A renewed focus on defense sparked Southern California on Friday.

Donte Smith and Alex Stepheson scored 14 points apiece as the Trojans beat Washington State 60-56 at the Galen Center in Los Angeles.

Stepheson had 10 rebounds for a double-double while Nikola Vucevic did the same with 12 points and 11 rebounds for USC (9-6, 1-1 Pac-10), which began emphasizing defense after an 81-69 loss at TCU on Nov. 29.

The Trojans then went on a six-game stretch that included wins over ranked Texas and Tennessee and a narrow loss to powerhouse Kansas on the road.

Washington State was stifled by that defense, shooting 22 of 60 (36.7 percent). Over the last seven games, USC has limited opponents to 36.2 percent shooting.

Forward DeAngelo Casto scored 18 points while guard Klay Thompson added a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds to lead Washington State (10-4, 0-2).

USC leads the all-time series, 67-43, but is just 5-11 in the last 16 games against the Cougars (10-4, 0-2).