'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Arizona guard Caleb Love led the Wildcats to a 78-68 win against the Dayton Flyers in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday for a place in the Sweet 16.
Love registered 19 points, three rebounds and five assists on 40.0% shooting to stave off a Dayton comeback after leading by 17 points with 2:43 remaining in the first half.
The $630,000 NIL-valued star (as per On3) later showed off his and his team's dancing skills on his Instagram stories as they celebrated in their dressing room.
The Caleb Love redemption tour
Caleb Love was the protagonist for the North Carolina Tar Heels team for their improbable run to the 2022 NCAA championship game. But UNC missed out on the Big Dance last season, and he was put under intense scrutiny for underperforming in some big games.
He entered the transfer portal and committed to Michigan but reentered the portal after admission issues prevented the transfer from happening. He eventually chose coach Tommy Lloyd's Arizona, and he has thrived this season.
During the NCAA tournament, he is 6 of 20 from beyond the arc and 12 of 32 from the floor, with only four turnovers, in 69 minutes.
Caleb Love registered 18 points, 11 rebounds and five assists for the Arizona Wildcats in their first-round 85-65 win against Long Beach State and backed that up with his performance against the Dayton Flyers.
He had a hot hand early, scoring 13 points in the first 12 minutes before being held to just six points for the rest of the game.
Love showed off another quality that most of his teammates do not have: experience. As a player who played in a national championship game against the Kansas Jayhawks two years ago, he has loads of it.
When the Flyers pulled within 52-49, Love scored a crucial layup that staggered their momentum and allowed the Wildcats to win comfortably in the end.
The talented guard explained how the team navigated that stretch of the game:
"That's key. Just staying calm in those moments where they kind of making a run, not panicking. We've been doing it all season long, making adjustments. We've been working on it all year and it's been preparing us for this March Madness."
If Caleb Love can lead the second-seeded Wildcats (27-8) to the Final Four, his team will have a distinct advantage due to the location of the games being in Arizona, and it will be the first time in the Tommy Lloyd era that his team will have gone past the Sweet 16 stage.
