For about 25 minutes, Devin Royal and Xavier Booker traded blows like a pair of heavyweight fighters.
Fresh off appearances at the Pangos All-American Camp in Las Vegas, the two rising prospects in the class of 2023 were now matched up against each other on Ohio State’s main court at Value City Arena. Royal’s Pickerington Central team faced Booker’s Indianapolis Cathedral. Moments into the first half, Royal had a quick seven points on a dunk, a layup and a 3-pointer.
Booker, a 5-star center now rated among the top 10 prospects nationally after a strong spring, would answer, but the matchup was cut short when Royal went down in a heap during the second half. He would return briefly, but moved gingerly, so coaches had him watch the remainder of the game.
“I was about to dunk that when I messed up my ankle,” Royal said. “It’ll be fine. Just a little sprain.”
Seated near the court, Royal had a bag of ice taped to the left ankle but otherwise was in good spirits. It’s been a significant spring for the four-star small forward, now ranked No. 75 nationally in the 247Sports.com composite database, who was fresh off a standout performance at Pangos that saw him selected to the “Top 30 Cream of the Crop” game from a pool of 120 players. One national media outlet named him the most valuable player of the event.
