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
FIRST FOUR
Wednesday’s game
No. 16 Prairie View A&M 76, No. 16 Lehigh 55
FIRST ROUND
Thursday’s games
Oklahoma City
No. 4 Nebraska 76, No. 13 Troy 47
No. 5 Vanderbilt 78, No. 12 McNeese State 68
Greenville, S.C.
No. 11 VCU 86, No. 6 North Carolina 78, OT
No. 3 Illinois 105, No. 14 Penn 70
Oklahoma City
No. 10 Texas A&M 73, No. 7 St. Mary’s 50
No. 2 Houston 78, No. 15 Idaho 47
Friday’s games
Tampa, Fla.
No. 9 Iowa 67, No. 8 Clemson 61
No. 1 Florida 114, Prairie View A&M 55
SECOND ROUND
Saturday games
Oklahoma City
Nebraska 74, Vanderbilt 72
Greenville, S.C.
Illinois 76, VCU 55
Oklahoma City
Houston 88, Texas A&M 57
Sunday game
Tampa, Fla.
Iowa 73, Florida 72
REGIONAL SEMIFINALS
Houston
Thursday, March 26
Iowa (23–12) vs. Nebraska (28–6)
Illinois (26–8) vs. Houston (30–6)
REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
Houston
Saturday, March 28
| Date | Month/day | Scores | Opponent/event (current ranks) | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October | ||||
| 24 | Friday | L, 78–76 | vs. 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. 17 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. 11 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 | W, 80–62 | vs. USC Upstate | 9–1 |
| 16 | Tuesday | W, 77–58 | vs. ETSU | 10–1 |
| CBS Sports Classic in Atlanta | ||||
| 20 | Saturday | W, 71–70 | vs. Ohio State | 11–1 |
| ————————— | ||||
| 22 | Monday | W, 99–51 | vs. East Carolina | 12–1 |
| 30 | Tuesday | W, 79–66 | vs. Florida State | 13–1, 1–0 ACC |
| January | ||||
| 3 | Saturday | L, 97–83 | at SMU | 13–2, 1–1 |
| 10 | Saturday | W, 87–84 | vs. Wake Forest | 14–2, 2–1 |
| 14 | Wednesday | L, 95–90 | at Stanford | 14–3, 2–2 |
| 17 | Saturday | L, 84–78 | at California | 14–4, 2–3 |
| 21 | Wednesday | W, 91–69 | vs. Notre Dame | 15–4, 3–3 |
| 24 | Saturday | W, 85–80 | at No. 9 Virginia | 16–4, 4–3 |
| 31 | Saturday | W, 91–75 | at Georgia Tech | 17–4, 5–3 |
| February | ||||
| 2 | Monday | W, 87–77 | vs. Syracuse | 18–4, 6–3 |
| 7 | Saturday | W, 71–68 | vs. No. 1 Duke | 19–4, 7–3 |
| 10 | Tuesday | L, 75–66 | at No. 25 Miami | 19–5, 7–4 |
| 14 | Saturday | W, 79–65 | vs. Pittsburgh | 20–5, 8–4 |
| 17 | Tuesday | L, 82–58 | at N.C. State | 20–6, 8–5 |
| 21 | Saturday | W, 77–64 | at Syracuse | 21–6, 9–5 |
| 23 | Monday | W, 77–74 | vs. Louisville | 22–6, 10–5 |
| 28 | Saturday | W, 89–82 | vs. Virginia Tech | 23–6, 11–5 |
| March | ||||
| 3 | Tuesday | W, 67–63 | vs. Clemson | 24–6, 12–5 |
| 7 | Saturday | L, 76–61 | at No. 1 Duke | 24–7, 12–6 |
| 10–14 | Tues.-Sat. | ACC tournament | Spectrum Center, Charlotte | |
| 12 | Thursday | L, 80–79 | Quarterfinals: vs. Clemson | 24–8 |
| NCAA tournament | ||||
| 19 | Thursday | L, 82–78, OT | First round: vs. VCU in Greenville, S.C. | 24–9 |
Photo courtesy of UNC Athletics
