Grading North Carolina’s Starting Lineup Against Miami

The North Carolina Tar Heels suffered a significant loss on Tuesday night against the Miami Hurricanes in a 75-66 defeat. With that result, Miami jumped to fifth in the conference, while North Carolina slid to seventh in the conference with a 7-4 record in ACC play.

It was an underwhelming performance specifically from the starting lineup, which let the Tar Heels down. Here is an assessment of those five players.

Jarin Stevenson

Stat line: 13 points and 6 rebounds

The Alabama transfer was the lone bright spot in the Tar Heels' starting five, shooting 6-of-10 from the field while contributing on both ends of the court.

As conference play has heated up so has Stevenson's impact on offense. The junior forward has grown into his role as the season has progressed, which will be monumental for North Carolina down the stretch heading into March.

Grade: B+

Caleb Wilson

Stat line: 12 points, six rebounds, and 3 blocks

Feb 10, 2026; Coral Gables, Florida, USA; Miami Hurricanes forward Shelton Henderson (7) drives to the basket against North Carolina Tar Heels forward Caleb Wilson (8) during the first half at Watsco Center. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images | Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

Wilson playing all 40 minutes against Duke on Saturday night took a toll on the star freshman, as he did not appear to be his usual self against the Hurricanes.

A third of Wilson's points came from the free throw line as he struggled to connect on mid-range shots for most of the game. The 6-foot-9, 216-pound forward did not have the energy to patiently break down defenders, leading to sloppy shot selection.

Grade: B-

Henri Veesaar

Stat line: 11 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, and 1 steal

Early on, it looked like Veesaar was going to have another dominant outing as led the team with nine points at halftime, while shooting efficiently from the field in the process.

However, that all came crumbling down in the second half as the Arizona transfer scored only two points the rest of the way. It would be harsh to give a rough assessment of Veesaar’s performance, but in the must-have moments, he simply did not make the required plays.

Grade: B

Seth Trimble

Stat line: 4 points, 3 assists, and 1 rebound

Feb 10, 2026; Coral Gables, Florida, USA; Miami Hurricanes forward Malik Reneau (5) drives to the basket against North Carolina Tar Heels guard Seth Trimble (7) and center Henri Veesaar (13) during the second half at Watsco Center. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images | Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

The fact that all of Trimble's points came from the free throw line, tells you all you need to know about his performance on Tuesday night.

Trimble was abysmal in this game, shooting 0-of-5 from the field, including 0-of-3 from beyond the arc. After hitting the game-winning shot against Duke, the senior guard was expected to carry over that momentum against Miami.

Grade: F

Derek Dixon

Stat line: 2 points, 4 assists, and 1 steal

Dixon may have been even worse than Trimble, as he shot 1-of-9 from the field, including 0-of-6 from three-point range. However, unlike Trimble, Dixon is a freshman and will experience growing pains along the way.

Nevertheless, head coach Hubert Davis did not elevate Dixon into the starting line for outings like this. There is no reason to be overly concerned, but the freshman guard has seen better days.

Grade: F

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