By R.L. Bynum
ATLANTA — Seth Trimble didn’t want history to repeat itself. After missing several games last season with a concussion, he remembered how long it took to feel like himself again. This time, coming back from a broken left forearm, he was determined to be ready.
He was frustrated that it took him so long to knock off the rust last season.
“I wanted to really make sure coming into coming back from this injury, I did the precautions. I did everything necessary to be me when I get back,” Trimble said.
He admitted the mental challenge was different than before last season because they were different injuries, but said he has stayed super-sharp since the weight-room accident on Nov. 9. He averaged 14.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.5 assists playing in the first two games of the season.
Trimble called the past month stressful because of the uncertainty.
“I was making constant improvement, which gave me a lot of confidence in the arm, but I just didn’t know,” said Trimble, who added he doesn’t feel any pain in his left forearm but plays with a sleeve on it. “At the end of the day, surgeon has to approve me, my trainers got to approve me, and everything else like that. So just a lot of uncertainty and some stress. But it all worked out.”
When he finally felt ready, everything came together earlier this week after he returned to full five-on-five drills during practice.
“A few days ago, practicing, I felt pretty normal,” Trimble said. “But I knew the game was obviously different than practice, so I expected myself to be a little more winded than I was today. But I, surprisingly, was not.”
On Saturday, Trimble showed no rust. He scored 17 points, hit three 3-pointers, and delivered the game-winning assist in No. 12 North Carolina’s 71–70 victory over Ohio State in the CBS Sports Classic at State Farm Arena.
The decisive play didn’t go as drawn up.
“The play was for me to get right, drive right, try and get a straight-line drive, make a play from there,” Trimble said. “But I spun, got ready to shoot, and I lost my foot right away. So I’m gonna say this now. This was a pass. I didn’t just throw the ball down. I saw Henri’s feet, and I saw him right there, and I just tried to give a bounce pass the best as I could, because I had nowhere else to go with it.”
Trimble’s return didn’t just give UNC a clutch playmaker. It revived the Tar Heels’ running game.
“We can definitely get out and transition more. We can definitely play faster with me on the floor,” Trimble said. “Fast and I can jump high sometimes, but I gotta start finishing a little bit more. I’ve got a little bit of athleticism.”
He said that energy he brings to the court spreads among his teammates.
“They see me get an easy layup, they’re gonna want that,” Trimble said. “They’re gonna want to pitch ahead; they’re just gonna want more of it. So, it’s definitely contagious.”
On the defensive end, Trimble had the primary assignment on Ohio State star Bruce Thornton, holding the guard to 16 points on 7 of 16 shooting.
“Defensively, having him there is such a big presence,” Veesaar said. “And on offense, he runs, like, we get so many more transition points just because of him running, and fast break points layups. Those are huge for us, because they’re easy momentum plays.”
Veesaar explained what makes Trimble unique in the open floor.
“He’s the fastest guy on the team,” Veesaar said. “He’s probably the biggest [vertical jump] on the team. So, just the way he runs the floor, there’s not many guys that can keep up with him.”
UNC coach Hubert Davis said Saturday was the first time his team has had some pitch-ahead passes for dunks and layups for a long time, thanks to Trimble.
“Obviously, he’s gifted,” Davis said. “We’ve got to get back to that, because that’s a huge part of our offense, is being able to sprint to the defensive end. It’s contagious, and it was nice to see that back in our offense today.”
Trimble also credited work during his time out for improving his shot. He was lucky to be able to do that because he didn’t injure his shooting arm. He didn’t have a 3-pointer in the two earlier games he played but was 3 for 5 from outside the arc against Ohio State.
“I took a look at my jumper with Coach [Marcus] Paige, and I saw that my left hand was really far in front of the ball,” Trimble said. “So, while I was out, I thought it was a perfect opportunity to get my left hand more on the side of the ball, and it just comes out more fluid now.”
Trimble said he brought and element to the defensive end that said was missing as he watched games from the bench.
“I think that there was a little bit of lack of physicality intensive defensive end, and I feel like that’s what I’ve been able to bring,” Trimble said.
Photos by Adam Hagy/Intersport
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