Next Man Up: Ansley Almonor Shines In Andrew Carr's Absence

Ansley Almonor couldn’t remember if it was late the night before or early the day of, but he knows his move to the starting lineup came on short notice, replacing injured forward Andrew Carr at the four. It was his first start in blue and white, but the 70th of his career out of 111 total games. Big individual moment? Sure, but not the biggest he’s experienced.

Nothing is likely to top his 25 minutes and start in No. 16 seed Fairleigh Dickinson’s upset over No. 1 seed Purdue in the 2023 NCAA Tournament.

Still, though, winning on the road in the SEC is no easy task, and a lot was riding on Almonor’s production with Carr out. Did he do anything different to prepare on just hours’ notice?

“I wouldn’t say I did anything differently. I feel like I get prepared same every game, because when I go in there, it doesn’t matter if I’m starting or not,” he said. “I’m going in with the intention of doing my best, so it’s not really any change.”

That led to 12 points on a season-high four 3-pointers with four rebounds in 24 minutes — exactly what the doctor ordered, giving Kentucky its best shot to win given the circumstances. Other factors forced the Cats to come up short in the 74-69 loss — 17 turnovers being first, second and third — but they don’t take away from Almonor’s spark as a confident shooter.

“He was huge. He made shots, he defended really well,” Jaxson Robinson said of his teammate’s performance. “I mean, everybody knows what Ansley’s capable of. It wasn’t any surprise any of us. Ansley did a great job of stepping up for A.C., coming in and bringing energy, knocking down shots, defending, rebounding, all those things.”

Did he feel any pressure stepping in — a role he may have to own for the time being while Carr works his way back from the back issue?

“It’s not really any pressure. You just go out there and just do what you can to help the team,” Almonor said. “I feel like it’s not really an extra pressure that’s added on your shoulders or anything. I just feel like you go out there and do what you can do to help the team. It doesn’t matter what role that may be or how that may be, you should go out there and do your best.”

His role as a starter paved the path for Trent Noah to get some extended run, too, with the freshman forward finishing through contact for a tough bucket to go with four rebounds and a steal in 12 minutes off the bench.

In a game with all eyes on the four spot, not only were neither liabilities, they both stepped up in big ways.

“It’s not the best (situation), but we have guys like Trent — he’s also a great player. He stepped in there and obviously made the most of his minutes the other day,” Almonor continued. “We have a great team with a next-man-up mentality. It sucks to have some guys out, but I feel like we always have somebody to step up and take that take that spot if needed.”

One way or another, you know No. 15 is going to come out firing. There has never been a shot the senior forward hasn’t liked, and that won’t be changing anytime soon.

“I feel like it’s a confidence thing. When you put in the work, you’re confident in your abilities and you feel you have a great chance to make the shot. The more you get in the gym, the more confident you are. Confidence is what attributes to wanting to take those shots in games.”

The Cats are going to need more of that in Knoxville when they take on Tennessee on Tuesday.