“He is incredibly humble, he’s tough as nails, he has a competitive fire, and he’s a great teammate. Those are absolute cornerstone qualities for us.” On Ryan Mela and what he brings to Providence

Thirteen months into the Kim English era at Providence College, perhaps the defining trademark of the Friars’ head coach has been his conviction. At times he seems so resolute, so solely focused on the task at hand that he has little time for platitudes, hyperbole, or media-driven narratives.

Prior to his first season in Providence, English paid respect to the terrific coaches of the Big East without bending the knee, seemed rather unimpressed with all that came with Big East Media Day and the idea of coaching in MSG, scoffed at the notion of Josh Oduro experiencing any sort of transition to the league, and plainly stated that he doesn’t kiss the media’s ass shortly after he was hired.

The narrative hasn’t changed much now that his first season in Friartown is in the books. Just this week, he told Kevin McNamara, “I’m not really focused on civility, I’m focused on my team,” when asked about the craziness that comes with the transfer portal and the notion of other coaches tampering.

With English, this approach isn’t some hackneyed “us against the world” mantra many programs live by, but more of a purposeful disinterest in what others are saying outside the walls of his team’s facility.

His conviction has been on display on the recruiting trail, most recently as English and his staff moved efficiently through the transfer portal this spring to supplement a roster that should have the Friars in NCAA Tournament contention again in 2025.

This mentality was first on display last summer when English and his staff zeroed in on a Massachusetts-based wing who didn’t necessarily pass the eye test, and hadn’t been pursued by high majors like so many of his peers, but simply produced time and again in the biggest moments.

Providence liked the kid, so they moved quickly. Recruiting rankings be damned.

Ryan Mela certainly had his share of Division 1 interest heading into the Under Armour Association Circuit last year. Davidson, Vermont, Richmond, and Indiana State were among the teams in pursuit, and for good reason. Playing with the Middlesex Magic in 2022, Mela was the leading scorer of the Under Armour champions that summer — a team headlined by eventual Tennessee commit J.P. Estrella.

Mela saw all sorts of great competition that summer, including a name familiar to Friar fans, as the Magic knocked off Atlanta Xpress and their five-star guard Stephon Castle.

The Magic have made a habit of defeating teams with higher profile talent since joining the Under Armour circuit in 2022, following a long run as an independent program.

Following that summer, Mela played his first season at the Newman School (a newcomer to New England prep’s highest level of basketball in 2022-23) after transferring in from Natick High School in Massachusetts. The 6’6 do-it-all wing had some monster games that season, including a 30-point effort against a trio of high major players in Kur Teng (Michigan State), George Turkson (Texas A&M), and Jordan Clayton (Northwestern) at Bradford Christian Academy, and a monster 31-point, 14-rebound, and eight assist explosion in an 89-87 win over Winchendon. Mela averaged 19.1 points, 6.8 rebounds, 4.2 assists, and 3.3 steals in his first season at Newman, but his stock had yet to truly take off.

A touch of fate brought Mela and Providence together in the summer of 2023. English and his staff had just locked down a commitment from an explosive scoring guard in Daquan Davis, who left the Nike EYBL circuit to join a Team Thrill group on the UAA scene that already included perhaps the most well-regarded big man in the country in Derik Queen, a five-star guard in Tyler Jackson, and another top 100 lead guard in Chance Mallory.

In the Under Armour semifinals in July, Team Thrill took on a Middlesex Magic group that did not yet have a player committed to a high major school. PC assistant Dennis Felton was familiar with Mela as he had recruited Newman/Middlesex point guard Luka Toews when Felton was at George Mason, but the semifinal against Team Thrill was an eye-opener for the Providence staff when it came to Mela.

With the Magic trailing by 12 points in the third quarter, Mela went to work, scoring off a crossover, on difficult finishes at the rim, from beyond the arc, and when being fouled on a put-back. Mela scored 16 of his team-high 22 points in the second half, finishing the game by making 9-11 shots from the field in a wild 72-69 victory.

The next day was a memorable one. English first made contact with Mela, and the Magic won the Under Armour title for the second year in a row.

“I got a text from Kim the day after we played Team Thrill,” Mela said. “He was obviously watching Daquan, and I played pretty well in that game.”

“When we first got the job we became aware of Ryan on a surface level through tracking him with Middlesex Magic,” PC assistant Matt Palumbo recalled.

“After watching him play at UAA, in part because Daquan Davis switched to Under Armor, it was just undeniable how effective he was and how big of an impact he had on winning. He was so consistent with Middlesex and he brought an edge and competitiveness to his games that excited the whole staff. His team also won at a high level against teams with higher-regarded talent. That winning and Ryan being the best player was a great testament to what he adds.”

Neither Providence or Mela wasted any time from that point. The staff was smitten with the versatile wing who contributed to winning in so many ways, and Mela shared that he wanted to visit Providence before the upcoming “dead period” on the NCAA recruiting calendar. Just weeks after winning the UAA title, Mela was on PC’s campus.

“Once I went there I fell in love with the whole thing. I loved the coaches. I loved the campus and the facilities. They play position-less. They like that I am versatile. They like that I can play a one through four — pass, dribble, and shoot it.”

He committed to Providence soon after his summer visit.

“I think he’s such a good fit for us because he’s a really smart player with a really high feel,” Palumbo said. “We play a lot of the game without calling a set play, so having players who can handle the ball, pass, and think is really valuable. He is also a phenomenal teammate and a winning player, which are the qualities we are putting at the foundation of the program.”

Those winning ways carried into Mela’s second season at Newman. By the fall, Mela and Toews were both high major signees (Toews is headed to BC next year), and they were complemented by a seemingly endless barrage of shooters and one of the most promising young big men in the country in class of 2026 center Collins Onyejiaka.

Mela made statement after statement throughout his final season of high school ball. The first weekend of the season included a buzzer beater against Putnam Science Academy, and a 22-point, 10-rebound, six assist, four steal effort against a very good St. Thomas More club.

The following weekend Mela drew fouls at a ridiculous rate — 10 against Central Florida Academy and eight versus IMG Academy the next time out.

The ability to draw fouls is just one component of Mela’s game that makes him so appealing. He lives in the paint with a quick first step and he shot from beyond the arc with more consistency this winter, but what makes Mela so promising are his instincts and finishing ability. He makes the right pass consistently, and hits spectacular shots at the rim with nearly as much frequency.

Was his finishing ability something he developed over time, or was it just God-given?

“I was kind of just born with a nice feel around the rim, honestly. Obviously, I’m always in the gym working on my game, so that’s a part of it. But some of the layups I make…” He paused, shrugged, and smiled.

Once the three point shot started dropping consistently Mela became such a tough cover at the prep level. We saw glimpses of his outside shooting ability in early December when he hit four 3-pointers in the first half against Polaris Prep, he did a little bit of everything (17 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists) in an 88-53 win over eventual NEPSAC AA champions Bradford Christian Academy, and then had perhaps his biggest night of the year when he scored 42 points against St. Thomas More in January. St. Thomas More featured a top 40 wing in Tyler Betsey and another well-regarded small forward in London Jemison, but Mela scored 26 points after halftime to lead Newman back from double figures down. That huge second half included a pair of step-back threes and another heat check three in the closing minute to put the game away.

“I know when I get to the next level I have to knock it down, so I’ve just been working on it every day, getting a lot of reps in,” Mela said of his jumper. “That’s when my confidence grew. I always had confidence going to the basket because I was able to do it pretty easily at times, so I would not always look for my outside shot back then, but now I’m shooting the three ball with more confidence.”

“Over the last six months I think you’ve seen him grow into one of the very best players in the area,” Palumbo shared. “He has started to shoot the ball with more confidence, and he has really taken over games in winning time like he did with Middlesex this past summer. You look at his high school stats and he averaged 18 (points), eight (rebounds), and five (assists) while shooting 35% from three and 55% from two — those are elite numbers.”

Newman was one of the favorites to win the NEPSAC class AAA title and perhaps the prep national championship throughout the season, but lost their mojo after Mela suffered an ankle injury late in the year. “I went down and a couple of kids got sick, and just from there it was tough to get back the momentum we had,” he said.

Still, Newman reached the NEPSAC AAA semis before falling to eventual champion Vermont Academy, and lost in the National Prep championship to a Western Reserve Academy group that took home that tournament.

At the core of Mela’s development has been the outstanding coaching he has received with both the Middlesex Magic and at Newman over the past two seasons. Michael Crotty Jr. has helped turn the Magic into one of the best grassroots outfits in the country. It’s a program that has won with kids that went under-recruited in high school (Duncan Robinson, Tyler Kolek, and even Pat Connaughton to an extent) before seeing success on the biggest stages.

At Newman, Mela plays for a former two-sport athlete at Tulane in Jackson Johnson.

Palumbo spoke of the tutelage Mela has received: “His coaching has set him up to have a really seamless transition to college. Coach Crotty and Coach Jackson are some of the best I’ve seen in high school. They teach their players how to play the right way and they’ve helped Ryan in that way.”

“His personality is the type that we are going to build our program with,” Palumbo said. “He is incredibly humble, he’s tough as nails, he has a competitive edge and fire, and he’s a great teammate. Those are absolute cornerstone qualities for us.”

And now, Mela will learn under Kim English. The two share something in common: “I instantly had a great connection with him. He has that energy of a young coach who is ready to prove something, which is just like me. I’m ready to prove something as soon as I come to Providence.”