By R.L. Bynum

DAYTON, Ohio — Seth Trimble’s versatility and ability to do whatever it takes to leave Tar Heels fans happy knows no bounds.

He had left the court during Tuesday’s 95–68 First Four victory over San Diego State, but he was still making a difference, at least to some young fans, signing autographs before the game ended.

“They kept screaming,” said Trimble, who scored 16 points, made all six free-throw attempts and pulled down three rebounds. “And I can’t just ignore the little kids. I wanted to wait until after the game, but they kept going. I knew we wouldn’t have too much time. Knew we had to shake hands and do interviews to get off the court right away, so I tried to sneak them in a little bit.”

Whatever it takes, Trimble is there to help, including when UNC plays back in his home state on Friday, when the Tar Heels face Ole Miss at 4:05 p.m. in Milwaukee in the first round of the South Regional.

For much of the season, UNC lacked the kind of loud, emotional leader who had been significant in recent years. Armando Bacot, Brady Manek and Cormac Ryan have done that well in recent years.

Ever since Trimble called out his teammates for their effort in the loss at Clemson, he’s filled that role well and helped the Tar Heels make a dynamic transformation.

Trimble has always put in the effort, and all of his teammates were all-in on the defensive end against San Diego State.

“It’s our job and responsibility to give 110% effort on the defensive end because our defense fuels our offense,” Trimble said. “Once we get stops, we’re able to get out and run and create plays foreach other, and that’s what we did tonight.”

Trimble and Elliot Cadeau teamed up to do an outstanding defensive job on the guards, with Drake Powell doing his usual excellent job defending.

“I think our pressure, our physicality was up another level, and then just our sense of urgency, it’s always been there,” Powell said. “I think that helped us a lot.”

Trimble said, “That’s just what we do,” but agreed that the Tar Heels haven’t done that for much of the season. He said it’s been an evolution.

“The team in November, December, we weren’t a tournament team,” Trimble said. “Weren’t necessarily ready for that next step, and that’s on the defensive and offensive end. I think now everybody’s bought into it. Everybody’s bought into the little details, and we’ve all just followed our principles, and it’s taken us somewhere. We’ve got to keep going.”

Trimble said that Coach Hubert Davis’s decision to go to a taller lineup — Powell at three, Jae’Lyn Withers at four and Ven-Allen Lubin at five — accelerated that evolution.

“As soon as we went to that lineup, I feel like we all just settled in,” Trimble said. “Everybody was able to find a groove. I really don’t know what it was. I’m glad that we went bigger because, you know, it’s worked out. It just gives us so much versatility.”

Trimble undoubtedly brings versatility on the court and, for some lucky young fans, off the court during a game.

South Regional

Tuesday’s First Four results
No. 16 Alabama St. 70, No. 16 St. Francis 68
No. 11 North Carolina 95, No. 11 San Diego State 68
First round
Thursday’s results
Lexington, Ky.
No. 1 Auburn 83, No. 16 Alabama State 63
No. 9 Creighton 89, No. 8 Louisville 75
Denver
No. 4 Texas A&M 80, No. 13 Yale 71
No. 5 Michigan 68, No. 12 UC San Diego 65
Friday’s games
Milwaukee
No. 3 Iowa St. 82, No. 14 Lipscomb 55
No. 8 Ole Miss 71, No. 11 North Carolina 64
Cleveland
No. 10 New Mexico 75, No. 7 Marquette 55
No. 2 Michigan St. 87, No. 15 Bryant 62
Second round
Saturday’s results
Lexington, Ky.
No. 5 Michigan 91, No. 4 Texas A&M 79
No. 1 Auburn 81,. No. 9 Creighton 70
Sunday’s results
Milwaukee
No. 8 Ole Miss 91, No. 3 Iowa State 78
Cleveland
No. 2 Michigan St. 71, No. 10 New Mexico 63
Regional semifinals
Atlanta
Friday’s games
No. 8 Ole Miss (24-11) vs. No. 2 Michigan St. (29–6), 7:09, CBS
No. 5 Michigan (27-9) vs. No. 1 Auburn (20–5), 9:39, CBS
Sunday’s regional final
Atlanta
Sweet 16 winners

Date	Month/day	Time	Opponent/event (current ranks)	TV/ record
	October
24	Friday	L, 78–76	vs. No. 10 BYU in SLC	Exhib.
29	Wednesday	W, 95–53	vs. Winston-Salem St.	Exhib.
	November
3	Monday	W, 94–54	vs. Central Arkansas	1–0
7	Friday	W, 87–74	vs. No. 19 Kansas	2–0
11	Tuesday	W, 89–74	vs. Radford	3–0
14	Friday	W, 97–53	vs. N.C. Central	4–0
18	Tuesday	W, 73–61	vs. Navy	5–0
			Fort Myers Tip-Off
25	Tuesday	W, 85–70	vs. St. Bonaventure	6–0
27	Thursday	L, 74–58	vs. No. 9 Michigan State	6–1
	December		ACC/SEC Men’s Challenge
2	Tuesday	W, 67–64	at Kentucky	7–1
			—————————
7	Sunday	W, 81–61	vs. Georgetown	8–1
13	Saturday	2 p.m.	vs. USC Upstate	The CW
16	Tuesday	8 p.m.	vs. East Tennessee State	ACCN
			CBS Sports Classic in Atlanta
20	Saturday	3 p.m.	vs. Ohio State	CBS
			—————————
22	Monday	8 p.m.	vs. East Carolina	ACCN
30	Tuesday	7 p.m.	vs. Florida State	ESPN2
	January
3	Saturday	2:15	at SMU	The CW
10	Saturday	6 p.m.	vs. Wake Forest	ACCN
14	Wednesday	9 p.m.	at Stanford	ACCN
17	Saturday	4 p.m.	at California	ACCN
21	Wednesday	7 p.m.	vs. Notre Dame	ESPN2
24	Saturday	2 or 2:30	at No. 24 Virginia	ESPN or ESPNU
31	Saturday	2 p.m.	at Georgia Tech	ACCN
	February
2	Monday	7 p.m.	vs. Syracuse	ESPN
7	Saturday	6:30	vs. No. 3 Duke	ESPN
10	Tuesday	7 p.m.	at Miami	ESPN or ESPN2
14	Saturday	2 p.m.	vs. Pittsburgh	ESPN
17	Tuesday	7 p.m.	at N.C. State	ESPN or ESPN2
21	Saturday	1 p.m.	at Syracuse	ABC
23	Monday	7 p.m.	vs. No. 11 Louisville	ESPN
28	Saturday	6:30 or 8:30	vs. Virginia Tech	ESPN or ESPN2
	March
3	Tuesday	7 p.m.	vs. Clemson	ESPN or ESPN2
7	Saturday	6:30	at No. 3 Duke	ESPN
10–14	Tues.-Sat.	ACC tournament	Spectrum Center, Charlotte