STANFORD -- Marcus Allen scored 10 of his 16 points over the final 5 1/2 minutes - all on free throws - and Stanford held on to beat California 77-71 on Thursday night.
Rosco Allen had 22 points and 10 rebounds for the Cardinal (10-6, 3-2 Pac-12), who have won four straight against their Bay Area rivals. Dorian Pickens scored 14 points and Marcus Sheffieldadded 11.
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Stanford, which went into the game shooting only 66.8 percent from the free throw line, scored its final 13 points from the stripe to complete a comeback after falling behind early in the second half.
The Cardinal also got a boost from its defense down the stretch.
Leading 72-69 with 28.4 seconds left, Stanford forced a turnover when California was unable to inbound the ball. Michael Humphrey later blocked a layup attempt by Tyrone Wallace to help the Cardinal hold on.
Tyrone Wallace and Jabari Bird scored 17 points apiece for California. The Golden Bears (12-6, 2-3) have lost three straight.
The win marked the 100th at Maples Pavilion for Stanford coach Johnny Dawkins, who recently celebrated his 150th career coaching win.
Stanford jumped out to an early lead, shook off a scoring drought midway through the first half then closed on a 20-8 run to take a 41-35 halftime lead. Sheffield led the surge with nine points, including a layup in traffic with eight seconds remaining.
California, coming off back-to-back losses at Oregon and Oregon State, shot just 37.1 percent in the first half. Freshman Jaylen Brown, the Bears' second-leading scorer who had 20 points in each of the losses, spent most of the time on the bench after picking up his second foul 3:15 into the game.
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TIP-INS
California: The Bears haven't beaten the Cardinal since Jan. 2, 2014. . Wallace moved past Justin Cobbs into 11th place on the school's career scoring list with 1,474 points. . The Bears made six 3-pointers in the first half. . With coach Cuonzo Martin choosing to go with his small lineup against the Cardinal, Bird started for the first time since Nov. 27.
Stanford: The Cardinal made their first 15 free throws against the Bears and finished 30 of 38. . Sheffield is Stanford's only freshman to play in every game this season. . Members of the Cardinal football team were honored during a halftime ceremony for their Rose Bowl win over Iowa.
UP NEXT
California: Hosts Arizona State on Jan. 21.
Stanford: Hosts Arizona on Jan. 21.