TAMPA - Hanging tough helped the Bulls hang on for their first win over a ranked opponent since 2010.

Toarlyn Fitzpatrick capped off a late rally with a go-ahead layup and foul shot that was the difference in a 56-55 victory over No. 24 Seton Hall on Friday night before a loud crowd of 3,805 at the Tampa Bay Times Forum.

"We wanted to get them. It's something that we need to do because we want to have a good year," said USF head coach Stan Heath, whose Bulls earned their first win over a Top 25 team since beating No. 7 Georgetown, 72-64, on Feb. 3, 2010.

Ron Anderson Jr. posted a team-high 14 points and Victor Rudd Jr. added nine points to help USF improve to 10-8 and 3-2 in Big East play.

Jordon Theodore had a game-high 16 points for Seton Hall (15-3, 4-2), but the star guard faltered at the most crucial time.

USF led, 33-29, early in the second half before the Pirates went on an 18-5 run. Seton Hall had a 52-42 lead - its biggest advantage of the game - with 6:12 to play but the Bulls were far from finished.

Freshman guard Anthony Collins' floater through the lane started USF's 14-3 run to finish the game. Jawanza Poland's 3-pointer with 2:25 remaining tied the game at 53, which set up Fitzpatrick's magical play.

Collins found Fitzpatrick, who made the decisive layup in traffic near the hoop and went to the free throw line to sink his last bucket of the game with 55 seconds remaining.

"I knew A.C. was going to find me. It was just a matter of finishing and playing through contact," said Fitzpatrick, who finished with six points and three rebounds.

Seton Hall responded with Patrik Auda's layup with 21 seconds left. Poland went to the free throw line 1 second later, but missed his initial attempt and the Pirates got a chance at a victory when Collins fouled a shooting Theodore with 3 seconds to go.

Theodore, 82 percent from the line entering the game, rattled his last shot off the rim, which was scooped up by Fitzpatrick to seal it for the Bulls.

"If I were a betting man, I wouldn't have bet Poland missed his and I wouldn't have bet Theodore would have missed his," said a smiling Heath. "It was kind of shocking the way it ended, but it was an even tradeoff. I guess that's the way I look at it."

Another big reason why USF walked away with a win was because of its aggressiveness around the rim. The Bulls outscored Seton Hall, 14-2, in second-chance points.

"We knew that was a big key going in," Seton Hall head coach Kevin Willard said. "Their size really bothered us and Anderson and Gilchrist did a really good job on that weak side of hurting us."

USF goes up against another top-tier Big East team 7 p.m. Wednesday when it hosts St. John's back at the Tampa Bay Times Forum.