BERKELEY, Calif. - No. 24 California won its third straight close game to remain undefeated, but the Bears' season does not begin in earnest until next week.

Cal had more trouble than expected against Washington State on Saturday, and it had to overcome an early 21-7 deficit to pull out a 34-28 victory in a Pac-12 game at Cal's Memorial Stadium.

"I'm really proud of our guys for gutting it out," Cal coach Sonny Dykes said. "We probably didn't play as well as we could have at some points, but we were able to play well in the clutch."

Cal (5-0, 2-0 Pac-12) has won each of its last three games by six points or fewer, but it has matched it best start since 1950, when the Bears began 9-0. Cal has not yet faced a ranked team, and its schedule gets a lot tougher going forward with its next four games against No. 10 Utah, No. 7 UCLA, No. 17 USC and Oregon. All except the USC game are on the road.

"Every week is the next step in where we want to be," said Cal receiver Kenny Lawlor, who had six catches for 105 yards and two touchdowns despite being bothered by flu-like symptoms.

Cal quarterback Jared Goff had another strong game, going 33 for 45 for 390 yards, four touchdowns and one interception.

However, it was the Cal defense - which was one of the worst in the nation last season and allowed 812 yards in last year's 60-59 victory over Washington State - that made the difference. The Bears allowed Washington State (2-2, 0-1) only seven second-half points - none in the fourth quarter - and produced seven sacks, including 2.5 by defensive end Kyle Kragen.

The biggest defensive play may have been an interception by Cal safety Damariay Drew with 3:29 left in the game and ended the Cougars' last serious threat.

"The defense is playing so well now," Goff said. "They are playing with the biggest chip on their shoulder I've ever seen."

Offensively, the Bears' most important play was a 42-yard run by running back Vic Enwere on a third-and-36 play from the Cal 4-yard line with the Bears protecting a six-point lead with about five minutes left.

"Any time you give it to Vic something strange could happen," Dykes said.

That run and Drew's interception spelled doom for Washington State, which had the upper hand for much of the game.

"I thought, for the most part, we played a good football game," Cougars coach Mike Leach said. "We didn't play a perfect game, but we played a good game. I think we got better this week."

Washington State wide receiver Gabe Marks had 10 catches for 141 yards and a score, and Cougars quarterback Luke Falk was 35 of 49 for 389 yards, two touchdowns and one interception.

"Overall, we played pretty well offensively," Falk said. "There were times in the game we really could have taken control of the game. But only seven points in the second half, that's unacceptable."

Trailing 21-13 at halftime, Cal got a break early in the third quarter when Washington State punter Zach Charme fumbled while attempting a run on a fourth-down fake-punt play. Cal defensive back Stefan McClure scooped up the ball and ran 45 yards for a touchdown to reduce the Cougars' lead to 21-20.

Washington State responded with a 79-yard drive that ended with Falk's 4-yard touchdown pass to Marks, making it 28-20.

The Bears got within two points on a 20-yard TD pass from Goff to Lawler, but Goff's throw on the two-point attempt was intercepted by safety Shalom Luani.

On the ensuing kickoff, Cal's Darius Powe recovered an onside kick and the Bears turned it into the go-ahead touchdown on Goff's 24-yard pass to wide receiver Maurice Harris. A two-point pass to wide receiver Bryce Treggs gave Cal a 34-28 lead.

"We felt that (the onside kick) was something that could change the game," said Dykes, who said the Bears coaches had noticed some tendencies by the Washington State receiving team that might make an onside kick toward the sidelines successful.

NOTES: Cal RB Daniel Lasco started the first two games this season but missed the last two games with a hip injury, was back in the starting lineup Saturday. ... Washington State piled up 812 yards of offense against Cal last year -- and lost 60-59. ... All three of the Cougars' Pac-12 Conference victories since 2013 had come on the road. ... Heading into this weekend, home teams were 0-6 in Pac-12 Conference games. ... QB Jared Goff's first-quarter touchdown pass was the 65th of his career, breaking the Cal record he had shared with Kyle Boller (1999-2002).