LAHAINA >> Georgetown guard Rodney Pryor not only rode the wave, he basically entered the barrel and emerged with a “10.”
The Hoyas graduate transfer was superb in leading his team to a 65-61 upset of No. 13 Oregon on the first day of the Maui Jim Maui Invitational, scoring 26 points, grabbing 10 rebounds and blocking four shots.
He joined Greg Monroe as the only Hoyas to record that stat line in coach John Thompson III’s 13 years at the historic Washington, D.C., school.
Among that effort was the highlight of the tournament so far — a running 3-point shot a stride or two within halfcourt that beat the first-half buzzer and staked Georgetown to a 17-point lead. As the shot found the net, Pryor’s momentum carried the 6-foot-5 senior gliding past the Ducks bench on his backside, past the corner of the Lahaina Civic Center court.
“That’s just riding a wave right now,” Pryor said at the postgame dais behind a crossed-surfboard Maui motif. “I saw I got a good look, I got it off.”
Interjected Thompson, “We have to get that wave more often.”
It’s an understandable sentiment. Georgetown is coming off its first losing season since 2003-04. Just last week, the Hoyas lost to regional rival Maryland, 76-75, after holding a five-point lead with 29 seconds left. Then, “Fire Thompson” chants could be heard in the final seconds of the Big East team’s 78-72 home loss to Arkansas State last Thursday.
But Pryor, an Illinois native who was a first-team Northeast Conference player at Robert Morris, did not accept those results as the new norm on his new team.
“We know we’re a good team,” he said. “We know we let two go early. But we can’t hang our heads on that.”
Georgetown (2-2) advanced to face another ranked team, No. 16 Wisconsin (3-1), in the semifinals today at 3 p.m. The Hoyas’ best Maui finish in two previous appearances was fourth in 1999, although they had a better record, 2-1, for fifth in 2011.
Pryor launched the Hoyas by scoring all their points in a 9-1 start. He showed his versatility to a national audience, glass-pinning the ball on a drive by Chris Boucher early in the second half.
“Once we got him, I knew he was going to be pretty good,” Thompson said. “He does a lot of different things. He plays hard. … Those other things that he brings to the table above and beyond his scoring is what we need from him.”
Oregon (2-2) wanted to welcome back preseason All-American Dillon Brooks with a victory, but Brooks’ minutes were limited to 13 coming off a foot injury and his impact (eight points) thusly muted. The Ducks rallied to take the lead on Brooks’ putback at 43-42, but Pryor tied it back up at the line and put Georgetown back up for good on a double-clutch shot in the lane with eight minutes left.
“He was hard to stop. He was balling out today,” Oregon guard Payton Pritchard said.
Pryor rejected Jordan Bell against the glass on a key play with under four minutes to go, his fourth swat of the game. Then he hit two at the line for a six-point lead with 24 seconds left. It was the finishing touch on his sublime performance (9-for-17 FG, 6-for-8 FT), which raised his scoring average to a team-best 19.8 points per game.
“The players have been great, accepting me for who I am, believing in what I do,” Pryor said. “The transition has been great. I’m looking forward to making things better.”
No. 4 North Carolina 104, Chaminade 61
Isaiah Hicks scored 22 points, Kennedy Meeks had 20 points and 10 rebounds, and No. 4 North Carolina overpowered host Chaminade.
North Carolina (5-0) needed a little time to shake the pesky Silverswords, doing so midway through the first half by pounding the ball inside.
The Tar Heels outscored Division II Chaminade 46-8 in the paint and had 26 second-chance points on 17 offensive rebounds to earn a spot in the semifinals against Oklahoma State today.
Tony Bradley added 14 points and North Carolina shot 57 percent from the floor.
Chaminade (2-1) shot well early to hang with the Tar Heels, but had little chance once they picked up the defensive pressure and got the ball inside on offense. The Silverswords went 10 of 28 from 3-point range and were outrebounded 52-23.
Rohndell Goodwin led Chaminade with 18 points, and Kiran Shastri added 13.
No. 16 Wisconsin 74, Tennessee 62
Bronson Koenig scored 21 points, Nigel Hayes had 17 points and 10 rebounds, and the Badgers (3-1) opened the Maui Invitational with victory over the Volunteers (1-2).
Wisconsin built a big early 17-point lead and rallied after Tennessee made two runs to take the lead early in the second half.
Hayes hit a couple of big 3-pointers and the Badgers pulled away late to earn a spot in the second round on Tuesday.
Wisconsin shot 56 percent and used its size advantage inside to pull down 11 more rebounds. Ethan Happ added 16 points for the Badgers.
Shembari Phillips led Tennessee with 16 points, and Detrick Mostella and Robert Hubbs III had 12 each.
Oklahoma St. 98, UConn 90
Jawun Evans had 35 points and five of Oklahoma State’s 18 steals, lifting the Cowboys over the Huskies.
Oklahoma State (4-0) jumped on UConn from the opening tip, turning one steal after another into points in transition. The Cowboys hit five 3-pointers during an opening 18-3 run and finished 12-for-20 from the arc.
Jeffrey Carroll and Phil Forte had 18 points each, helping Oklahoma State move on to the second round.
Evans also had six assists, four rebounds and one turnover.
UConn (1-3) struggled with Oklahoma State’s constant pressure, turning it over 18 times.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
