Kentucky standouts Otega Oweh, Lamont Butler react as former teammate commits to Chris Beard's Ole Miss
Former Kentucky guard Travis Perry has committed to the Ole Miss Rebels from the NCAA portal. The 6-foot-1 guard from Lyon County left it late as he entered the portal hours before the deadline and quickly decided on his new destination.
He was one of two players who entered the portal from the Kentucky Wildcats last season. The other was fifth-year star guard Kerr Kriisa, who committed to Cincinnati.
Perry announced his move to the Ole Miss Rebels on Sunday with an Instagram post, and his former Kentucky teammates Lamont Butler, Otega Oweh and Amari Williams congratulated him.
Otega Oweh posted a clapping hands emoji, while Lamont Butler commented:
"Love it!"
With three years of eligibility left, Perry decided to move on from Kentucky after head coach Mark Pope strengthened by bringing in more guards. The Kentucky native seemingly expected his gametime to reduce next season.
Perry was a bench piece for Pope in his freshman year as he averaged 2.7 points per game while shooting 31.3%, including 32.1% from the 3-point line. He only averaged 9.8 minutes per game.
He made 31 appearances for the Wildcats but just four starts after injuries to injuries to Kriisa, Butler and Jaxson Robinson. He didn't feature in the two NCAA Tournament games after suffering a wrist injury during the SEC Tournament.
The Kentucky Wildcats are building a strong roster for the upcoming season
The Kentucky Wildcats finished their 2024-25 season after crashing out in the Sweet 16 with a 78-69 loss to the Tennessee Volunteers.
Kentucky has since announced the arrival of five players from the portal, which include junior guard Denzel Aberdeen from Florida, sophomore forward Mouhamed Dioubete from Alabama, sophomore guard Jaland Lowe from Pittsburgh, freshman big man Jayden Quantance from Arizona State and freshman wing Kam Williams from Tulane.
They will have four returnees from last season - junior guard Otega Oweh, freshman guard Collin Chandler, freshman forward Trent Noah and sophomore center Brandon Garrison.
Kentucky will also bring in three first-year players next season in in-state center Malachi Moreno, Croatian big man Andrija Jelavic and guard Jasper Johnson.