Kansas State lands North Texas transfer Tylor Perry. Why he’s a good fit for Wildcats
College basketball statistician Bart Torvik keeps track of transfers by maintaining a methodical list of the most productive players listed within the portal every offseason.
As of Tuesday afternoon, the No. 1 ranked available transfer on his web site was Tylor Perry, a senior guard from North Texas who averaged 17.3 points to go along with 3.4 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game last year.
Perry has been one of the hottest names on the transfer market ever since he announced that he was looking for a new home after North Texas coach Grant McCasland left for Texas Tech earlier this spring. He heard from prominent schools all across the country before ultimately choosing between a group of four finalists — Florida, Kansas State, Mississippi and Texas Tech.
His pick: K-State.
Perry, a 5-foot-11 and 182-pound guard, informed K-State men’s basketball coach Jerome Tang that he planned to commit to the Wildcats late last week and then announced his decision publicly on Tuesday night. He will have one year of eligibility with the Wildcats.
“I wanted to play for a winner,” Perry told The Field of 68 during his announcement interview. “That was the biggest thing for me. I feel like I am a winner. Every program I have been to, they were already winning. Not that I want to hop on the bandwagon or anything or want anything easy. I just wanted to be around winners and in a culture of winning. I wanted to be in a winning program.”
This is a big addition for Tang and his coaching staff. The Wildcats needed to add some scoring punch to their backcourt following the departure of Markquis Nowell and they did exactly that with Perry. He is the first incoming transfer they have landed this spring. The Wildcats now have three open scholarships to use on the recruiting trail.
Perry was a consistent scoring threat for the Mean Green as he led his former team to 31 victories and a NIT championship this past season. He lifted North Texas to impressive heights by shooting 41.3% from three-point range, 47.7% from two-point range and 88% from the free-throw line.
He scored as many as 35 points in a game against San Jose State and he reached double figures in all but two appearances.
Perry doesn’t pile up assists the same way Nowell did when he was wearing lavender, but he did send out seven dimes in a game last year. He also rebounds the ball at a solid rate for a guard and grabbed as many as seven in several games as a senior.
His production was impressive enough for him to earn Conference-USA Player of the Year and NIT Most Outstanding Player honors in 2023.
Inserting him into the starting lineup alongside returning guard Cam Carter would give the Wildcats a dangerous backcourt.
“They’re getting a winner,” Perry said. “That is the biggest thing. They are getting a guy who can stretch the floor and score at all three levels, who can pass and do anything he can to win. I don’t want anyone to think I am coming in there to pad stats, I just want to get to the dance. That is the only thing left off my resume. That is the only thing I am fighting for, giving Kansas State a chance at a national championship.”
Perry’s main strength appears to be shooting from deep. He is more than capable of making three-pointers at the line with a defender in his vicinity, but he can also take a few steps back and make unguarded shots from the logo.
His ability to attack the basket, dish to teammates and knock down shots from three-point range should make him a capable replacement for Nowell.
It will be interesting to see if his production increases with the Wildcats. Even though he will be stepping up in competition from Conference-USA to the Big 12, he will also be moving to a more high-octane offense.
North Texas was one of the nation’s slowest paced teams in all of college basketball under McCasland. That is why the Mean Green only averaged 64.5 points per game while ranking 68th nationally in terms of adjusted offensive efficiency.
Tang likes his players to run, which should create more scoring opportunities than ever before for a player like Perry.
Perry should also fit right in to K-State’s locker room. McCasland and Tang are good friends who both learned how to become head coaches while working for Scott Drew at Baylor. Jareem Dowling, one of K-State’s assistant coaches, also recruited Perry to North Texas out of Coffeyville Community College.
“As soon as I got around them I instantly knew this was the place for me,” Perry said. “I told Jareem this while I was on my visit. I told him, ‘stop recruiting me. You don’t have to tell me anything else.’ That is the relationship I want for my last year.”
After growing up in Fort Coffee, Oklahoma, and working his way up the ranks from junior college to C-USA, it is fair to say he has achieved a long-time goal by reaching the Big 12.
Now it is time for him to show what he can at a higher level with the Wildcats.
