How Trimble’s One-of-Kind Aggressiveness Helps UNC

With the North Carolina Tar Heels playing shorthanded, they were going to need to lean on their senior captain in Seth Trimble if they were going to pull off a win over #24 Louisville.

Fortunately for them, Trimble delivered, scoring 30 points — a career-high for the senior guard — on 11-16 shooting from the floor. With Caleb Wilson still out nursing a fractured hand, Trimble’s performance helped lead the Tar Heels to an impressive 77-74 win over Louisville.

Trimble is now averaging 14.2 points per game on the season, the highest of his four-year college career, while shooting 47 percent from the floor, and 30 percent from three-point range. They’ll need Trimble to keep up the production over the course of the final few regular season games, especially if Wilson remains out.

Feb 23, 2026; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels guard Seth Trimble (7) shoots as Louisville Cardinals forward Khani Rooths (9) and guard Ryan Conwell (3) and forward Sananda Fru (13) defend in the second half at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

Dixon’s thoughts

Following the game against Louisville, Derek Dixon, who scored 7 points on 2-4 shooting alongside Trimble in the backcourt, spoke about the impact of his most experienced teammate coming through with a 30-point performance.

“When Seth’s aggressive like that, our whole offense runs better,” Dixon said. “Guys got to collapse on him, and he’s making great kicks. Had one to Jarin that was really good, lobs to Henri, all that stuff opens up when he’s able to touch the paint and make plays.”

Feb 21, 2026; Syracuse, New York, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels guard Derek Dixon (3) dribbles during the first half against the Syracuse Orange at the JMA Wireless Dome. Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-Imagn Images | Rich Barnes-Imagn Images

“As our senior leader, he was going to come out and be aggressive, and we really needed him to do that tonight,” Dixon added. “The whole game, we just stayed on him, keep being aggressive, keep being aggressive, keep being aggressive, and he did it. Everytime we told him keep being aggressive, he did that, and look up at the end and he had 30. I wasn’t watching to see if he was getting there, but when he’s aggressive like that it’s really good for all of us.”

UNC without Wilson

The Tar Heels have managed to survive Wilson’s absence, thanks to performances such as Trimble’s most recent one. Since Wilson went down on Feb. 10 against Miami with the injury, the Tar Heels are now 3-1 in the four games since, with the only loss coming to NC State.

Feb 23, 2026; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels forward Caleb Wilson (8) reacts after a three point shot in the second half at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

UNC will be challenged heavily going into Selection Sunday next month. In their final three games, they’ll see Virginia Tech at home, Clemson at home, and #1 Duke on the road. They’ve done enough to earn a high seed for the NCAA Tournament, but a strong finish will help solidify their case to get a favorable matchup in the first weekend.

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