Caleb Love finds Arizona’s way back past Oregon, into Sweet 16 in roaring Seattle NCAAs
For Arizona, Love will find a way.
To the Sweet 16.
Fifth-year senior Caleb Love, the All-Big 12 transfer from tumultuous seasons with North Carolina, repeatedly repelled Oregon’s second-half charges with mammoth shots en route to 29 points. He hit the clinching free throws with 2.2 seconds left.
Love worked and willed fourth-seeded Arizona back from an awful start to an 87-83 victory over fifth seed Oregon in the second round, as the NCAA tournament’s March Madness concluded its wild Sunday at Climate Pledge Arena.
No one else scored more than 12 points for the Wildcats (24-12). They advanced to the East Region semifinals against top-seeded Duke in a blue-blood battle royale Thursday in Newark, New Jersey. Duke easily beat Baylor earlier Sunday.
Arizona’s rally from being down 15 points in the first half to Oregon Sunday is the largest deficit in an NCAA tournament win in the storied program’s 112-year and 99-tournament-game history. This is UofA’s 39th NCAA tournament.
Arizona’s win was the second-largest comeback in the round of 32 in NCAA tournament history.
“Us going down early, we weren’t panicking,” Love said. “I just think we were so poised tonight, through the whole game.”
It was the second time in four games Love scored at least 27 points. He had a quiet 10 when Arizona didn’t need him for its first-round cruise past over-matched Akron Friday.
“Caleb was sensational,” Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd said.
“He’s so good already. What’s cool is how much better he can get.
“He was the best player on the floor today, and he was able to carry us to victory.”
They needed all of Love Sunday night against Oregon in this tense revival of and old rivalry in the former Pac-12.
Ducks fight back
Oregon rallied from seven points down with 2 minutes left to down 80-78 with 49.2 seconds left on a jump hook in the lane by senior 7-footer Nate Bittle. He lived on his left hand and had 16 points, 11 in the second half.
After Arizona’s timeout, two Ducks trapped the Wildcats’ Jaden Bradley in the backcourt baseline corner off the inbounds pass. Bradley threw it off Oregon’s TJ Bamba then himself out of bounds for Arizona’s ninth turnover of the night.
The Ducks (25-10) had the ball down two and 44 seconds to play.
Oregon leading scorer Jackson Shelstad (team-high 25 points) passed to Bamba. He challenged Arizona’s KJ Lewis is the lane with a shot from 10 feet. Lewis’ defense in his face forced the shot wide right. It clanged off the glass and not the rim. Arizona’s Tobe Awaka rebounded.
That would be the closed Oregon would get to tying or taking the lead late.
Bradley sank a free throw with 21.6 seconds remaining to put Arizona up 81-78. With the Wildcats’ defense crowding the 3-point line on the ensuing Ducks possession, Shelstad drove free to the rim for an uncontested layup. Arizona’s lead was 81-80 with 10 seconds to play.
Lloyd called time out for Arizona, then put Anthony Dell’Orso, his 89% free-throw shooter, back into the game. Lloyd designed an inbounds play to get Dell’Orso the ball in the backcourt. He got the inbounds pass and Oregon fouled him. Dell’Orso, a transfer from Campbell who’d never heard of March Madness while born and raised in Melbourne, Australia, made both one-and-one free throws. That made it Arizona 83, Oregon 80 at 9.8 seconds.
Bradley fouled Shelstad at halfcourt with 5.7 seconds left to prevent Oregon from trying a potential tying 3-pointer. Shelstad made both of his free throws to make it a one-point game again.
Arizona’s inbounds pass again went to Dell’Orso. He again made both one-and-one free throws.
Down 85-82, Arizona again fouled Shelstad at half court. He made the first then intentionally missed the second free throw off the glass and rim. Love, who else, rebounded for the Wildcats. With 2.2 seconds to go, he made both free throws, and the ‘Cats began focusing on Duke and the Sweet 16.
Oregon, a 76.4% free-throw shooting team entering Sunday, is going home to Eugene and beyond for the offseason lamenting going 12 for 22 (54.5%) from the free-throw line in its final game.
“We’ve played 31 games,” Ducks coach Dana Altman said, “and this is the first one we lost at the line.”
Arizona made 17 of 24 free throws (70.8%).
Altman rued the difference in those five made free throws in the game his Ducks lost by four.
Oregon lost in the round of 32 of the NCAA tournament for the second consecutive March. Shelstad and the Ducks lost in double overtime to Creighton last year to just miss the Sweet 16 then, too.
“We were right there,” Shelstad said.
“It’s going to sting for a little bit.”
The unrelenting Shelstad’s fade-back jumper with 4:21 left got Oregon within 72-70.
But Love knew no bounds.
The fifth-year senior answered with a 3-point swish from the left wing — and a wave to the screaming Wildcats fans in red behind Arizona’s bench. The ‘Cats restored their five-point lead.
After a harried Ducks miss at the end of the shot clock, Love drove past two defenders down the right side of the lane. He leaped at the rim, cocked the ball back behind his head with his right arm and slammed it through the hoop. The thumping dunk put Arizona ahead 77-70 with 2:27 remaining.
After a 3-point play by Oregon’s audacious Bamba cut the lead back to four points, Love drained another 3 from the top of the key. It was 80-73 ‘Cat with under 2 to play.
Dell’Orso, who had earlier given the Wildcats their first lead after their hellish start, spun into a pretty move past a stunned Duck down the baseline for a lay in. Then he drilled a corner 3 off a Wildcats offensive rebound.
That gave the ‘Cats their largest lead, 54-43, with 16:43 left. Dell’Orso pulled the white jersey from his chest and shoved the “ARIZONA” letters of it at the Oregon fans seated behind where he made his 3.
Altman called an Oregon time out. And packed Climate Pledge Arena filled with chants of “U of A!”
The Ducks responded with seven unanswered points. Shelstad, scoreless for 10 minutes from the first half into the second, swished a 3-pointer from the left wing over Arizona’s Caleb Love. That got Oregon to within 56-52. Shelstad stared and barked some at Love after the shot.
Arizona called time out — then maintained its lead.
‘Cats scratch back from early hole
The Ducks raced like roadrunners at the start. A step-back 3 plus a layup by Shelstad then consecutive baskets at the rim by Kwame Evans further Oregon’s sprint to a 19-4 lead 5 minutes into the game.
Fans across the Oregon bench in the lower, west bowl of the NHL Kraken’s arena were roaring “Let’s go Ducks!” in their enemy, Washington Huskies’ home city.
Then the ‘Cats scratched back.
It took Arizona 10 1/2 minutes to wipe out all of Oregon’s big lead.
Dell’Orso’s jump shot from the right wing beyond the 3-point arc put the Wildcats ahead for the first time, 35-33 with 16 minutes into the game. The first half ended with Arizona maintaining a four-point lead, 42-38. It got to 41-35 when KJ Lewis blocked the shot of Oregon’s Bamba, Bradley turned that into a layup and then Lewis made two free throws.
At that point, Arizona had out-scored the Ducks 37-18 since the first 5 minutes.
Shelstad scored 12 points in the game’s first 12 minutes, then didn’t score a point over the final 8 minutes of the half. It ended with the Wildcats up 42-38.
The chants echoing in the arena changed to “U of A!”
This story was originally published March 23, 2025 at 9:24 PM with the headline "Caleb Love finds Arizona’s way back past Oregon, into Sweet 16 in roaring Seattle NCAAs."
