USF is hanging around against No. 13 Syracuse, and the Sun Dome is getting loud at Big East levels.

Dominique Jones, held to two points in the first half, hit a wide-open 3-pointer from the wing to cut Syracuse's lead to 50-43 with 8:13 left. The Bulls were down 47-31, so it's a 12-3 run that's brought them back in the game. Jones now has 12, though Jesus Verdejo is still 3-for-16, including an 0-for-9 clip on 3-pointers.

The officials just missed a foul that could be costly for the Bulls -- freshman Eladio Espinosa clearly hip-checked Jonny Flynn, but the foul was called on Alex Rivas Sanchez, his fourth foul, putting him on the bench.

The crowd, by the way, has been announced at 8,350, the second-most in the Sun Dome since the Bulls joined the Big East in 2005. The only larger crowd here in the past four seasons was 9,636 to see Connecticut here in March 2006.