One upset loss can’t outweigh all the pain Caleb Love caused Duke fans two years ago. But it feels nice.
Love and the No. 2 Arizona Wildcats lost to No. 6 Clemson 77-72 on Thursday night alongside his Arizona teammates.
Love began his career with North Carolina, and he forever etched himself into Blue Devils lore in March 2022. He helped UNC upset the Blue Devils on senior night, the final home game of five-time national champion Mike Krzyzewski’s coaching career. In that same postseason, he hit the game-clinching 3-pointer to send Duke and Coach K home in the Final Four.
Love transferred to Arizona for the 2023-24 season, but even though he was in the Pac-12, he and the Wildcats came to Cameron and beat the Blue Devils again in the second game of the year.
This time around, however, Love couldn’t summon any heroics. The senior and this year’s Pac-12 Player of the Year finished 5/18 from the floor and 0/9 from three. He scored only 13 points.
His teammates didn’t fare much better as Arizona shot 37% from the floor and 18% from beyond the arc.
The Wildcats, the No. 2 seed in the West region, became the first top-two seed eliminated from March Madness.
Clemson advances to play Alabama, who defeated No. 1 North Carolina on Thursday night.