Cal Takes a 31-3 Lead, Then Hangs On to Win : Arizona State: Comeback stalls when reserve quarterback Bret Powers loses fumble. Bears win, 31-24.

Russell White scored three touchdowns, Mike Pawlawski threw for 232 yards and California survived a second-half collapse to beat Arizona State, 31-24, in a Pacific 10 game Saturday night.

The Golden Bears, 4-2 overall and 2-1 in the Pac-10, led 21-3 at halftime and held on for their third consecutive victory. The Sun Devils fell to 2-3 and 0-2 with their third straight loss.

Arizona State, trailing 31-3, closed to 31-24 on Leonard Russell’s 11-yard touchdown run with 5:20 left in the third quarter, Kelvin Fisher’s four-yard touchdown run with 13:07 to play and Russell’s 21-yard scoring run with 5:21 remaining.

The Sun Devils appeared to be driving toward the tying touchdown until reserve quarterback Bret Powers, on a first-and-10 play from the Cal 17-yard line, fumbled while being sacked and Golden Bear linebacker Cornell Collier recovered the football at the 30. Cal then ran out the clock.

Pawlawski, who had 13 straight completions at one point and finished 22 of 33 with three second-half interceptions, passed Sean Dawkins on a 10-yard scoring play for a 7-0 lead with 7:17 left in the second quarter.

White, the sophomore from Crespi High in Encino who had 88 yards in 21 carries, scored on a 10-yard run around left end to cap a seven-play, 73-yard drive 4:26 before halftime.

Cal made it 21-3 when White turned a screen pass over the middle into a 17-yard touchdown with 16 seconds left.

Arizona State’s lone first-half points came on Mike Richey’s 29-yard field goal with 1:19 remaining. He was wide right on a 42-yard attempt 4:19 into the game, only the second miss of his career.

Robbie Keen’s 43-yard field goal 3:35 into the third quarter gave the Golden Bears a 24-3 lead.

White’s four-yard touchdown run, set up by defensive tackle Joel Dickson’s interception, made it 31-3 with 7:44 remaining in the third quarter.

The Golden Bears rolled up 503 yards in total offense--271 of it rushing as Anthony Wallace had 136 yards in 25 carries.

Arizona State had 345 yards, 224 of it on the ground as Russell got 186 in 25 carries.

With senior Paul Justin still sidelined with a separated left shoulder, the Sun Devils alternated quarterbacks. Sophomore starter Kurt Lasher completed three of 10 passes for 22 yards while Powers, a redshirt freshman, played most of the second half and was seven of 18 for 99 yards with one interception.

The game, which started in 87-degree late-afternoon heat, drew a crowd of 59,043 at 74,865-seat Sun Devil Stadium.