Arkansas signee Meleek Thomas leads his team to a victory over Eli Ellis' YNG Dreamerz with a 28-point performance

Arkansas signee Meleek Thomas helped his team get the win against No. 1 YNG Dreamerz on Friday. The No. 8 recruit was up against South Carolina signee Eli Ellis, regarded as the third-best player in North Carolina. Meleek Thomas ended as his team's points and assist leader with 28 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal and 1 block while shooting 50.0% from the field, including 25.0 % from beyond the arc.

The Yng Dreamerz were handed their first loss after a close 85-81 defeat by Thomas' team City Reapers who now have a 6-3 record in the Overtime Elite league.

For the YNG Dreamerz, it was Eli Ellis who put on a terrific show with a double-double, just missing out on a triple-double. Ellis recorded 36 points, 11 assists and 8 boards on 50.0% shooting in 36 minutes.

Meleek Thomas led the Lincoln Park Performing Arts Charter School to two straight 4A PIAA Championships in 2023 and 2024. Furthermore, the No. 2 shooting guard in the 2025 Class is averaging 27.7 points, 9.4 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.7 steals per game in the 2024-25 OTE.

While playing for the New Heights Lightning NYC in the Nike EYBL, the Pittsburgh, PA native averaged 20.3 ppg, 6.1 rpg, and 3.1 apg.

In the Nike EYBL 2023, Meleek Thomas averaged 13.5 PPG, 2.2 APG, 4.6 RPG and 1.5 SPG on 48.9% FG including 36.5% from beyond the arc. He was also a part of the NBPA Top 100 Camp in 2023 and 2024. In the 2023 edition, Thomas shot 34.8% from beyond the arc and averaged 1.3 SPG.

However, he improved his stats in NBPA 2024 as he scored 22.6 points with 80.8% from the charity strike, dished out 7.3 assists, grabbed 7.4 boards and stole the ball 1.7 times (third-best in the camp).

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Meleek Thomas on his decision to join Arkansas

The 6-foot-3 shooting guard had offers from Pittsburgh, Connecticut and Auburn before he chose Arkansas on Nov. 11. He talked about his decision with On3, stating that he will play at OTE during his senior year:

“When I was making my college decision, I wanted to make sure that everything was a fit from play style and how they will use me on the team but also that it felt like home to me and my family,” said Thomas.

"Family is so important to me – and with Coach Cal [John Calipari] and the team at Arkansas, I felt at home. I am going to spend my senior season at OTE, just developing and continuing to be the best player I can so I can make an impact in Fayetteville right away.”

Thomas will now join five-star Darius Acuff and four-star Isaiah Sealy, two Arkansas signees.