Bobby Perry

Former Kentucky basketball player Bobby Perry spoke at the University of Kentucky Ohio Convention in Middletown, Ohio, last weekend and offered some insights into both the past and present in an interview with Danville Advocate-Messenger sports editor Larry Vaught after his appearance. What kind of pressure will there be on seniors Joe Crawford and Ramel Bradley to be leaders for new coach Billy Gillispie and how will they handle it? "They are going to embrace it. Looking back on my senior year, I embraced it. It is like a sense of responsibility that you have to take.

LEXINGTON - Kentucky coach Tubby Smith knows he can put junior Bobby Perry at either forward spot and get results. With the loss of Chuck Hayes and Kelenna Azubuike from last year, Perry may spend time at both of spots this season. However, with junior college transfer Rekalin Sims, a healthy Sheray Thomas and possibly four 7-footers on the inside, small forward will likely be where Perry is needed to most. "With the loss of Kelenna, there's going to have to be somebody. We like to have two guys at every spot," Perry said.

PHILADELPHIA - Coming into the NCAA tournament, Bobby Perry had scored only 37 points in the previous seven games and had just one game all season where he had scored 20 or more points. In two games here, Perry had 45 points and had back-to-back 20-point games for the first time in his career at Kentucky. "Perry should move to Philadelphia right now," said Connecticut coach Jim Calhoun Sunday after Perry scored 20 points in UConn's 87-84 second-round tournament win over Kentucky.

TAMPA - Since he's a former player and also has a cousin, Dwight Perry, playing on the team, Bobby Perry feels close to the Kentucky basketball program. He played on teams with current UK juniors Jodie Meeks, Michael Porter, Ramon Harris and Perry Stevenson. He does a call-in show for WLXG (1300 AM) as well as other radio interviews. "It has been a tough season. Everybody knows it is a disappointment. It is not very good and it is not a good feeling," said Perry, who is here for the Southeastern Conference Tournament.

PHILADELPHIA - Give almost anyone one, two or even three guesses about who would have been responsible for keeping Kentucky's season alive in Friday's NCAA Tournament opening game and it's unlikely anyone would have picked Bobby Perry. Maybe Rajon Rondo, Kentucky's jet-quick point guard that figured to give UAB's full-court press problems. Maybe center Randolph Morris because of the size advantage he had. Maybe Patrick Sparks, who has had his most productive games on the road. UK (22-12)

Former Kentucky basketball player Bobby Perry spoke at the UK Ohio Convention in Middletown, Ohio, on Saturday and offered these insights into both the past and present in an interview after his appearance. Question: What kind of pressure will there be on seniors Joe Crawford and Ramel Bradley to be leaders for new coach Billy Gillispie and how will they handle it? Perry: "They are going to embrace it. Looking back on my senior year, I embraced it. It is like a sense of responsibility that you have to take.

Former University of Kentucky basketball player Bobby Perry has always enjoyed spending time with youngsters, especially when he has a chance to interact one-on-one with them. That's one reason he knew as soon as he saw that West Jessamine had an opening for a middle school boys basketball coach it was a job he wanted - and got. "I saw the coaching job was open and thought, 'What great fun that would be and what a great opportunity it would be to give back and coach on that level,'" said Perry, a North Carolina native who played at UK from 2003-07 under Tubby Smith.

Former Kentucky players Sheray Thomas and Bobby Perry will play against former Mercer County and Harrodsburg alumni as part of the UK Barnstorming Tour at 7:30 p.m. April 27 at the Mercer County Senior High gym. Tickets are $10 each, and advance tickets can be purchased at the school. For information, call Mercer County coach Nelson Cundiff at (859) 734-4364.

Kentucky is 21-11 overall. Alabama falls to 17-12. Kentucky advances to the semifinals for the 19th time since the tournament was renewed in 1979. The Wildcats are 18-0 since that time in semifinal games. UK is 109-18 all-time in SEC Tournament action, 52-13 since the tourney was renewed in 1979 and 36-4 since the league expanded in 1992. The Wildcats are 94-34 all-time against Alabama, including a 10-2 record in SEC Tournament action and a 2-0 record in SEC Tournament games played in Nashville.

Basketball players at the University of Kentucky have enormous demands on their time and always seem to be in the spotlight because of the attention the program receives from the media and fans. However, what we all sometimes tend to forget is that these players, as talented as they might be, really are just ordinary college-age students. What we also don't always know is how often these players make time to be with others, especially children who admire them because of their status at Kentucky.

When they were in elementary school, they saw him in uniform on national television breaking Tubby Smith's huddles. Now they're in middle school, and they're the ones in uniform breaking his huddle. The man in charge of West Jessamine Middle School basketball already stands out with his 6-foot, 8-inch frame, but Bobby Perry is easily recognizable for basketball fans of the University of Kentucky, where he played for four years in college. Perry, 27, graduated from UK in spring 2007 and came to West Middle as a paraprofessional in fall 2009 after Charlie Temple, then district athletic director, let him know about the position.

Former University of Kentucky basketball player Bobby Perry has always enjoyed spending time with youngsters, especially when he has a chance to interact one-on-one with them. That's one reason he knew as soon as he saw that West Jessamine had an opening for a middle school boys basketball coach it was a job he wanted - and got. "I saw the coaching job was open and thought, 'What great fun that would be and what a great opportunity it would be to give back and coach on that level,'" said Perry, a North Carolina native who played at UK from 2003-07 under Tubby Smith.

Because he played with five of Kentucky's current players, Bobby Perry readily admits that he wants to see the UK basketball team do well. However, the former Wildcat also doesn't think that means he should not be entitled to an opinion that is less than flattering about the UK program. "I don't think there's anything wrong with stating an opinion that this has just not been a very good season or very good team and that some things need to get better," said Perry. "It has been a tough season.

Because he played with five of Kentucky's current players, Bobby Perry readily admits that he wants to see the UK basketball team do well. However, the former Wildcat also doesn't think that means he should not be entitled to an opinion that is less than flattering about the UK program. "I don't think there's anything wrong with stating an opinion that this has just not been a very good season or very good team and that some things need to get better," said Perry. "It has been a tough season.

TAMPA - Since he's a former player and also has a cousin, Dwight Perry, playing on the team, Bobby Perry feels close to the Kentucky basketball program. He played on teams with current UK juniors Jodie Meeks, Michael Porter, Ramon Harris and Perry Stevenson. He does a call-in show for WLXG (1300 AM) as well as other radio interviews. "It has been a tough season. Everybody knows it is a disappointment. It is not very good and it is not a good feeling," said Perry, who is here for the Southeastern Conference Tournament.

Former Kentucky basketball player Bobby Perry spoke at the University of Kentucky Ohio Convention in Middletown, Ohio, last weekend and offered some insights into both the past and present in an interview with Danville Advocate-Messenger sports editor Larry Vaught after his appearance. What kind of pressure will there be on seniors Joe Crawford and Ramel Bradley to be leaders for new coach Billy Gillispie and how will they handle it? "They are going to embrace it. Looking back on my senior year, I embraced it. It is like a sense of responsibility that you have to take.

Former Kentucky basketball player Bobby Perry spoke at the UK Ohio Convention in Middletown, Ohio, on Saturday and offered these insights into both the past and present in an interview after his appearance. Question: What kind of pressure will there be on seniors Joe Crawford and Ramel Bradley to be leaders for new coach Billy Gillispie and how will they handle it? Perry: "They are going to embrace it. Looking back on my senior year, I embraced it. It is like a sense of responsibility that you have to take.

HARRODSBURG - There was no way Randolph Morris was going to come to Mercer County for an exhibition basketball game. Sure, he was friends with University of Kentucky seniors Bobby Perry, Sheray Thomas and Lukasz Obrzut before he signed a NBA contract with the New York Knicks worth about $1.6 million last month. However, it was only two weeks ago that he was playing in games against Charlotte, Toronto and New Jersey in state-of-the-art arenas with sold-out crowds. What, risk an injury to play in front of about 750 fans at Mercer?

HARRODSBURG - There was no way Randolph Morris was going to come to Mercer County for an exhibition basketball game. Sure, he was friends with University of Kentucky seniors Bobby Perry, Sheray Thomas and Lukasz Obrzut before he signed a NBA contract with the New York Knicks worth about $1.6 million last month. However, it was only two weeks ago that he was playing in games against Charlotte, Toronto and New Jersey in state-of-the-art arenas with sold-out crowds. What, risk an injury to play in front of about 750 fans at Mercer?

Kentucky seniors Bobby Perry, Sheray Thomas and Lukasz Obrzut will have a special team member with them tonight when they play an exhibition game at Mercer County. Former UK player Randolph Morris, who signed with the New York Knicks after the 2006-2007 season ended, is scheduled to be at tonight's game. "I just talked to Bobby Perry, and he said Randolph would be there with them about 6:30 to pose for pictures and play in the game," said Mercer boys basketball coach Nelson Cundiff.