Travis Perry accidentally shaved his mustache and drilled his first 3-pointer since November

The state’s all-time leading scorer at the high school level woke up on New Year’s Eve and made a massive mistake. Travis Perry tried trimming the mustache he’s been growing since he first arrived on campus, but as Andrew Carr made clear, it was a failed attempt that left him no choice but to shave it all off.

That’s why you saw the freshman guard with a baby face in Kentucky’s matchup vs. Brown on Tuesday.

“I don’t know if I should out him like this, but he forgot to put the guard on,” Carr snitched. “He didn’t want to do it, but he messed it up and once you mess up a mustache, it’s all got to go. I kind of just exposed him, but he’ll be all right.”

Perry confirmed Carr’s story, knowing the truth was going to come out eventually either way. He didn’t want to cut it — although his dad was pushing for the new look — but was left with no choice.

“I decided to shave it, kind of — I don’t know, my dad was wanting me to shave it. I wasn’t really going to, and then I kind of messed up using my electric razor,” he said. “Got a little too low and just decided to go with it.”

That was the bad news, a rough start to the holiday as we move past 2024 and bring in 2025. The good news? Perry drilled his first 3-pointer since November 22 and just his second as a Wildcat, the third bucket overall.

Checking in with 8:48 to go in the first half, the newcomer launched and made his lone attempt from deep two short minutes later at the 6:42 mark. He would finish with four points on 1-2 shooting and 1-2 at the line to go with two rebounds, one steal and zero turnovers in a career-high 14 minutes of action. His strong all-around performance came in a 34-point 88-54 victory to wrap up the non-conference schedule — Perry’s best game as a Wildcat in the team’s bounce-back performance after stinking it up in New York City before Christmas.

“It was a good change, I think. I think we played well after it, so we can bank it on that,” Perry said.

What’s been working for the freshman guard, who Mark Pope has been raving about as a ‘very, very serviceable’ piece off the bench — especially in Kerr Kriisa’s absence? Letting the game slow down on both ends and come to him rather than forcing the issue.

That’s not easy for a kid who did nothing but score at a historic rate in high school, but he feels he’s finally starting to turn the corner.

“Trying to make the right play and not do too much, but also being aggressive. Something I had been struggling with was not being aggressive enough. I had been coming in and giving the defense a little bit too much of an easy path or giving them a break, so that’s something I’ve been trying to do. Just come in, be aggressive, play my game, make plays for myself and my teammates, keep the defense honest while I’m in there.”

It’s helped having vets ahead of him showing him the ropes, especially a defensive menace like Lamont Butler with four years under his belt and national championship experience.

“Just try to play the game the right way, do the things we’re focused on in practice. It’s easy. We have a great group of veteran guys and they can really help with that,” Perry said. “They’ve been in the situation I’m in and the other rookies are in. Just doing what I can to contribute to the team and try to get a win for us. … I feel like I’ve made a lot of strides going against Lamont every single day in practice — that’s huge. Having to guard him.

“The defensive side of the ball is slowing down for me a little bit, but the offense is also really slowing down on me.”

Drilling a three may not seem like much on the surface — especially for a guy who hit a bazillion of them as a record-shattering talent at Lyon County — but in his teammates’ eyes, Perry’s growth and mini breakthrough vs. Brown is a testament to his hard work and daily approach.

“He’s been awesome. He’s such a great teammate, he comes ready to go every day, I think,” Carr said. “For him, he’s trying to adjust playing super hard defensively but also be able to play offensively, as well. When anybody gets to college, that’s the biggest adjustment, how much mental and physical energy that requires. He’s been doing a great job of continuing to get better and getting his feet under himself. He’s a big part of this team and he helps us a lot.”

His performance overlapped with Trent Noah drilling a pair of threes himself, the two combining for three makes on three attempts from deep in 17 total minutes of game action. They dreamed of suiting up for the Cats after all-time individual high school careers, and now, they’re producing together in blue and white.

“Seeing Travis and Trent go out there, I love how confident they are. They’re home-state guys, so it’s big for them,” Amari Williams said. “To see them go out there and manage the pressure and everything going on, it’s great to see.”

“It’s a lot of fun to be able to go out there — I love watching (Noah) shoot the ball. I get to watch him every single day go out there and get up 300 shots, make 300 shots every day,” Perry added. “To see that work come to fruition for him is really fun, and for me, as well. To go out there and make plays, have some fun on the court.”

And it’s all thanks to Perry accidentally shaving his mustache on New Year’s Eve.

“I haven’t (missed a three) and Trent hasn’t either, so we’re doing well right now.”