STANFORD, Calif. (AP) – Dorian Pickens scored 23 points, Reid Travis had 19 with nine rebounds and Stanford held on to beat California 73-68 on Friday night.
Marcus Allen added 11 points for the Cardinal, which overcame an early 12-point deficit to beat its cross-bay rivals for the 21st time in the last 24 meetings between the two teams at Maples Pavilion.
Stanford (13-13, 5-9 Pac-12) won for only the second time in seven games and split the season series with California.
Pickens had nine points, including a pair of 3-pointers, as part of a 20-5 run in the second half when the Cardinal pulled away.
After California closed within 62-56 on Grant Mullins' 3-pointer with 4:54 remaining. Allen made two free throws and Pickens scored on a jumper from the free-throw line as he was falling backward onto the court.
Jabari Bird scored 23 points and set a career-high with seven 3s for the Golden Bears (18-8, 9-5). Ivan Rabb added 16 points and 13 rebounds after being slowed by foul trouble in the first half.
California's loss was costly. The Bears failed to complete their first season sweep of the Cardinal since 2009-10 and missed a chance to strengthen their position in the Pac-12 standings.
As it is, coach Cuonzo Martin's team could drop into a tie for fourth depending on the outcome of USC's game against No. 6 UCLA on Saturday.
Stanford got off to a streaky start. After missing nine of its first 10 shots and falling behind by 12 midway through the first half, the Cardinal made eight straight and rallied to take a 38-34 halftime lead.
Stanford shot 44.4 percent in the first half and did a good job getting to the line, a big factor in the first half when the Cardinal made 12 free throws compared to one for California.
The Cardinal coaches all wore green ties as part of a Coaching For Literacy program being emphasized at a number of schools around the country.
Stanford remains at home next week to play host to Oregon State on Wednesday, Feb. 22 at 8 p.m. on ESPNU.