Caleb Love takes on Duke one last time
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Caleb Love will likely be a key player for Arizona vs. Duke. Photo: Steph Chambers/Getty Images
Thursday's Sweet 16 match between UofA and Duke is going to be personal for Wildcats star Caleb Love.
Why it matters: The fifth-year senior guard and transfer from North Carolina almost single-handedly beat Oregon on Sunday to get Arizona back to the Sweet 16 for the third time in four years under coach Tommy Lloyd.
- If No. 4 seed Arizona is going to pull off the upset over No. 1 seed Duke, it will likely happen through Love.
The latest: Love scored 29 points Sunday and is averaging almost 17 points per game this season.
- He's part of a balanced offensive attack of seven players averaging at least eight points per game.
- Love has played against the Blue Devils nine times, including when he scored 28 points in the 2022 Final Four game that ended Mike Krzyzewski's legendary coaching career.
Yes, but: Duke might be the best team in the 2025 tournament, winning its first two games by a combined 67 points.
- The Blue Devils beat the Wildcats, 69-55, in November.
- Leading the way for Duke is No. 1 overall NBA Draft pick Cooper Flagg, a sensational 6-foot-9 freshman. But the most relevant matchup is probably Love vs. Tyrese Proctor, a junior guard who has given Love fits.
Catch up quick: The Wildcats have history with Duke that long predates Love's collegiate career.
- This will be the third time the teams have faced each other in March Madness — the most memorable, of course, being the Blue Devils' win over the Cats in the 2001 championship game.
- In 2011, the Cats got a measure of revenge when No. 5 seed UofA upset No. 1 seed Duke in the Sweet 16.
- The two teams have faced each other 11 times since 1961, and UofA's historic record against Duke is 6-5.
Jeremy's thought bubble: I was a junior at UofA during the 2001 championship game, and that loss to Duke is still burned into my brain.
- Fast-forward, and upsetting a top-seeded Duke team in this tourney would be pretty sweet.
- It's worth remembering that UofA was a 4-seed when the Cats won it all in 1997, and beat four No. 1 seeds on the way to the championship, starting with an upset of Kansas in the Sweet 16.
Watch: The game tips at 6:39pm Arizona time Thursday in New Jersey, with coverage on CBS.