John Mobley, Bruce Thornton among Buckeyes who showed out at the Kingdom Summer League

Brandon Noel and Ivan Njegovan both had big games as well at Columbus East High School.

Ohio State fans are hoping the trio of John Mobley Jr., Bruce Thornton, and Devin Royal will lead the Buckeye basketball program back to the promised land this season. In a world where rosters are always in flux and so few players stay in the same place for multiple years, bringing back their top three returning scorers was a big deal for Jake Diebler and his coaching staff.

This past weekend at the Kingdom Summer League, fans got a sneak peak of what they might see from Ohio State’s starting backcourt, with both guards scoring more than 20 points at Columbus East High School.

Founded in 2014, the Kingdom Summer League is a men’s league that brings together the best basketball talent in the state of Ohio, focusing on central Ohio. Current, former, and even future Buckeyes have played and continue to play in “The Kingdom” each summer, with current players requiring approval from the coaching staff. Ohio State has typically allowed its players to compete, although Chris Holtmann went against precedent in 2023 and did not allow his players to compete. Jake Diebler has allowed the Buckeyes to play each of the past two summers.

While the competition is nowhere near what these Buckeyes will see during the season, dozens of current and former NBA players, including Trey Burke and Gary Trent Jr., have competed, as well as overseas pros, current college players, and D-I-bound high schoolers.

On Sunday afternoon, Thornton scored 23 points, grabbed five rebounds, and recorded six assists for Team 4 Deep. He also hit four three-pointers, and will look to improve on his career-high 42.4% three-point percentage from last season. Three of his six assists were on baskets scored by his Ohio State teammate, Ivan Njegovan.

Mobley Jr. scored 24 points, grabbed six rebounds, and had six assists for Team Focus Sports Ventures. He is ticketed for a huge role this season after starting 22 games and playing 27.8 minutes per game as a freshman last year.

Brandon Noel, who transferred to Ohio State from Wright State in April, had a huge game for Team Committed to My Craft. The 6-foot-8 forward scored 26 points, had three rebounds and recorded one assist. Included in those 26 points was a trio of three-pointers. Noel will likely start at power forward this season for Ohio State.

Sophomore big man Ivan Njegovan had a double-double playing with Thornton, scoring 14 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. Three of his seven baskets came directly off feeds from Thornton, as well as multiple offensive putbacks. Njegovan could play a pivotal role for the Buckeyes this season as the main backup to Christoph Tilly, who himself has never played more than 22 minutes per game in a season.

Speaking of Tilly, the former Santa Clara Bronco-turned Buckeye scored four points and grabbed eight rebounds for Team Focus Sports Ventures, alongside Mobley. German guard Mathieu Grujicic scored three points and had two rebounds for Team New World Financial Group.

Other noteworthy performances from former and future Buckeyes:

Deshaun Thomas: 26 points, six rebounds, three assists

Alex Smith (2026 OSU commit): 13 points, five rebounds

Musa Jallow: 11 points, nine rebounds, two assists

The Kingdom Summer League plays every Sunday from June 22 to August 3 at various locations throughout central Ohio, but most often at Ohio Dominican University in Columbus. This past weekend the games were played at Columbus East High School. Admission is free, but the Kingdom takes donations at the door.

Game times and locations can be found weekly at the Kingdom Summer League’s Facebook page.