TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Brandon Triche had 20 points and James Southerland scored 12 of his 17 in the second half Sunday to help No. 7 Syracuse overcome a slow start and win its Big East road opener 55-44 over South Florida.

C.J. Fair had 10 points and 10 rebounds for the Orange (14-1, 2-0), who won for the fourth straight time following a four-point loss to Temple.

South Florida (9-4, 0-1) trimmed what had been an 11-point deficit to 47-42 with six minutes remaining, however the Bulls were held to one basket the rest of the way.

Southerland’s long 3-pointer put Syracuse up 50-42. Triche followed with a driving layup and a pair of free throws to push the lead back to double-digits.

Victor Rudd led USF with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Jawanza Poland finished with 12 points.

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.