Last week’s victory against the University of Maryland seemed to be the biggest win for the Georgetown University men’s basketball team in the Ed Cooley era. That distinction did not last long, as the Hoyas took down the Clemson University Tigers Nov. 15 and proved they are legitimate tournament contenders.

Behind a stalwart, career-high performance from junior guard KJ Lewis and a physical second-half, Georgetown (4-0) took down the Tigers (3-1) in front of a full student section in Capital One Arena, in their second victory over a power conference opponent in three games. The Hoyas are now the only team in the Big East with a win over a power opponent, and they have achieved this twice, a feat unthinkable just two years ago.

Sophomore center Julius Halaifonua won the opening tip for Georgetown and kicked the ball out to sophomore forward Caleb Williams, who drained a three-pointer to put the Hoyas on the board first. Two minutes and 3 more Georgetown points later, Clemson guard Dillon Hunter responded with a three of his own to get the Tigers on the board at 6-3.

Halaifonua was physical early, but overall, the Hoyas struggled down low in the first half, a rare occurrence for the team. The Tigers won the battle of the boards in the half with six offensive rebounds.

As has been usual for the Hoyas so far this season, they also struggled from the field in the first half, including a three-minute period with no made field goals. Clemson, on the other hand, was shooting 45% from beyond the arc by the under-8 media timeout. But even when the Hoyas went down, by as much as 7, they never looked out, and remained close behind by never being down by double-digits.

While the Tigers’ shooting never allowed Georgetown to retake the lead in the first half, the Hoyas kept it close and entered the break trailing only 36-33.

In the second half, the Hoyas looked like a completely different team, and their physicality began to wear Clemson down. Georgetown got to the line 32 times in the game, including 17 times in the second half, and converted 25 of their attempts.

Georgetown found themselves in heavy front-court foul trouble early in the second half. Both Halaifonua and senior center Vince Iwuchukwu recorded their fourth foul before the under-16 timeout. Shortly after, Halaifonua picked up an over-the-back foul, and the Hoyas had only one rotation center left with almost all of the second half remaining.

Cooley, forced to balance between protecting Iwuchukwu for later in the game and holding onto the lead, subbed in sophomore forward Jayden Fort for Iwuchukwu on defensive possessions during the period just before the final stretch.

Weakened in the frontcourt, Lewis caught fire, scoring 17 points in the second half and getting to the line 8 times. Lewis, who has been a dominating presence all season long, finished with a career-high 26 points, along with 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 5 steals and 1 block.

Down the final stretch, the Georgetown offense cooled slightly, and the Tigers cut it back to a three-point game with 39 seconds to play. Cooley called a timeout to draw up a play, and Iwuchukwu got the ball and drained a paint jumper to bring the Hoyas to a two-possession game. After Clemson guard Jake Wahlin missed a desperation three-pointer, Lewis grabbed the rebound and dribbled up the court as time expired to seal the victory.

As the final buzzer sounded and the student section ignited, Iwuchukwu stormed toward the risers to celebrate with the fans. The final announced attendance of 8,562 included a full student section, and Cooley said at the post-game press conference that their presence was an important factor in getting the win over the finish line.

“Our students were unbelievable. That’s the energy that we were looking for,” Cooley told The Hoya. “They were a key factor with the win, so I really appreciate them showing up and giving us all the love.”

Cooley added that halftime served as a reset point and allowed the Hoyas to reestablish themselves physically to ensure a victory.

“They had a little bit more energy than us to start,” Cooley told The Hoya. “But the game’s two halves. That’s the good part. We made a mental, emotional adjustment at halftime. It wasn’t so much a systematic adjustment.”

“We came up with a lot of energy,” Cooley added.

The Hoyas take most of next week off before returning to take on the Wagner College Seahawks (0-3) at 12 p.m., Nov. 22 at Capital One Arena.