Perry ready to hit the floor

It’s been a long journey to Montlake for freshman shooting guard Harvey Perry. He played most of his prep career in Nevada before attending Brewster Academy in New Hampshire and now he’s in the Pacific Northwest to play his college ball. Now that he’s finally where he wants to be, he spoke with Dawgman.com about his journey to being a Husky, why he so happy to be here and what he expects from himself this season.

“Vegas to New Hampshire was totally shocking,” Perry said with a laugh about his prep roundball travels. “It was totally different. I went from the heat to the winter. The biggest difference from where I was living to where I ended up was just the city life and then basically like the woods – it was shocking.

“But then when I came home to the west coast, it was something I was looking forward to. I loved my time in New Hampshire, but I’m really happy to be back out here.”

Perry also compared his new digs at Washington to where he grew up. “Seattle’s not the same as Las Vegas, but it’s pretty similar,” said Perry. “It’s a big city, tourists come out here to visit and see the water and there are great views. It’s like home basically for me.”

Perry’s admiration for head coach Lorenzo Romar is one reason he made the journey to being a Husky and says that the head man has really impressed him with the way he has built up the once-moribund program.

“Me and Romar just grew together,” Perry said, a touch of admiration in his voice. “I was looking forward to getting here because when he came out here there was nothing and he’s built it up to something. It’s just going to get better and better as the years progress.

“He didn’t recruit me at any specific position. I just came out here to be a player. To play hard and do the things I know I can do.”

One of the things Perry can do is play defense.

“Harvey Perry is a miniature verson of Bobby (Jones) as far as being a stellar defender, a great athlete and great in transition,” Romar said at his season-opening press-conference. “He’s just about two inches shorter. He’s a more skilled basketball player than Bobby was when he first came in.”

Another thing that sticks out about Perry is his versatility – a trait Romar likes to see in all of his players.

“He can play three different positions,” Romar said. “He can play the point and he can play either wing position, so he’s a lot like the guys we’re trying to develop in our program.”

Perry is also a “lights-out” shooter from the outside and he said he plans to show what he can do when he gets his chances on the floor.

“Coming down, creating and just bringing the crowd into it like Joel (Smith) did coming off the bench," said Perry when asked what his hopes are for his first year as a Husky and what he can bring to the mix. "Just hitting big shots and getting the crowd into it, that’s enough for me,” he added.

Perry hails from the Las Vegas area and if it seems like there has been a lot of talent coming out of Sin City, you’re right.

“Vegas is being overshadowed by other states, but the talent out there is doing good,” Perry said. “It’s mainly like a guard city. A lot of up-and-coming guards in the late years even before me have been doing really good.”

The Huskies have an up-and-coming guard of their own now and they plan on using him as much as possible over the next four years.