By Dane Miller, SuperWest Sports
Arizona continued its dominance in the Round of 32, beating Oregon to advance to 20-3 all-time in the Second Round.
Say what you want about UA’s propensity to lose to lower seeds in the First Round.
But there’s no denying that the program is elite when it comes to advancing to the Sweet 16 after surviving the opening game.
As a reward, the Cats get a rematch with Duke.
I preview the Sweet 16 matchup below.
No. 4 Arizona vs No. 1 Duke
Thursday, March 27
6:39 pm PT, CBS
Sweet 16, East Region, Newark
Nobody is giving Arizona a chance. The spread on the game is the widest of all the matchups in the Sweet 16.
All you hear is Duke this, Duke that. Cooper Flagg, blah, blah, blah.
Do you think Arizona’s players and coaching staff give a rat’s ass about what people are saying? The Cats already faced the Blue Devils earlier in the season and beat them at Cameron Indoor last year.
It’s a familiar opponent that does not produce fear.
The national media wants to frame the game as a Caleb Love vs. Duke matchup. But what about Jaden Bradley, KJ Lewis, Carter Bryant, Tobe Awaka, and Henri Veesaar?
Tommy Lloyd’s team has always been bigger than one player.
And when Arizona faced the darlings of the ACC earlier in the season, Motiejus Krivas had yet to sustain his injury, Veesaar played just 13 minutes, and Awaka only played 12.
This is a completely different UA team.
The rotations and offensive emphasis are nothing like what Lloyd put on the floor all the way back on November 22nd.
Perhaps Duke is just that good and it doesn’t matter. But if the Blue Devil players think this game is going to be anything like the one they played in Tucson, they are in for a shock.
Love went 3-for-13 in that contest and Arizona had yet to find ways to win when he is inefficient with high-volume shooting. That’s not the case anymore.
The other players not named Love have become key contributors that pick up the slack.
Trey Townsend and Anthony Dell’Orso, in particular, are X-Factors. Delly had a legacy game against Oregon and Townsend could be primed for a breakout.
Duke is an elite three-point shooting team, yet if Arizona can consistently contest their shots without fouling and grab the defensive rebounds, it could have a chance.
It might take an efficient night from Love and an unexpected performance from a role player.
But to say Arizona “has no chance” is not accurate.
At the end of the day, if the Wildcats advance to the Elite 8 it will be because of their defense and limiting the turnovers they commit.
Crazier things have happened. This game will be closer than many expect.
Miller covers College Basketball and College Football as well as Formula 1 racing as a Senior Writer and Assistant Editor for SuperWest Sports.
