JEFFRY SCOTT / arizona daily star

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Cal's Ashley Walker found a spot she liked on the McKale Center court and returned over and over again to drain jumpers in front of the Golden Bears' bench.

The Arizona Wildcats' defense never slowed the power forward's outside shooting, tumbling 56-46 to 13th-ranked Cal in their Pac-10 opener Friday night.

Walker, an honorable mention All-American last season, scored 16 of her game-high 23 points on 8-of-11 shooting in the second half. The Bears (10-2, 1-0 Pac-10) snapped Arizona's four-game winning streak.

"You take away her second-half, short-corner shots and it's certainly a different ball game," UA coach Niya Butts said. "She missed one shot from that corner … in the second half.

"We anticipated she would come out and get the points. It was the fashion in which she scored those. We never made the adjustment defensively to get out there and put a hand in her face."

Meanwhile, Cal limited Arizona's top post player, Ify Ibekwe, to six points — nine below her season average — by sagging in on the forward to limit her touches.

Foul trouble also prevented Ibekwe from establishing a rhythm, Butts said. The sophomore had as many turnovers as points — three — in the first half, as two fouls limited her playing time to nine minutes.

"It was very physical, especially for the posts. They have two big, solid, good posts and it was a very physical game," Ibekwe said, referring to Walker and Devanei Hampton.

Ibekwe grabbed 11 rebounds, but she also committed five turnovers.

The Bears' zone defense shut down Ibekwe and forward Amina Njonkou (zero points) down low, instead allowing Arizona (7-5) looks from the outside. But the Wildcats once again struggled from the perimeter, shooting 4 of 18.

They shot 28.1 percent overall from the field. Freshmen guards Reiko Thomas and Courtney Clements led the UA with 16 and 12 points.

"You play percentages," Cal coach Joanne Boyle said. "I thought we did a good job playing the zone and mixing up a little bit. Where we did a poor job is keeping them off the boards.

"That's the chance you take with zone. They were quicker and more aggressive to the ball than we were."

Boyle credited Arizona for playing with a "new energy" and forcing her team to adjust its game plan.

Cal led 29-23 at halftime after shooting 37 percent. Reserve guard Casey Morris carried the flailing offense with 18 first-half points, 11 above her season average.

"She saved our butts," Boyle said of the freshman who finished with 18. "If it wasn't for Casey, we'd have been down 20 at the half."

In the second half, Walker took over. After the Wildcats drew to within 33-30 with 18:35 left, the Bears responded with a 14-6 run during which Walker scored eight points.

Arizona cut the lead to seven on Thomas' three-point play with 3:18 left, but Walker answered with a jumper, and the Cats drew no closer than eight. Afterward, Ibekwe called Walker the best post player the Cats have faced.

Cal finished shooting 41.5 percent but scored nearly 20 points below its season average (75.5).

Arizona will face its second nationally ranked opponent in three days when it hosts Stanford on Sunday.