In mid-November "Perkins" headed west again, arriving at Espiritu Santo on the 27th. Three days later she departed Segond Channel in Rear Admiral Carleton Wright's cruiser-destroyer force to intercept and destroy enemy forces attempting to reinforce their units on Guadalcanal. At 2315, five radar contacts were made and a few minutes later the Battle of Tassafaronga was engaged. "Perkins" loosed eight torpedoes, scoring none, then turned her guns on the beach. Undamaged in the encounter she turned toward Tulagi to assist the burning "Pensacola", while "Maury" went to assist "New Orleans". Continuing operations from Tulagi, she bombarded the Guadalcanal coast and served on escort assignments until January 1943. A brief availability at Noumea followed and by the 13th she was back at Tulagi for further escort and support missions.