Shipp Leads California

California Coach Ben Braun had to pull Joe Shipp aside and tell him to settle down.

Braun understood his player’s excitement -- it was senior day Sunday and Shipp’s last chance to play before California fans in Haas Pavilion. But he was trying to do too much.

Shipp accepted the coach’s message, scoring 21 points and also getting four rebounds and three assists as the No. 23 Golden Bears defeated Arizona State, 80-72.

“I just wanted to go out on a good note,” Shipp said.

Shipp, the leading scorer in the Pacific 10 Conference, had three consecutive baskets early in the second half to keep Cal in the game, and made another basket with 5:32 left for a 69-63 lead.

The Golden Bears (20-6, 13-4) won their 13th Pac-10 game -- the most in conference play since finishing 13-5 and in second place in the 1993-94 season.

Curtis Millage had 20 points for Arizona (17-10, 9-7). The Sun Devils have lost three in a row after a four-game winning streak. Ike Diogu, a freshman averaging 20.5 points and 9.4 rebounds in his previous eight games, had 18 points and nine rebounds.