Nov. 21, 2002
Bobby Perry, a 6-8 swingman from Durham, N.C., and Sheray Thomas, a 6-8 forward from Montreal, Quebec, have signed national letters of intent to play college basketball at the University of Kentucky, Coach Tubby Smith announced Thursday.
“We have signed two very versatile players who can play multiple positions,” Smith said. “We’re very excited to have them join our Kentucky basketball family.”
Perry plays for Coach Chet Mebane at Hillside High School in Durham, where he’s started all three of his previous seasons. He led the Hornets to a 20-7 record in 2000, a 26-4 mark in 2001 and a berth in the state quarterfinals and a 19-8 record as a junior last season. In 2002, he averaged 22.0 points and 10.7 rebounds per game. For his career, he has shot 58% from the floor, 41% from three-point range and 75% from the foul line, while averaging 18.5 points and 9.6 rebounds during the three seasons.
“Bobby Perry is a student-athlete who possesses a lot of class,” Smith said. “He plays with a warrior-type mentality and can play inside or outside. He fits our style of play because of his versatility and he meets the definition of a true student-athlete.”
Perry, who also considered Stanford, Vanderbilt and Wake Forest, owns a 3.8 GPA in international baccalaureate studies at Hillside.
Thomas played his sophomore season at LaSalle Catholic High School in Montreal, where he averaged 30 points and 15 rebounds per game. Before his junior season, he transferred to Riverdale Baptist High School in Upper Marlboro, Md.
According to Riverdale coach Lou Wilson, Thomas came to the United States to improve his skills, to play against a higher level of competition and to get adjusted to the pace of basketball in the States. Last season, he averaged 19 points, 13 rebounds, four assists and two blocks to lead the Crusaders to a 20-10 record and a semifinal berth in the Maryland private school state tournament.
“He’s another Canadian who possesses the athleticism and skills to make an impact on this program,” Smith said. “He’s versatile in that he can combine a finesse game with physical play.”
Thomas earned all-tournament team honors at both the St. James Tournament in Hagerstown, Md., and the Sidwell Friends Tournament in Washington D.C. and was named the Most Valuable Player at the Riverdale Holiday Tournament. He was the only junior to earn all-county honors by the Prince George’s Journal and also was named first-team all-county by the Prince George’s Gazette. The Washington Post named him honorable-mention All-Metropolitan.
Thomas chose the Wildcats over Virginia. Jamaal Magloire (1997-2000), who’s now in his third season with the NBA’s New Orleans Hornets, and current freshman Bernard Cote are the first two Canadians to play for the Wildcats.
Daniels Out
Kentucky junior forward Erik Daniels will not make the trip to the Maui Invitational. Daniels participated in two summer basketball leagues and must serve an NCAA mandated four-game suspension. NCAA rules allow college basketball players to participate in one sanctioned league per summer.
“This is a tough blow depth-wise for our basketball team,” Coach Tubby Smith said. “He had received permission to play in the league here, and when he went home to visit his family in Cincinnati, he ended up playing with his old friends in a league there. We asked the NCAA to reconsider on his behalf but our appeal was denied.”
Daniels will miss the three games in the Maui Invitational and the Cats’ home opener against High Point on Dec. 3. His first opportunity for game action will be against North Carolina on Dec. 7.
