Ryan Kelly to Announce Thursday

Ryan Kelly, a 6-foot-10 forward from Raleigh (NC) Ravenscroft School, will announce his college choice Thursday at 6:30 p.m. on ESPNU’s Recruiting Insider.

Kelly will decide between Notre Dame, Duke, North Carolina, Wake Forest, Vanderbilt and Georgetown and Ravenscroft coach Kevin Billerman, a New Jersey native, says he doesn’t know if Kelly has decided yet.

“We had a meeting on Sunday and we talked about all the schools, he and I and his parents,” Billerman said Wednesday. “He’s taking a couple of days to decide what he wants to do and then he’s going to start calling the coaches because I gather he hasn’t decided yet.”

Kelly, the No. 8 power forward in the Class of 2009 according to Rivals, spent the weekend at North Carolina watching the Tar Heels football team beat UConn. He has taken officials to Vanderbilt, Notre Dame, Georgetown and Wake Forest, and also visited Duke and North Carolina on several occasions.

“I think all of the universities presented their programs exceptionally well,” Billerman said. “I don’t think there was a bad pick in that group.”

Billerman said Kelly is a 4.2 student who got 2150 on his SAT. He also averaged 24 points last season and this summer competed with the U.S. U18 National Team that reached the finals of the FIBA Americas Championship in Argentina.

“Ryan will be a 6-10 inside-outside player that averaged 24 points for us last year playing in the post,” Billerman said.

This year 6-11 UNC-Wilmington-bound big man Matt Wilson will spent more time in the post, allowing Kelly to flash his skills on the perimeter.

“We feel like Ryan will have a much better opportunity to play on the perimeter, which makes him different from most players in his class,” Billerman said. “He will be able to showscase those skills that make him most different from most other high school players.”