University Southern California Trojans
USC
UCLA
No. 5 USC Men's Volleyball Battles No. 6 UCLA In MPSF Tourney Semifinal Match At Pepperdine
April 16, 2019 | Men's Volleyball, Features
THE FACTSÂ
The No. 5-ranked USC men's volleyball team (17-9 overall, 7-5 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation)-- having won 10 of its past 12 matches, including an MPSF Tournament quarterfinal home match last week--battles No. 6 UCLA (19-8, 8-4) in an MPSF tourney semifinal contest on Thursday (April 18) at 7:30 p.m. PT at host Pepperdine. If the third-seed Trojans defeat the second-seed Bruins, USC would advance to the April 20 MPSF final in Malibu at 7 p.m. PT against the winner of the other semifinal match, which pits No. 4-ranked/first seed Pepperdine (20-6, 9-3) against No. 12 BYU (13-11, 6-6), the fifth seed. USC has its most wins in a season under head coach Jeff Nygaard and sports its highest national ranking since mid-2015. The Trojans, who are undefeated at home in 2019 for the first time since 2000, are 4-1 on neutral courts this year but just 1-8 on opponents' home floors.Â
FOLLOW THE TROJANSÂ
All MPSF Tournament matches will be broadcast on the MPSF channel (mpsports.org/watch) and through CBS Sports Interactive subscription service. Fans also can follow USC home matches through Live Stats at USCTrojans.com and all matches via Twitter (@USCmensvolley).Â
RANKINGSÂ
USC is ranked No. 5 in the current AVCA Division I-II Top 15 poll, its highest ranking since Week 6 of 2015 (when Troy was No. 3). UCLA is ranked No. 6, while Pepperdine is No. 4 and BYU is No. 12.Â
OPPONENTSÂ
USC trails in its series with UCLA, 96-45, but the Trojans won the most recent meeting 2 weeks ago in the regular season finale at home, 3-2 (after falling in late February on the road, 3-0). USC also trails in its series with Pepperdine, 67-43, and Troy was swept its most recent meeting 2 weeks ago on the road (after beating the Waves in early March at home, 3-1). USC trails in its series with BYU, 43-24, but swept the Cougars in late March (its first sweep over BYU in a 5-set match since 1991) after losing on the road in mid-February, 3-1.
DID YOU KNOW...USC IN 2019
*USC has won 10 of its last 12 matchesÂ
*USC is the only team to defeat defending NCAA champion Long Beach StateÂ
*USC has beaten teams ranked at the time No. 1 (LBSU), 3 (UCI), 4 (Pepperdine), 5 (UCLA), 6 (Stanford), 10 (BYU)Â
*USC is 5-0 against EIVA and MIVA competition, including a 3-0 sweep EIVA regular season champ PrincetonÂ
*USC is No. 6 in national RPIÂ
*USC has more than doubled its win total from a year agoÂ
*USC is undefeated at home for the first time since 2000Â
*USC's .326 team hitting percentage is its highest since 2011Â
*USC's 2019 team offensive and defensive stats are superior to 2018's in every category except digsÂ
*USC is in the Top 10 nationally in hitting percentage, kills and assists
