Neither of the two scenarios—Love with three points or thirty—would be all that shocking on Friday. Everything is a part of the journey.
During his last season at UNC, Love was frequently the focus of criticism due to his 29% 3-point shooting percentage and 15 more assists than turnovers.
As UNC became the first preseason No. 1 team to miss the NCAA Tournament, his inefficiencies as a shooter and facilitator came under intense scrutiny.
Choosing Arizona over Michigan when his original plan to attend Michigan fell through, he became one of the seven players from the UNC squad from the previous season to access the transfer portal.
Love will now try to work harder for an Arizona team that doesn’t require him to be superhuman.
According to KenPom.com, Arizona’s offense finished in the top 10 in each of Lloyd’s first two seasons.
With assists on over 64% of their baskets during the previous two years, the Wildcats were also among the top five in terms of assist rate.
“I’m just certain that we can play a fantastic basketball game at Duke without Caleb going crazy,” commented Lloyd.
“You don’t have to fit in here, but you do have the chance to get comfortable and allow the game come to you a little bit.
That’s one of the things I’ve tried to give him. I believe he will get increasingly at ease with that. I believe he has played incredibly well and been a terrific teammate every time he has worn our uniform against another team.
History of Caleb Love in UNC basketball games at Cameron Indoor Stadium vs Duke
In his first two games at Cameron Indoor Stadium, Love scored 20 points in a row to open his career.
As a freshman, he scored 25 points on 56% shooting against the Blue Devils, and as a sophomore, he scored 22 points in Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski’s final game at Cameron. As a junior at Durham, Love had trouble shooting, missing 10 of his 15 attempts and scoring just 12 points in a defeat.
