While it is not one of the titles they are aspiring to in March and April, the Hoyas are Charleston Classic champions after a second-half surge in their 82-67 victory over North Carolina State (3-1) Sunday night.

Georgetown improves to 5-0 on the young season with a championship game win fueled by the best performance of sophomore forward Hollis Thompson’s collegiate career and another impressive team rebounding effort. The Hoyas out-boarded the Wolfpack 43-32 on the glass.

“This whole experience, I think we can build upon,” Head Coach John Thompson III said in the postgame press conference. “When league play starts, you have to come prepared every night. We’re going to play good teams every night and we have to mentally, physically, emotionally be honed in and focused like we were in the second half tonight.”

Thompson became the second Georgetown forward in as many games to have a standout performance, scoring 18 points on 7-of-9 shooting and snaring nine rebounds. Senior forward Julian Vaughn notched his milestone double-double Friday against Wofford and contributed eight points, seven rebounds and four blocks against a young but dangerous N.C. State team. Junior center Henry Sims (nine rebounds) and sophomore forward Jerrelle Benimon (six rebounds) worked the boards effectively off the bench.

“We have a lot of pieces of in our locker room and on any given night were going to need different people, when they’re called upon, to step up,” Thompson said. “Everyone on our team has confidence in one another and a true understanding that it’s going to be different people who are going to step up, and tonight [Thompson and Sims] were key.”

eanwhile the backcourt trio of seniors Chris Wright and Austin Freeman and junior Jason Clark kept rolling. Wright, the tournament MVP, stuffed the stat sheet, scoring 17 points on 6-of-15 shooting and dishing out seven more assists, Freeman notched 15 points and Clark had 14. As a team the Hoyas shot 8-of-22 from beyond the three-point arc.

Although the second half ultimately belonged to Georgetown, it trailed 44-42 early on afterhalftime, but a one-handed Freeman slam ignited a 15-0 run that spurred the Hoyas to their second consecutive 5-0 start. The two teams played to a 37-37 deadlock in the first half, thanks in part to a 13-3 N.C. State run to end the opening stanza.

Thompson and the Hoyas can take several positives from the Charleston Classic back to the District. Winning three games in four days, the Blue and Gray got significant contributions from the frontcourt, which came into the season as a major question mark but has proven thus far to be both deep and productive. Vaughn returned from his one game absence and made an impact on both ends of the floor, emerging as a shot blocker, albeit against undersized teams. Thompson proved just how good the Hoyas can be if he is making his shots; Sims was reliable off the bench after two lackluster years; and Benimon and freshman forward Nate Lubick showed their worth as strong rebounders and interior defenders.

The backcourt of Freeman, Wright and Clark lived up to or exceeded their billing all weekend, making big shots or setting up their teammates at crucial times. Wright, who has fallen victim to taking ill-advised shots at times in his career, showed maturity in his willingness to spread the ball around when his shot was not on.

“This just shows that any night we can fight adversity,” Wright said.

The Hoyas have the week off before returning to Verizon Center on Saturday against UNC-Asheville. Tip-off is scheduled for 12 p.m.