No. 16 Wisconsin downs Georgetown, advances to Maui Invitational final

(AP) Ethan Happ had 19 points and 15 rebounds, Bronson Koenig scored 20 points and No. 16 Wisconsin advanced to the Maui Invitational championship game with a 73-57 win over Georgetown on Tuesday.

[btn-post-package-v2]

Wisconsin (4-1) used a short burst out of halftime to take control and stayed there behind the inside-out game of Happ and Koenig.

The Badgers went 5 for 22 from 3-point range, but made up for it inside, outscoring the Hoyas 38-16 in the paint. Wisconsin also had a 50-21 rebounding advantage and scored 19 second-chance points on 20 offensive boards.

The Badgers moved on to face No. 4 North Carolina or Oklahoma State in Wednesday night's championship game.

Georgetown (2-3) held its own through the first half despite not shooting particularly well. The Hoyas never found their touch in the second half and had no answer for Wisconsin's push after the break.

LJ Peak led Georgetown with 18 points and Rodney Pryor had 14.

Neither team shot particularly well in the first half, except for Koenig and Pryor.

Koenig was looking for his shot early, scoring eight quick points. He had 14 at halftime on 5-of-10 shooting to help the Badgers to a 32-29 lead.

Pryor, who had 26 points against Oregon, scored 11 on 4-of-8 shooting, including 3 of 5 from beyond the 3-point arc.

Wisconsin opened the second half with a short burst and Koenig banked one in from nearly straight on, pushing its lead to 44-34.

The Badgers began to stretch the lead from there, pushing it to 53-39 on Charles Thomas' putback midway through.

Georgetown never made up the difference.

BIG PICTURE

The Badgers have bounced back nicely from a loss to Creighton with two wins in Maui and can cap it off with the title on Wednesday.

The Hoyas put up a fight early, but have work to do if they're going to compete with teams as talented as Wisconsin.

UP NEXT

Wisconsin will face the winner between No. 4 North Carolina and Oklahoma State in Wednesday's championship game.

Georgetown faces the North Carolina-Oklahoma State loser in the third-place game.