Why did Travis Perry commit to Kentucky basketball? ‘That dream is always there.’

Travis Perry’s Sunday afternoon commitment to Kentucky was a surprise to many in college basketball recruiting circles.

Perry — a standout guard at Lyon County High School in Eddyville and the all-time scoring leader in Kentucky boys high school basketball history — pledged to become a Wildcat during a live-streamed commitment ceremony in his high school gym.

Perry picked UK from a small list of finalists that also included Alabama, Cincinnati, Ole Miss and Western Kentucky.

While Alabama, Cincinnati and Ole Miss were viewed as the front-runners in Perry’s recruitment, any hopes those programs had of landing the four-star recruit (per 247Sports) were dashed when he unzipped his jacket to reveal a white Kentucky basketball T-shirt before putting a blue UK hat on his head.

So what pulled Perry — who is now part of UK’s four-player 2024 recruiting class along with guard Boogie Fland and centers Somto Cyril and Jayden Quaintance — to John Calipari and the Kentucky program?

“Obviously being a Kentucky kid from Kentucky, that dream is always there,” Perry said during his college announcement, which took place in front of an audience at Lyon County and was shown live on the 247Sports YouTube page.

“But it was more than that. It was the opportunity to go in and have an impact and go in and help the great basketball state of Kentucky win. That’s something, I feel like Kentucky has the best fans in the world, so just being able to play in front of those fans and have the opportunity to keep doing that is something really special to me.”

Perry, who is ranked by the Recruiting Services Consensus Index (RSCI) — which combines the rankings from the nation’s top recruiting services into one single metric — as the No. 81 player in the 2024 recruiting class, has never taken an official visit to UK, according to his 247Sports recruitment history.

But the distance from Eddyville (where Lyon County High School is) to Lexington equates to about a three-hour drive, and Perry has been able to take unofficial visits for several UK basketball events including Big Blue Madness in 2022 and 2023, as well as a 32-point Kentucky win over Auburn in February.

Something that also clearly made an impact with Perry is the relationship he fostered with Calipari.

“It played a big role. Ever since I first visited campus, he kind of welcomed us in and made us feel like family,” Perry said of Calipari. “It was always like we were already part of the team, and already part of the Kentucky family. That’s something that’s been big, having that relationship with him and knowing that you’re playing for a guy that really values you.”

Perry’s familiarity with Rupp Arena runs deeper than just his visits as a recruit, though.

He’s been a driving force behind Lyon County making consecutive appearances in the Boys’ Sweet 16 state tournament at Rupp Arena as champions of the 2nd Region.

Perry, who is the state’s career leader in 3-pointers made, holds a 2-2 mark in state tournament games at Rupp Arena, as the Lyons have made the state quarterfinals in consecutive years as well.

“It means the world to me to have that opportunity (to play at UK),” added Perry, whose parents both graduated from UK. “... It’s just a different feeling when you walk out there and get to play (at Rupp). So to be able to call that my home and play (there) for the next few years is really incredible.”

Prior to their most recent trip to the state tournament in March, Lyon County coach Ryan Perry (Travis’ father) spoke about his son as both a basketball player and a person.

“I think at times he feels like he’s got to play for himself and he’s got to play for his teammates and he’s really got to play for his coaches, especially when his dad’s on the bench,” Ryan Perry said. “Travis is a pleaser and he always wants to make everybody happy and make other people look good and sometimes he puts too much pressure on himself just to make sure that everybody’s taken care of.”

This year’s state tournament trip for Lyon County came with the context of Perry on the cusp of shattering the all-time state scoring record for Kentucky boys high school basketball.

Perry eclipsed the record, previously held by Wayland legend “King” Kelly Coleman, by making a free throw in the fourth quarter of Lyon County’s opening win over Newport.

“Sometimes (Travis) gets it a little harder than other players do just because I hold him to such a high standard, but that’s not anything that’s caught him off guard this year or last year,” Ryan Perry added. “When we saw the talent and what Travis was capable of years ago, he started getting that kind of treatment.”

Fast-forwarding from March to now, and with Perry’s college destination now decided, what does he hope to bring to the Wildcats?

“The main thing that I want to bring is a lot of heart. A guy that plays the game of basketball the right way and goes in to win,” Perry said Sunday. “Like I’ve said many times, the coaches that you play for really have their careers based on winning. So just going in there and being a guy that can come in and help winning, playing for the state of Kentucky. Like I said, you want to go in there and help Kentucky win. So that’s the main thing.”

After legendary career at Lyon County, Travis Perry will continue basketball dream at UK

What does Travis Perry’s surprise commitment mean for UK? ‘He makes his teammates better.’