No. 18 North Carolina is coming off one of the biggest wins of the young season but now will have to move forward without senior captain Seth Trimble for the foreseeable future.
Despite the loss of Trimble, the Tar Heels will try to keep their momentum churning when they face Radford on Tuesday night in Chapel Hill, N.C.
After putting up 17 points and eight rebounds in 36 minutes Friday in an 87-74 win against then-No. 19 Kansas, Trimble is out indefinitely with a broken bone in his left forearm, an injury he sustained during a practice Sunday, the team announced. Trimble is set to undergo surgery this week.
“The exact length of his absence will be better known following the surgery,” a statement from the program read.
Trimble has been the starting point guard for North Carolina (2-0) this season, and the team was counting on his veteran presence (104 games played for the Tar Heels).
“So sad for Seth,” coach Hubert Davis said Sunday. “He’s such a great kid and teammate, and has worked so hard for his senior year. He loves being a Tar Heel, and we love him. The good news is he will be back at some point this year, and I know he will continue to be a great leader for us until he can get back in the lineup.”
While the loss of Trimble is big, the Tar Heels have several positives to build on after beating the Jayhawks and potential No. 1 draft pick Darryn Peterson.
Down by eight at halftime, North Carolina had a 58-point second half while shooting 66.7% (24 of 36) from the field to go with just one turnover. Freshman Caleb Wilson led the way with 24 points on 9-of-12 shooting, while Arizona transfer Henri Veesaar added 20 points on 8-of-12 shooting.
Wilson and Veesaar have led the frontcourt this season for the Tar Heels. The duo is first and second on the team in points and rebounds, with Wilson averaging 23 points and 5.5 rebounds and Veesaar 17 and 7, respectively.
“Henri’s my guy. He pushes me to be better every day, and he always holds me accountable,” Wilson said after the win over Kansas. “It’s nice to have a vet kind of like that because he’s taught me so many little things.”
The Tar Heels will face another hot-shooting team as Radford (2-0) will look to play spoiler in front of the Chapel Hill crowd.
The Highlanders are coming off of a 99-61 win over Division II West Virginia Wesleyan on Saturday in a game in which five players lodged double figures in scoring. Tennessee Tech transfer Jaylon Johnson had 16 points and four assists, including going 4-for-8 from 3-point range.
The Highlanders have shot well from the field, connecting on 54.9% of their shots this season. They’ve struggled, however, from beyond the arc, with Johnson and Brennan Rigsby Jr. being the only players to make a 3-pointer in both games.
“We come into November knowing the challenges and the schedule, especially early,” first-year Radford coach Zach Chu said on Oct. 31. “Our attitude towards those is to create opportunity, within those challenges. You put together a nonconference schedule that you hope best prepares you for conference play, and we certainly feel like we’ve accomplished that. We look forward to seeing it all come together.”
