Travis Perry is glad to be back playing in the state tournament with Lyon County and could become the state's all-time leading scorer on Thursday if he scores 21 points against Newport. (Les Nicholson Photo)
History could be made Thursday at the boys state high school basketball tournament when Lyon County plays Newport
Lyon County junior Travis Perry is only 21 points away from breaking the state’s all-time scoring record of 4,337 points set by King Kelly Coleman from 1953-56.
Ninth Region champion Newport (28-6) is on a 12-game winning streak but Lyon (30-5) has won 16 in a row since losing in the Second Region All “A” Classic.
Perry averages 32.2 points per game and has not scored less than 20 points in any game this season.
“I am excited to get to Rupp (Arena). That is every team’s goal and I am happy we were able to pull it off,” said Perry on WLAP Sunday Morning Sports.
He’s focused on winning, not the record. However, he knows the scoring record is what others will be focused on.
“It can be difficult but for me it is about winning and playing for teammates and coaches,” Perry said. “Trying to get a win is what matters so you can play more games in front of a lot of fans. If I score 40 and we lose, I am not going to be happy. It is all about the win.”
However, he knows history and what possibly lies ahead Thursday.
“If it happens, it will be a huge blessing. To know only one other person in Kentucky has ever done that (score as many points) is special. I would be very grateful and it would mean a lot,” Perry said. “It would show al the hard work I have done with coaches, teammates and family and the sacrifices and all the games we have won.
“It would be big for myself and Lyon County. I am just blessed and thankful I have been injury free to this point.”
Perry has plenty of firepower on his team. Junior teammate Brady Shoulders, a 1,000-point scorer, averages 18 points per game and 11.1 rebounds and also shoots 51 percent overall from the field. Junior point guard Jack Reddick adds 19 points per game and is a 48 percent shooter. Perry is hitting 53 percent overall from the field and has made 167 of 368 3-pointers — a 45.4 percent mark.
“We are playing a lot better the last few weeks. We had injuries and a couple of guys out but everybody is back. We have (transfer) Bradin (Nelson) back in the mix and that makes us a different team,” Perry said. “We play really fast and hard. We get up and down the court.
“Jack is a great player. Brady is an inside presence who also stretches the floor with his shooting. He’s also probably our best defender. We have a lot of freshmen making an impact and it’s not easy to do that. I am really proud of them.”
If Lyon could advance, it would play the North Laurel-George Rogers Clark survivor on Friday night. North Laurel is led by UK signee Reed Sheppard and lost 90-83 to Lyon on Jan. 7.
“In Rupp it is anybody’s game. You hope you can have a couple of good showing games and make a deep run,” Perry said. “We have a good team. I think we can play with anybody in the state. We are going to hope even if we have a bad game that our defense can help us win. We are hoping our team is tough enough and mature enough to do that. We are hoping to win it all.”
Perry understands the state tourney always gets a lot of attention but may get even more with his pursuit of history, Sheppard being a UK signee and Woodford County sophomore Jasper Johnson regarded as a top 20 player in his recruiting class.
“It’s always cool when guys who get a lot of media attention have teams that are successful and in one tournament together,” Perry said. “The state is going to have a lot of great players and great teams. If we both win, it would be a fun matchup with Reed. That would be pretty cool but we both have tough games we have to win first.”
Perry has a UK scholarship offer along with many others. He was recently at UK when the Cats pounded Auburn.
“The visit was good. It was a great game and they put on a great show against Auburn, probably the best game of the year,” Perry said. “It was great to be on campus and the game day environment was great.”
