espnW Women's Basketball

BERKELEY, Calif. (AP) -- Ashley Walker and Alexis Gray-Lawson each had 15 points as California outlasted Washington State 61-51 Thursday night.

Devanei Hampton added 13 points and seven rebounds for the Bears (17-10, 9-8), who still harbor hopes of a bid to the NCAA Tournament.

Kate Benz topped Washington State (8-18, 2-15) with 15 points and 11 rebounds, and Keisha Moore had 14 points and seven rebounds.

The Cougars were outshot at the free-throw line 39-11 and also struggled with Cal's pressure, finishing with 26 turnovers.

The tone for the game was set early, as the Cougars lost the ball in five of their first seven possessions, quickly falling behind 7-0.

Cal extended the lead to 22-7, and though Washington State battled back, the Bears still were up 29-19 at the break. The Cougars' 17 first-half turnovers led to 20 of those 29 points.

Cal held on to that lead through the second half until a 12-3 Washington State run -- capped by Katie Appleton's second 3-pointer in 33 seconds -- tied the game at 39.

Then Hampton took over, either scoring or assisting on 10 of 12 Cal points over the next 5:38, and the Bears steadily pulled away.

The 39 free-throw attempts were the most by the Bears this season, and tied a Haas Pavilion record set in 2001 against UCLA.