North Carolina walked into Monday night knowing they were going to have to win a different way.
No Caleb Wilson.
No go-to option on the block to slow the game down when things get chaotic. No double-team magnet to open up driving lanes for everybody else.
Just a ranked Louisville team coming into the Smith Center thinking this was their chance to steal one against a short-handed Tar Heel squad in late February.
Instead, they ran into Seth Trimble having the best night of his career.
Trimble poured in 30 points and completely changed the shape of the game, attacking downhill early and often against a Louisville defense that clearly came in daring somebody other than Wilson to beat them.
He finished at the rim through contact, knocked down mid-range pull-ups when the defense sagged, and most importantly dictated tempo when the Cardinals tried to speed things up.
Every time Louisville made a push — and they made several — Trimble answered.
The Cardinals hit 14 threes and had three different players score in double figures, including 24 from Mikel Brown Jr. and 23 from Ryan Conwell, but Carolina countered with efficiency and physicality.
The Tar Heels shot over 53% from the field and scored 40 points in the paint, leaning on Trimble’s ability to collapse the defense and open up looks for Henri Veesaar and Luka Bogavac, who each added 12.
Veesaar’s presence inside was especially important without Wilson, giving UNC just enough stability on the glass to keep Louisville from turning missed shots into extra possessions.
Still, it didn’t come easy.
Carolina nearly let it slip away at the free throw line, going just 9-of-19 and allowing Louisville to hang around into the final minute. But fittingly, it was Trimble who stepped to the stripe late and knocked down the biggest free throws of the night to seal a 77-74 win.
Without Caleb Wilson, UNC needed somebody to take control.
On Monday night, Seth Trimble didn’t just step up — he took over. Words can’t overstate how much of a statement win this was without Caleb Wilson.