Arizona Wildcats Basketball Star Ranked Among Best Guards, Shooters in NCAA
The last three seasons for the Arizona Wildcats have been extremely productive under head coach Tommy Lloyd.
He took over a program that was in some disarray by the end of Sean Miller’s tenure at the school. The Wildcats had missed the NCAA Tournament two straight seasons it was held; in 2020 it was canceled because of the COVID-10 pandemic.
It didn’t take long for Lloyd to bring the program back to prominence. They have qualified for the tournament all three seasons he has been on the sideline, earning a No. 1 seed in 2022 and No. 2 seed in 2023 and 2024.
One of the players who will be looking to help keep that success going during the 2024-25 season is Caleb Love.
The former North Carolina Tar Heels standout transferred to Arizona and played with the Wildcats last season. He opted to use his fifth year of eligibility and is back for one last run in Tuscon.
The 2023-24 Pac-12 Player of the Year, Love averaged 18 points, 4.8 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.2 steals in 32.3 minutes per game. It was the most efficient shooting season of his collegiate career, as he made 41.3 percent of his shot attempts overall, 33.2 percent from 3-point range and 83.9 percent from the foul line.
Unsurprisingly, he enters the upcoming campaign regarded as one of the best guards in college basketball.
Andy Katz recently revealed his guard rankings for the season and coming in at No. 4 was Love. Ahead of him is Mark Sears of the Alabama Crimson Tide, his former North Carolina teammate R.J. Davis and freshman phenom Dylan Harper of the Rutgers Scarlet Knights.
There is a lot of backcourt talent in college basketball this season. Rounding out the top five behind him is Braden Smith of the Purdue Boilermakers.
Game changers 🌟@TheAndyKatz ranks the top 16 guards in the nation ✍️ pic.twitter.com/DcW46I1ppx
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) September 13, 2024
Despite his somewhat underwhelming 3-point shooting percentage, Katz also highlighted Love’s long-range ability. He came in at No. 12 in his top 16 3-point shooter rankings.
Along with Love, Sears, Davis and LJ Cryer of the Houston Cougars also appeared on both lists.
Dialing in from deep ☎️
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) September 16, 2024
These are the top 1️⃣6️⃣ 3-point shooters in the nation, according to @TheAndyKatz 👌 pic.twitter.com/zACd7q4Euf
The best 3-point season of his career came during the 2021-22 season with the Tar Heels when he made 36 percent. Improving in that area will not only make the Wildcats a more dangerous team, but it will also improve his stock as he prepares for the next phase of his basketball career as a pro.
KENNETH TEAPE