LOS ANGELES — Tara VanDerveer and Stanford are having a much better time in Los Angeles this season.

Kayla Pedersen had 20 points, Jeanette Pohlen added 19 and No. 3 Stanford beat UCLA, 69-58, last night to remain tied for first in the Pac-10.

Jillian Harmon scored 12 points to pass 1,000 for her career for Stanford (23-4, 14-1), which has won 10 straight. The Cardinal were swept by UCLA and Southern California in Los Angeles last season, adding to the significance of the victory for VanDerveer.

"This is a big win for us," the Stanford coach said. "We didn't win last year and we needed this game. They have some very talented players."

California also won last night, squeaking by USC 66-64 to move to 14-1 in the Pac-10. Stanford faces USC tomorrow.

Harmon, who entered with 992 career points, reached 1,000 with a jumper off the glass 3 minutes into the second half.

"I was aware of it, but it didn't occur to me during the game, I was caught up in the moment of playing," Harmon said. "It's an honor, but I'm just glad the team is playing well and hopefully we can get our team back to the Final Four so individual stuff doesn't matter much right now."

The Cardinal led 33-28 at the break and opened the second half by making all five field-goal attempts, including three 3-pointers, during a 14-5 run. Stanford connected on nine of its first 11 shots of the half to build a 55-41 lead.

"We looked more comfortable," VanDerveer said. "We want to be aggressive and attack and when we did that we looked really good."

Darxia Morris scored 10 of her season-high 18 points in the first half for UCLA (16-10, 7-8).

Tied 19-19, Stanford went on a 10-1 run capped by Pohlen's 3-pointer, but UCLA stormed right back with six unanswered points to cut it to 29-23.

"They're a very aggressive team and they're good at pressing and trapping and they're very good at it," VanDerveer said.

Pedersen also had seven rebounds for Stanford.

NO. 4 CALIFORNIA 66, SOUTHERN CAL 64

LOS ANGELES — Alexis Gray-Lawson scored 22 points and hit two key free throws with 15 seconds left for a 65-62 lead, helping the visiting Golden Bears (23-3, 14-1 Pac-10) hold off the Trojans (14-12, 8-7).

"We're close. We're darn close," USC coach Mark Trakh said. "Cal's good at winning games at the end like that."

The Golden Bears led by 11 with 13:33 left when Natasha Vital hit a 3-pointer. USC rallied back and Heather Oliver's 3-pointer with 1:10 remaining made it 63-62, but Gray-Lawson's two free throws helped Cal hold on.

"We're road warriors," Cal coach Joanne Boyle said. "We're older and more experienced, and we know how to grind it out. Our players know what is at stake."

What's at stake is a Pac-10 title and an NCAA Tournament bid. And the Bears look like they're on their way.

NO. 5 MARYLAND 86, BOSTON COLLEGE 74

COLLEGE PARK, Md. — Marissa Coleman scored 32 points, Kristi Toliver added 27, and the Terrapins (24-4, 11-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) took a 45-37 halftime lead in beating the Eagles (18-10, 6-7), who closed to 65-62 with 10:06 left, but got no closer.

"They (Coleman and Toliver) continue to put this team on their back," Maryland coach Brenda Frese said. "We needed to get a quick start and needed to be ready from the tip. We've been able to ride the hot hand of these two."

Maryland moved into a first-place tie with Florida State in the conference, and can clinch its first regular-season title in 20 years with a win in tomorrow's regular-season finale at Miami.

PACWEST WOMEN

BYUH 96, CHAMINADE 58

LA'IE — Latoya Wiley had 24 points and 11 rebounds, and four teammates scored in double figures as the Seasiders (13-11, 6-5) rolled past the Silverswords (0-24, 0-11) in a Pacific West Conference game at Cannon Activities Center.

Madison Kite added 12 points, Dara Tompkison and Amanda Watts 11 each, and Richelle Fenenbock 10 for BYUH, which led 47-27 at halftime.

Samantha Saito scored 16 points, Jasmine Dulan 14 and Demyla Rodriguez 12 for the Silverswords.