Tommy Lloyd excited to host legacy program Duke on Friday

Arizona head coach Tommy Lloyd spoke about the legacy Duke has in college basketball and the honor of hosting the Blue Devils on Friday night. Duke is playing in Tucson for the third time ever on Friday night. Arizona previously defeated Duke in Tucson in 1987 and 1991.

Arizona won 91-85 in the Fiesta Bowl Classic in 1987 and 103-96 in overtime in 1991. Both times Duke played in Tucson it advanced to the Final Four. Arizona and Duke both advanced to the 1988 Final Four following their meeting in December 1987. Last year was the first time Arizona and Duke played in 10 years.

Arizona won 78-73 in Durham last season in their second game at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Duke beat Arizona 78-76 in the previous meeting in Durham. Arizona leads the all-time series with Duke 6-4. The six previous meetings occurred at neutral sites. Arizona and Duke played twice in the NCAA Tournament.

Duke 82-72 in the 2001 NCAA Championship Game. Arizona upset number one seed Duke in front of a partisan crowd 93-77 in Anaheim in the 2011 West Regional Semifinal. The teams have played twice in the modern era in in-season tournaments. Arizona and Duke played in the 1997 Maui Classic and 2013 Preseason NIT.

"It's a great program. It's got (an) amazing...legacy and college basketball...It's an honor to have them come to Tucson to play us...I'm thankful for the opportunity...a great honor to have Duke here these are the kind of games Arizona basketball should be playing we're happy to be playing in them."

- Arizona head coach Tommy Lloyd

Duke is one a about a half-dozen legacy programs that every school wants to emulate. Arizona has been just a notch below that since beating Duke in 1987 and advancing to the 1988 Final Four. Under Lloyd, Arizona has been close during his three seasons as a one-seed in 2022 and a two-seed in the last two NCAA tournaments.

To reach the level of Duke and programs like Connecticut, Kansas, Kentucky and North Carolina, Arizona has to have success in March. Duke advanced to the South Regional Final in their second season under Jon Scheyer in 2024. Arizona has not advanced past the NCAA Tournament regional semifinals under Lloyd in two seasons.

A huge part of the lore of Duke basketball is Arizona guard Caleb Love. Love scored 28 points on 11-20 from the floor including scoring the last six points for North Carolina and a huge three-point shot in the final minute at the Tar Heels beat Duke 81-77 in the Final Four to end Mike Krzyzewski's career.