SEATTLE — Caleb Love scored 20 of his game-high 29 points in the second half to lead Arizona over Oregon 87-83 and into the Sweet 16 during a see-saw game in which the Wildcats trailed by 15 points early.
Arizona guard Caleb Love (1) lets out a yell after securing the rebound and denying Oregon a last second chance to erase an 85-83 deficit in the second half of their round of 32 game against Oregon in the menÕs NCAA tournament, Seattle, March 23, 2025. Love sank his two free throws for the final 87-83 score and a place in the Sweet Sixteen.
Kelly Presnell / Arizona Daily Star
The win moved Arizona to 24-12 and into an East Region Sweet 16 game against Duke (33-3) on Thursday. Arizona lost to Duke, 69-55, on Nov. 22 at McKale Center, after the Wildcats beat the Blue Devils in Durham, North Carolina, last season.
Already having tied the Oregon arena single-game scoring record with 36 points last season, Love had 29 points, nine rebounds and four assists while Tobe Awaka had 12 points and 12 rebounds inside. Guard KJ Lewis added 12 points.
Love hit 5 of 7 3-pointers, with UA making 10 of 20 long range shots overall, and Awaka’s production on the glass helped Arizona outrebound Oregon 42-35 in a game when both teams shot about 45% from the field.
With UA leading 80-78 with 45 seconds left, Arizona guard Jaden Bradley turned the ball over against a trap but TJ Bamba later missed a jumper and Bradley went to the free throw line on a foul from Keeshawn Barthelemy with 21 seconds left. Bradley hit the two free throws, letting Oregon have the ball with 18 seconds and a three-point deficit.
Oregon guard TJ Bamba (5) gets a handful of arm trying to stop Arizona guard Jaden Bradley (0) from a breakaway basket in the first half of their round of 32 game against Oregon in the men’s NCAA Tournament in Seattle, March 23, 2025.
Kelly Presnell, Arizona Daily Star
Oregon’s Jackson Shelstad drove in for a layup to cut UA’s lead to 81-80 and, after a timeout, Lewis inbounded to Anthony Dell’Orso, who was fouled and hit both ensuing free throws. The same sequence was repeated with 5.7 seconds left, when Shelstad hit both free throws and Lewis again inbounded to Dell’Orso, who hit another two.
Shelstad missed a second free throw on his final trip to the line, leaving UA with an 85-83 lead, and Love picked up the rebound. Love was fouled and hit two final free throws as the Wildcats and their considerable fan base in Seattle celebrated.
The Wildcats trailed early by 12, took a 42-38 lead at halftime, then went ahead by up to 11 in the second half before Oregon cut it to just two points with 4:34 left. But Love had eight points over a two-minute span from there, giving UA an 80-73 lead heading into the final two minutes.
Oregon’s Barthelemy hit a 3-pointer with 1:35 left, cutting UA’s lead to four points, before Bradley passed out of a trap, leading to two free throws from Henri Veesaar with 1:21 left. Veesaar missed both free throws and while the rebound went out of bounds on Oregon, Bradley missed a shot inside with 59 seconds left and the Ducks’ Nate Bittle hit a hook on the other end to cut UA’s lead to 80-78 with 49 seconds left.
After taking a four-point lead at halftime, the Wildcats kept up the pressure early in the second, going on an 8-0 run to take a 54-43 lead with 16:48 left, when Dell’Orso hit a 3-pointer from the right corner. Dell’Orso turned toward the crowd and tugged on the “Arizona” part of his jersey in celebration.
But the game was far from over at that point.
Oregon called a timeout five seconds later and a minute after it ended, the Ducks rattled off seven straight points to cut Arizona’s lead to 56-52 on a 3-pointer from Shelstad with 14:18 left.
But Love hit a 3-pointer and dished an assist to Veesaar as he drove the left baseline, with Veesaar throwing down a dunk that gave UA a 61-53 lead. Those scores more than helped UA overcome a technical foul Lewis received for hanging on the rim when he missed a dunk and tried to throw it in; the tech allowed Barthelemy to take one free throw that he made.
Arizona forward Henri Veesaar (13), left, and Arizona guard Caleb Love (1) batter the ball out of the hands of Oregon forward Kwame Evans Jr. (10) in the second half of their round of 32 game in the menÕs NCAA tournament, Seattle, March 23, 2025.
Kelly Presnell / Arizona Daily Star
While Dell’Orso’s 3 and a shot inside from Awaka both gave UA leads of 11 points, Oregon cut it down to just 68-64 after Bittle made two hook shots and Kwame Evans made a free throw . The Ducks then pulled within 72-70 on a jumper from Shelstad with 4:34 left before Love hit a 3 and drove in past Bittle for an emphatic dunk that gave UA a 77-70 lead with 2:37 left.
In the first half, Awaka had 11 rebounds to help the Wildcats erase an early 15-point deficit and take a 42-38 halftime lead.
Awaka’s production on the glass allowed UA to outrebound the Ducks 23-19, while UA wound up holding Oregon to just 2-for-8 3-point shooting over the final 15 minutes while allowing the Ducks to hit 3 of 4 from beyond the arc early, when they jumped out to a 19-4 lead.
After trailing 19-4 early, Arizona went on a 13-2 run in the middle of the first half to pull within three points, 26-23, when Love hit a 3-pointer in the left corner, while the Wildcats’ defense began to kick in.
Oregon, which had scored seven points off three UA turnovers in the first five minutes, gave up four turnovers over the next seven minutes — though the Wildcats scored only three points off them.
After Oregon’s TJ Bamba hit a 3 at the shot clock buzzer to put Oregon ahead 31-23, the Wildcats went on another run, outscoring the Ducks 12-2 over a three-minute span. They took a 32-31 lead on a layup from Bradley and went ahead 35-33 on a 3 from Dell’Orso.
The game started ominously for Arizona, which fell behind 19-4 in the first five minutes and 11 seconds. Over that span, the Wildcats shot 1 for 6, committed three turnovers that led to seven Oregon points and allowed the Ducks to shoot 3 of 4 from 3-point range.
Arizona guard KJ Lewis (5) rises above the crowd for a tip back against Oregon in the first half of their round of 32 game against Oregon in the men’s NCAA Tournament in Seattle, March 23, 2025.
Kelly Presnell, Arizona Daily Star
UA coach Tommy Lloyd did not call an early timeout, and the Wildcats trailed 17-4 when a media timeout was called with 15:11 left, while Oregon’s Evans made a rebound basket on Oregon’s next possession after the break.
Oregon’s early scoring included open 3-pointers made by Brandon Angel and Bittle, while Shelstad stepped back to create his own space and hit a 23-footer.
The Ducks also scored on dunks from Bittle and Bamba, while Shelstad stole the ball from Lewis and drove inside for a fast-break layup that made it 15-4 with 15:37 left.
After Oregon went ahead 19-4, 3-pointers from Bradley and forward Carter Bryant helped cut the Ducks’ lead to 10 points with 12 minutes left while Arizona began turning the first half around. The Wildcats wound up committing only one turnover over the final 15 minutes of the first half.
Arizona guard Caleb Love (1) lets out a yell after securing the rebound and denying Oregon a last second chance to erase an 85-83 deficit in the second half of their round of 32 game in the men’s NCAA tournament, Seattle, March 23, 2025. Love sank his two free throws for the final 87-83 score and a place in the Sweet Sixteen.
Kelly Presnell / Arizona Daily Star
Arizona head coach Tommy Lloyd gestures to the crowd behind the Wildcat bench as he leaves the court with a 87-83 win over Oregon in the second half of their round of 32 in the men’s NCAA tournament, Seattle, March 23, 2025.
Kelly Presnell / Arizona Daily Star
Oregon head coach Dana Altman drops his head after the Ducks missed two free throws in a row early in the second half of their round of 32 game against Arizona in the men’s NCAA tournament, Seattle, March 23, 2025.
Kelly Presnell / Arizona Daily Star
Arizona forward Henri Veesaar (13) gets a hold of a the shirt of Oregon center Nate Bittle (32) picking up a foul in the second half of their round of 32 game in the men’s NCAA tournament, Seattle, March 23, 2025.
Kelly Presnell / Arizona Daily Star
Arizona guard Anthony Dell’Orso (3) sneaks under the arm of Oregon center Nate Bittle (32) and into the lane in the second half of their round of 32 game in the men’s NCAA tournament, Seattle, March 23, 2025.
Kelly Presnell / Arizona Daily Star
Arizona guard KJ Lewis (5) rises above the crowd for a tip back against Oregon in the first half of their round of 32 game against Oregon in the men’s NCAA tournament, Seattle, March 23, 2025.
Kelly Presnell / Arizona Daily Star
Oregon guard TJ Bamba (5) gets a handful of arm trying to stop Arizona guard Jaden Bradley (0) from a breakaway basket in the first half of their round of 32 game against Oregon in the men’s NCAA tournament, Seattle, March 23, 2025.
Kelly Presnell / Arizona Daily Star
Arizona guard KJ Lewis (5) rejects a shot from Oregon guard TJ Bamba (5) in the first half of their round of 32 game against Oregon in the men’s NCAA tournament, Seattle, March 23, 2025.
Kelly Presnell / Arizona Daily Star
