After Arizona’s offense goes missing vs. Duke, Tommy Lloyd probes for answers | Michael Lev

Well after the Duke-Arizona game ended Friday night, it was unclear what the final score was. The paper version of the box score said the Blue Devils scored 69 points. So did the McKale Center scoreboard. The online box said 70.

Neither was the number that had UA fans freaking out.

The host Wildcats scored only 55 points. It was their lowest total in a home game since Feb. 8, 2020, BTL — Before Tommy Lloyd. It was their lowest total in any game since the loss to Princeton in the 2023 NCAA Tournament.

It was not what we’ve come to expect from a Lloyd-led team.

Lloyd is one of the premier offensive coordinators in college basketball. Since he came to Tucson, Arizona has finished third, sixth and third nationally in points per game. The Wildcats averaged more than 80 points each season.

Fifty-five? On that massive stage? In that amazing atmosphere? It doesn’t seem possible. But that’s exactly what happened on a night when the tall, deep, talented Blue Devils corralled the Cats — and Lloyd continued to struggle, as he put it, to “figure out why the pieces aren’t fitting together.”

Arizona has several new players in its rotation. Some holdovers have new responsibilities. It’s a process to make it all work.

Facing still-unbeaten Wisconsin on the road and 12th-ranked Duke at home in the third and fourth games of the season didn’t afford the Wildcats the luxury of time. Lloyd isn’t planning to waste a single minute with more challenges on the horizon, starting with a tournament in the Bahamas next week that features multiple ranked teams, including No. 3 Gonzaga.

“There’s no patience,” Lloyd said. “It’s a massive sense of urgency. You ain’t gonna see me out on the town tonight. I got work to do.”

His top priority is rebooting senior guard Caleb Love, whose late-season slide from 2023-24 has carried over into ’24-25. Love followed a 2-for-13 performance at Wisconsin by going 3 for 13 vs. Duke, including 1 for 9 from 3-point range. He had four assists but also three turnovers.

Despite teammate KJ Lewis insisting Love has “ultra confidence,” the preseason first-team All-American appears to be enduring a crisis in that regard. One possession midway through the second half illustrated that.

After Jaden Bradley missed a 3-pointer, Trey Townsend snared the offensive rebound and kicked the ball out to Love beyond the arc. No one was near him. Yet he hesitated to shoot. It was probably only a second, but it felt like an eternity.

Love can be a frustrating player. But before Friday, I never would have described him as tentative or unaggressive.

Love missed the wide-open 3. Motiejus Krivas grabbed another offensive rebound, giving Love another look. He made this one — his one and only triple eliciting the loudest roar from a crowd that had his back.

Lloyd has no plans to bench his mercurial guard.

“We all know Caleb. It’s a well-documented story. He’s my guy,” Lloyd said. “He’s not playing great right now. I just gotta be 100% honest. But it’s my job to hang with him. Because this isn’t the NBA. There aren’t trades. You’re not releasing guys.

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“And I know this: Caleb’s had so much success in college basketball, if we hang with him, it’s the right thing to do and we’ll be rewarded for that. So I’m going to hang with him and trust that better days are coming.”

Love isn’t the only one who’s struggling to find his way.

Townsend had a season-low four points. He took only four shots. He’s 0 for 5 this season from 3-point range after going 4 for 5 in Arizona’s exhibition opener vs. Eastern New Mexico.

Townsend was the guy for Oakland last season. He paced the Golden Grizzlies in minutes, scoring, field goal attempts, free-throw attempts, rebounds, assists and steals.

Now he’s trying to fit into a more talented roster at a higher level of basketball. Growing pains were inevitable. But as Lloyd noted, the clock is ticking.

Arizona brought in Tobe Awaka to rebound and provide physicality in the paint. He has done those things for the most part, averaging 10 boards in just 18.5 minutes per game. But Awaka was a nonfactor against Duke — zero points, three rebounds, two fouls in 12 minutes — and Lloyd pinned the blame on himself.

He elected to start Krivas, who’d been working his way back from an ankle injury, for the first time this season, and bring Awaka off the bench. It made sense: Krivas’ injury was no longer an issue, and Arizona could match its 7-2 center against Duke’s 7-2 center, Khaman Maluach.

Although he led the team with five assists, Krivas was hardly a force in the post. Duke double-teamed him on the catch and disrupted his rhythm. He took only three shots and scored only five points in 21 minutes.

Lloyd said he liked the idea of pairing Krivas with Townsend and Awaka with Henri Veesaar. Lloyd also said he’s taking a closer look at the “bigger picture.” That likely means rotation alterations.

Don’t be surprised if freshman Carter Bryant’s role expands. The springy wing didn’t shrink from the moment Friday, knocking down a pair of 3-pointers in a season-high 20 minutes. He could be more than just a 3-and-D player as a rookie. He might have to be.

Transfer Anthony Dell’Orso was supposed to provide the 3, if not the D, and he showed promising signs in the previous two games, going 4 for 9 from deep. He looked overwhelmed against Duke. Dell’Orso barely played (four minutes) and was a net negative when he did (his only stats: one turnover and one foul).

Like Townsend, Dell’Orso faces a demanding adjustment. You’re not in the Coastal Athletic Association anymore, kid. Upcoming games in the Bahamas and against UCLA (Dec. 14) could determine whether Dell’Orso plays a major role this season or just a bit part.

It’s important to keep in mind that this Duke team is loaded. ESPN’s October Big Board for the 2025 NBA Draft features three Blue Devils in the top eight: Cooper Flagg (No. 1), Kon Knueppel (No. 6) and Maluach (No. 8). Four others are ranked between 28 and 54.

All but one Blue Devil is listed at 6-foot-5 or taller, enabling Duke to switch off almost every screen action. Coach Jon Scheyer said he has “a roster of guys that can guard the ball.”

That was obvious Friday night. Nothing came easy for the Wildcats.