Thornton formed a formidable duo with Devin Royal, who played on the wing and benefitted from multiple opportunities created by Thornton in the contest.
Perhaps Thornton’s composure, advanced passing ability and speed off the dribble stood out most of all as the Georgia native gave Buckeye fans in attendance plenty to be excited about for the year to come.following his Sunday Kingdom League performance that he knows he still has strides to make this summer after a relatively subdued effort at Ohio Dominion.
The near 7-foot big man finished with just four points in a losing effort, although the showcase put on by Sensabaugh had plenty to do with his own quiet day. Not to mention, a center looking for post touches in a summer league game generally has their work cut out for them in the first place. But that doesn’t mean Okpara didn’t show plenty of promise. The Buckeye freshman blocked multiple shots, including one off the backboard in the opening 90 seconds of the contest, and displayed diverse offensive potential even if all of his shots didn’t fall.
Okpara scored on a sweet jump-hoop in the post when matched up with Ohio State teammate Kalen Etzler, and hit a mid-range jumper in the first half as well. Okpara attempted another sweeping hook on the right block as well as several other short jumpers, but will need to round out his game to see the results he’s looking for on the hardwood moving forward.