Photo by: Don Liebig/ASUCLA
MVB Returns to MPSF Play
February 19, 2019 | Men's Volleyball
COMING UP -- No. 6 UCLA (10-4, 2-0) will return to league play this week with Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) matches Wednesday at Concordia (5-10, 1-2) and on Sunday in Pauley Pavilion, presented by Wescom at 5 p.m. against No. 14 USC (7-6, 1-2). The winner of the UCLA-USC match will earn five points towards the Crosstown Cup which is awarded each year to the school with the most success across all sports in the rivalry. Currently, USC tops this year's tally at 45-35. The Trojans are coached by Bruin Jeff Nygaard, a three-time Olympian in indoor and beach volleyball, who played on a pair of NCAA championship teams (1993 with current UCLA women's coach Michael Sealy / 1995 with current UCLA men's coach John Speraw) at UCLA.
MATCH DAY: Wednesday, Feb. 20
No. 6 UCLA at Concordia, Irvine - CU Arena
Time: 7:00 p.m. PT
Live Stats: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/cui/
Live Video: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/cui/
MATCH DAY: Sunday, Feb. 24
No. 14 USC at No. 6 UCLA - Pauley Pavilion, presented by Wescom
Time: 5:00 p.m. PT
TV: Pac-12 Network
Live Stats: http://www.statbroadcast.com/events/statbroadcast.php?t=1&gid=ucla
Live Video: https://pac-12.com/mens-volleyball/event/2019/02/24/usc-ucla
Live Audio: https://ucla.leanplayer.com/
LAST MEETINGS -- UCLA topped Concordia in all three meetings last season, including a 3-1 verdict in the MPSF semifinals behind 16 kills and five blocks by Daenan Gyimah. As a team, UCLA out aced Concordia 21-4 over the three matches. The Bruins split a pair of contests last season with USC. The Bruins swept USC (25-15, 25-18, 25-19) at home behind 12 kills by Dylan Missry and five blocks from Gyimah. UCLA outhit the visitors .458 to .141 for the match and recorded a 6-1 edge in aces. The Trojans returned the favor in Galen Center in five sets (25-18, 23-25, 23-25, 25-19, 11-15), snapping a Bruin five-match win streak in the series. UCLA hit .384 in that match to .272 for USC. The Bruins held a 6-5 edge in aces.
ON THE ROAD -- UCLA is 5-3 on the road this season (losses at Long Beach, at UCSB; at CSUN). The Bruins have posted road wins against a couple of ranked teams from Loyola-Chicago and Lewis. Last year, UCLA was 6-6 in true road matches in 2018.
AT HOME -- UCLA is 5-1 at home this season after posting a 19-2 record in its home venues of Pauley Pavilion, presented by Wescom (13-2) and in the Wooden Center (6-0) last season ... It was the most home wins ever by the Bruins, one more than the 18 wins registered in 1987 ... Over the past three-plus seasons, UCLA is 36-5 in Pauley (2016: 10-1, 2017: 8-1, 2018: 13-2, 2019: 5-1) ... The last team not named Long Beach State (which has won in Pauley in February 2019, February 2018 and May 2018) to defeat UCLA in Pauley was CSUN in February of 2017 (note: the Bruins did lose three home matches in the Wooden Center after the 2017 CSUN loss).
1998 NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP TEAM TO BE HONORED -- UCLA's 1998 men's volleyball championship team will be honored on Sunday in a ceremony between sets 2 and 3. Al Scates' '98 Bruin team received an at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament after losing to Pepperdine in the MPSF championship match. UCLA then outlasted Lewis in the national semifinals in a five-setter aided by a career-best 26 kills from Danny Farmer. The Bruins went on to avenge the earlier loss to the Waves with a 3-0 sweep in the final for men's volleyball title No. 17. Adam Naeve was named Most Outstanding Player (23 kills, 3 aces, 5 blocks vs. Pepperdine). Setter Brandon Taliaferro and hitter Fred Robins were also named to the All-Tournament Team. John Speraw worked with Coach Scates as a statistician on that coaching staff.
NCAA STATS -- UCLA began the week 4th in the nation in aces/set (1.84) and 5th in hitting % (.330) ... UCLA is 8th in kills/set (12.75) and set assist average (11.82). Daenan Gyimah is 2nd in the nation in hitting % (.542) ... Micah Ma'a rated 5th nationally in aces (0.63 per set).
MPSF - Each MPSF team has 12 conference matches. The MPSF Championship Tournament begins with seeds two, three and four hosting a quarterfinal match (April 13). The semifinals are April 18 on the home floor of the No. 1 seed. The Championship match will take place on April 20 at the same site, with the winner earning the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament which will be hosted by Long Beach State on May 2 and 4.
LAST WEEK -- The Bruins stepped out of MPSF play last week and dropped a five-setter at UC Santa Barbara. The Gauchos won the hitting battle .353 to .252. The Bruins racked up more aces (8 to 6), but lost the net war 7.5 total blocks to 6.0. Last Saturday, the Bruins also dropped a straight set decision at Long Beach State. UCLA hit .260, while Beach was at .404. It marked the third time this season an opponent had hit at least .400 against the Bruins. The 49ers owned a 12-3 edge in aces (most by an opponent since UC Irvine had 11 in a three-set match in 2009) and a 6.0 to 2.0 margin at the nets in total blocks. Gyimah led UCLA with 9 kills.
BY THE NUMBERS
• Daenan Gyimah began the week leading the MPSF and ranked second in the NCAA in hitting percentage at .542 ... Micah Ma'a topped the league (5th in NCAA) in aces/set at 0.63 ... The Bruins were rated first in the MPSF (5th NCAA) in hitting % (.330) and aces/set (1.84 and fourth in NCAA).
• Daenan Gyimah's .739 hitting percentage in the win at Loyola-Chicago is the highest of any player (entering the week) in the country this season (min. 20 att.) ... His school-record .917 mark at McKendree is tied for 2nd-highest by a player this season (min. 10 att.).
• UCLA is 5-4 this year vs. teams ranked in the AVCA poll at the time of the match, after going 14-7 last season.
• Daenan Gyimah has hit .500 or better in 9 matches this season while hitting .542 ... Over the last 11 matches, Gyimah is hitting .581 (122k-14e-186ta) ... Last season, Gyimah led the NCAA in hitting % in 2018 with a .528 mark.
• Micah Ma'a has totaled at least three aces in 6 matches this season at Loyola-3, at UCSD-3, UCSD-3, Long Beach-4, BYU-5 and Lindenwood-5.
• Micah Ma'a has 26 aces in the last 10 matches and has recorded multiple aces in 8 matches with at least one ace in 13 of the 14 matches this year ... Ma'a ranks second on the all-time school list for aces, is fourth on the all-time school list for set assists and sixth on digs list.
• Junior hitter Brandon Rattray registered a career-best 21 kills in the win at UCSD ... He began the week ranked 19th in the NCAA in kills/set this year.
• MB Grant Maleski, who had a career-best 9 kills last week at UCSB, totaled a career-best 7 block assists in the win over Stanford.
• UCLA has won the ace battle in 8 of its 10 wins this season; it has come up short this season in a loss (3-12) at Long Beach State, (7-9) in the win at Loyola and (2-4) in the loss at CSUN and was equal in the victory at Lewis (3-3) ... Last season, it was outaced in five matches.
• The Bruins are now 3-0 in 2019 when holding the opponent to .200 or below hitting % after limiting BYU to a .118 mark in the Wooden Center. It held UCSD to a .066 hitting percentage and UCSB (in Pauley) to .183 ... Last season, it limited 12 opponents to an under the .200 mark and won each match.
• UCLA has hit over .400 (.475 vs. UCSB and McKendree; .449 at UCSD, .407 at Loyola) four times (4-0) in 2019 ...Last season, UCLA hit at least .400 in 12 matches, all wins ... CSUN (.417) and Long Beach (.429 /.404) have each hit over .400 in defeating UCLA this season.
• UCLA is 10-0 in 2019 (26-2 last season) when it hits for a higher % than the opponent ... UCLA hit .370 in home matches last season to .215 for opponents - In 6 home matches in 2019, UCLA is swinging at a.312 clip vs. .210 for opponents.
AVCA Coaches Poll - Feb. 18
1. Long Beach State 240 12-0
2. Hawaii 223 10-0
3. UC Irvine 207 13-2
4. Pepperdine 187 10-2
5. UC Santa Barbara 179 13-3
6. UCLA 160 10-4
7. Loyola-Chicago 141 11-3
8. Stanford 119 9-5
9. BYU 116 6-4
10. Lewis 104 11-4
11. CSUN 80 8-6
12. Ball State 54 7-7
13. George Mason 46 7-3
14. USC 40 7-6
15. Purdue Fort Wayne 15 8-7
Players Mentioned
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