Pac-10 Men's Basketball | Sun Devils burn Cardinal in OT

TEMPE, Ariz. — Down seven points with 1:49 to play, Arizona State looked as if it was finished.

But the Sun Devils were just getting started.

Behind star freshman James Harden's 23 points, Arizona State rallied to beat No. 7 Stanford 72-68 in overtime on Thursday night. Harden scored the Sun Devils' last four points in regulation and the first eight in overtime.

"It's just remarkable that this team somehow found a way to land on their feet tonight," Arizona State coach Herb Sendek said.

It was the Sun Devils' third victory over a ranked team in two seasons under Sendek — one more than they managed from 1995-2006.

Arizona State (16-7, 6-5 Pac-10) played the overtime without Jeff Pendergraph, who had 15 points and 12 rebounds before fouling out late in regulation. The Sun Devils are 4-0 in overtime this season.

"A lot of guys don't like to play OTs," Pendergraph said. "We love it."

For a long time, overtime seemed like a dream for the Sun Devils, who watched as Stanford went on a 26-2 run midway through the second half. That spurt wiped out a 10-point ASU lead and gave Stanford a 51-37 lead with 7:59 to play.

But ASU began to chip away, battling the taller Cardinal for every rebound and loose ball.

"They made plays," Stanford coach Trent Johnson said. "We didn't."

Brook Lopez scored 30 points and twin brother Robin Lopez had 16 for Stanford (20-4, 9-3), which had a seven-game winning streak snapped.

The Sun Devils' improbable comeback began with a three-pointer by freshman Rihards Kuksiks, cutting Stanford's lead to 57-53 with 1:37 to play.

After a Cardinal free throw, Ty Abbott hit a three-pointer to cut the deficit to 58-56 with 33 seconds left.

That's when Harden asserted himself. He scored four points in the final 26 seconds — two on a jam and two on a rebound of his own miss to tie the score at 60 with 6 seconds left.

Harden's heroics might not have mattered if the Cardinal had been able to convert from the free-throw line. Stanford missed 4 of 8 free throws in the final 1:49.

At Arizona 83, California 73

Jerryd Bayless scored 33 points as the Wildcats won their 13th straight at home over the Bears since 1995.

Jordan Hill added 21 points and 11 rebounds for Arizona, while Chase Budinger added 18 points, 15 coming in the second half.

"I feel in a rhythm right now, but I think Jordan Hill feels like he is in a rhythm after the way he played," Bayless said. "Chase struggled at the beginning, but he started to get it together.

"That is what we need. Everybody is part of this team. It is not one man or two men. It is a whole team playing together."

Bayless scored 18 of his points in the first half and hit several clutch three-pointers in the second half as Arizona (16-8, 6-5 Pac-10) ended a two-game losing streak. He finished 5 of 9 from behind the three-point line.

Patrick Christopher led California (14-9, 5-7) with 21 points. DeVon Hardin had 11 — one after halftime.

Bayless hit a three-pointer to put Arizona up 55-49 with 8:42 remaining, then another for a 62-54 lead.

Cal, down by 11 early in the second half, tied the score at 41 on Christopher's dunk with 14:15 remaining. But the Wildcats then scored seven unanswered points to take control.