AKRON, Ohio -- In an extremely tough matchup to begin the new year, Pickerington Central dropped a tough contest 68-53 against St. Vincent-St. Mary's on Saturday night.

Despite the loss, there was one major bright spot for the Tigers, that being the play of sophomore forward Devin Royal. Playing the best game of his young career against the Irish, Royal led all scorers with 24 points.

After St. Vincent-St. Mary's jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead on the first possession, Lance Pressley answered with a triple to give Pickerington Central a 3-2 lead, however, the Irish quickly reclaimed the lead and never gave it up after that.

After a big two-handed slam from Ohio State commit Malaki Branham forced a Pickerington Central timeout late in the first with St. Vincent-St. Mary's ahead 11-5, the Irish never looked back, building on their lead for the rest of the game and really taking control in the middle two quarters.

Pickerington Central was without senior forward ​​​​​​​Garner Wallace on Saturday, which really hurt them defending Branham.

They got 17 points from Branham to go along with solid contributions from ​​​​​​​Sencire Harris and Ramar Pryor.

Outside of Royal's 24, Pickerington Central also received 15 points from junior guard Josh Harlan in an impressive showing.

They fall to 1-2 after the loss and have another extremely tough test next Tuesday when they hit the road to take on Centerville.

Devin Royal (6'4 WF / Pickerington Central / 2023): Going for a career-high with 24 points on Saturday, Royal was Pickerington Central's best player for most of the night. Doing some excellent work near the basket, the sophomore was physical all night, showed off his soft touch and helped clean up the glass. Royal scored off of a few second chance putbacks and also impressed once or twice rim-running for easy scores coming down the lane. Royal also attacked the basket for a few tough scores, most impressively a driving spin that led into a smooth left-handed finish. Royal showed a great IQ passing out of the post as well, knowing where his teammates were at at all times and dishing out a few impressive passes during the contest. As he continues to add more perimeter tools to his game, Royal is a kid to keep an eye on, as he is just beginning to come into his own.

Josh Harlan (5'11 PG / Pickerington Central / 2022): Piecing together an impressive showing against some of the best guards in the state, Harlan finished with 15 points against St. Vincent-St. Mary. Working the mid-range game a ton, Harlan really impressed in that area as he hit a short corner mid-range coming off a screen, hit a shot off the dribble fading towards the baseline, nailed a free-throw line jumper off the catch and had a tough move where he created space with a big crossover that led into an easy jumper. Harlan also nailed a three off of the catch and picked up a tough and-one where he showed excellent body control. Harlan is a quick guard with a high IQ and can score from all three levels. He competes every play defensively and knows how to get his teammates involved as well. Stepping into a larger role for Pickerington Central this season, expect the junior to continue to improve game after game.

Malaki Branham (6'5 WF / St. Vincent-St. Mary's / 2021): We are going to keep it short here since Branham is already signed to Ohio State, however, he was too good on Saturday to not at least get a mention. Branham was as efficient as possible, making great choices and nailing a high percentage of his shots from all three levels. With an elite combination of size, athleticism and skill, Branham is a kid that we will be watching on TV for years to come as he has a shot to really blossom into a great player at the next level.