Georgetown holds off No. 12 Oregon in Maui upset

LAHAINA, Hawaii - Georgetown was at its best in the first half, playing aggressive defense, feeding the hot hand of Rodney Pryor.

The Hoyas were at their worst to start the second half, failing stops or shots to drop.

Rather than folding, as they had in the past, the Hoyas gritted out a victory over a tough opponent.

Pryor had 26 points and 10 rebounds, and Georgetown withstood a furious second-half rally to hold on for a 65-61 victory over No. 12 Oregon on Monday in the first round of the Maui Invitational.

“In the second half they came out and threw some blows,” said Pryor, who had 18 points by halftime. “We didn’t get early stops that we needed and they got back into the game. But then we were able to take a deep breath, get some stops and get some baskets.”

Georgetown (1-2) led by 17 after a superb first half, capped by Pryor’s running 3-pointer at the buzzer. The Ducks (2-2) swarmed their way back, using pressure defense to create turnovers and easy baskets in transition.

Unlike their loss to Maryland last week, the Hoyas weathered the Duck storm and will advance to the second round against No. 14 Wisconsin.

LJ Peak added 17 points and hit two free throws with 2.7 seconds left to seal Georgetown’s victory.

“Our guys did a good job not getting dejected and refocusing,” Hoyas coach John Thompson III said.

Oregon struggled the entire first half despite having leader Dillon Brooks in the lineup for the first time this season. The Ducks clawed their way back behind pressure defense, though didn’t have enough to finish it off.

Payton Pritchard led Oregon with 18 points. Brooks had eight points, including a long 3-pointer with 3.8 seconds left to get the Ducks within 2.

“As great a comeback as it was, we weren’t tough enough to finish it,” Oregon coach Dana Altman said.

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Brooks didn’t play in Oregon’s first three games while recovering from offseason foot surgery and Altman said he would limit the preseason All-American’s minutes in Maui.

Brooks entered Monday’s game about five minutes in with the Ducks struggling.

He didn’t do much to help them.

Oregon needed six minutes to hit its first field goal and kept missing shots, going 7 for 29 from the floor in the first half. Brooks was 0 for 3 and did not score.

The Hoyas had their own problems early, but rallied behind Pryor. He hit two step-back 3-pointers late in the first half and closed it with a running, off-balance 3 at the buzzer to put Georgetown up 38-21.

“Give them credit. They came out fast and we made some mistakes at the start of the game, so we have to limit those,” Oregon guard Casey Benson said.

Second half, roles reversed.

After solving Oregon’s extended pressure defense in the first half, the Hoyas couldn’t shake it in the second.

Georgetown missed its first 12 shots and the Ducks went on a 22-4 run to go up by one.

Georgetown fought back, turning up its defensive pressure and used a 10-2 run to go up 53-45 with 3 minutes left

Oregon tried to make a late run, but came up short.

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BIG PICTURE

The Hoyas showed off their inconsistencies in yet another game, but found a win to win this one after losing the previous two.

The Ducks got their leader back, but still have plenty of work to do if they’re going to live up to the high preseason expectations. Perimeter shooting is a concern; Oregon went 4 for 17 from the 3-point arc after hitting 3 of 21 in a loss to Baylor.

UP NEXT

Georgetown will face No. 14 Wisconsin in Tuesday’s winner’s bracket.

Oregon faces Tennessee in the loser’s bracket on Tuesday.

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