Just like old times, a Georgetown-Syracuse game went down to the wire Saturday as the Hoyas took the lead midway through the second half and held on to beat the Orange 78-71 before 25,131 on Pearl Washington Day at the Carrier Dome.

In winning their fifth consecutive game, the Hoyas (7-4) sank 11 of 14 free throws in the final 1:43 and 22 of 25 for the game. L.J. Peak led Georgetown with 23 points, Rodney Pryor added 20, and Jesse Govan had 12 points and 10 rebounds.

Tyler Lydon led all scorers with a career-high 29 points and he added nine rebounds for Syracuse (6-4), now a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Orange still lead the series against Georgetown 49-43 but have lost their last three games to the Hoyas.

Pryor's runner and old-fashioned 3-point play on back-to-back possessions gave the Hoyas their biggest lead of the game, 51-46, with 11:21 remaining. Lydon's 3-pointer sliced Georgetown's lead to one, 60-59, but the Hoyas' scored four consecutive points in the paint to boost their advantage to 64-59 with four minutes left.

Fittingly, the score was tied at 31 (Pearl's number) late in the first half and the first 20 minutes ended in a 33-33 stalemate. Trailing 22-17, the Hoyas scored eight consecutive points on 3-pointers by Pryor and Peak and Jonathan Mulmore's two free throws to grab their first lead since the first two minutes of the game.

Syracuse's Taurean Thompson scored the Orange's final six points of the half, including two free throws that pulled Syracuse ahead 33-31. But Peak's jumper with six seconds remaining in the half tied the score for fourth time.

At halftime, Syracuse saluted Washington by unveiling his retired number 31 in the block "S" in the middle of Jim Boeheim Court. The ceremony included a video tribute and gifts for Washington's family presented by several of his former teammates.