behind 17-4 in the opening minutes, but quickly battled back and outlasted Oregon 87-83. Love finished with 29 points on 10-18 from the floor and made several unbelievable shots late.
Arizona was the team that needed to make a comeback early in the first half, but with a 9-point lead in the second half, it was Oregon who fought back to make it a two-point game with a little over 4 minutes to play. It was then that Love put Arizona on his back.
Love began by burying a deep three-pointer to restore the multiple-possession lead. The next time down, Love penetrated the lane and finished with a ferocious dunk that forced Oregon to call for time. The Ducks got a tough and-one from TJ Bamba, but Love wasn’t finished. He came off a screen, quickly sized up center Nate Bittle, and buried a tough three in his face. Then, with under 5 seconds to go, Love made the game-sealing free throws.
Caleb Love Was Unphased by Early Deficit and Remained Supremely Confident Down the Stretch
After the game, Love was asked about the team’s mentality after an incredibly bad start, and had this to say:
“Knowing that this group, what we went through, the adversity, it’s built us for these moments, and us going down early, we never panicked, we never altered anything, and I just think we were so poised throughout that whole game, and nobody was worried about anything besides finishing out the game.”
In the first five minutes, Arizona missed all 5 of its shots and had 3 turnovers, one of which was by Love. However, the team quickly recovered and was back in position after a 19-9 run. They took the lead with around 4 minutes left, and entered halftime up 42-38.
After 9 points in the opening period, Love had 20 in the second half to clinch the victory. In addition to his scoring, he had 9 rebounds and 4 assists, which was huge for the team. Love has often been criticized as a player who can negatively impact his team when his shot is not falling, but against Oregon, he was getting it done in multiple areas.
After the win, head coach Tommy Lloyd praised Love not only for his play, but his leadership role:
“Caleb’s really grown in his leadership role. As a young player, the spotlight was on him in such a way that, the highest of highs and the lowest of lows, and I think for a long portion of his career, Caleb had to kind of just take care of himself. Which is, you know, I totally get, I totally understand, but this year, I’ve really seen him grow into that leader role and be more mature about it, he’s unbelievable with his teammates.”
Next Up For Arizona: A Foe Familiar to Caleb Love
Arizona will now face the 1-seed Duke Blue Devils in the next round. Love is of course no stranger to Duke after his time with North Carolina, and many fans will recall his signature Final Four performance against Duke in 2020.
This was the last time Caleb Love played Duke in the NCAA tournament. pic.twitter.com/a7LTxbkRtt
— Erika Day (@erikaleaday) March 24, 2025
Love downplayed the significance of the opponent when speaking with the media, but he will surely be eager for a good performance against Duke next weekend in the Sweet 16.
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