Men’s Volleyball | April 01, 2024
LOS ANGELES – The 13th-ranked USC men’s volleyball team (11-11, 2-6 MPSF) hosts sixth-ranked BYU (15-7, 6-4) for its final pair of home regular-season matches this weekend (April 5-6) at Galen Center. Both contests are set for 7 p.m. PT starts and will both be shown live on the USC live stream platform. The Trojans seek to bounce back from three straight losses and are currently fifth in the MPSF standings with four regular season matches left to play.
SENIOR WEEK
Galen Center • Los Angeles, Calif.
No. 13 USC (11-11, 2-6 MPSF) vs. No. 6 BYU (15-7, 6-4 MPSF)
WATCH LIVE: USC Live Stream (Max Kelton)
MATCH #23 • Friday, April 5 • 7 p.m. PT
MATCH #24 • Saturday, April 6 • 7 p.m. PT
SERIES RECORD: USC trails, 25-50 (.333)
LAST MEETING: L 3-1 (March 31, 2023 • Provo, Utah)
STREAK: Lost 2 • LAST 10 MEETINGS: 3-7
OPPONENT WEBSITE: BYUCougars.com
FIRST SERVE (TL;DR)
- USC is led by ninth-year head coach Jeff Nygaard, a three-time Olympian in indoor and beach volleyball and a two-time NCAA champion. On March 6, in a win over Penn State, he recorded his 100th-career win.
- The Trojans are ranked 13th in the AVCA/NVA Coaches Poll. This year’s poll is expanded to include 20 teams for the first time.
- USC has reached double-digit blocks in 10 matches and has had more blocks than its opponent in 14 contests. The Trojans’ 2.47 blocks per set ranks second in the MPSF and is eighth in the nation.
- The Trojans have out-hit their opponent in 12 matches. USC’s .309 hitting percentage ranks fourth in the MPSF and is 12th in the NCAA.
- So. OH Dillon Klein has reached double-digit kills in 17 matches this season and has had 37 double-digit matches in his career. He has also registered five matches with 20 or more kills.
- Freshmen Wesley Smith (MB), Jakobi Lange (OH), Jack Ebertin (OH), Brad Pan (LIB), and transfer Josh Friedman (S) were rated the No. 1 recruiting class by VolleyballMag.com. Smith was the No. 1-ranked individual player.
- Fr. S Caleb Blanchette signed to be a part of the Trojans’ 2025 freshman class in November, but completed high school requirements and reclassified to join USC’s 2024 class in time to compete in the spring.
- Three Trojans rank in the MPSF’s top 15 for blocks led by Sr. MB Kyle Paulson who is third in the league (seventh in the NCAA) at 1.12 blocks per set.
- The 2024 MPSF Tournament will be hosted by USC at Galen Center, April 17-20. Quarterfinal matches take place on Wednesday, April 17, and the championship match will be played on Saturday (April 20) at 6 p.m. PT.
FOLLOW THE TROJANS: Home matches at Galen Center are streamed live for free, with links available at USCTrojans.com, except for matches televised by Pac-12 Networks. Follow USC matches on live stats with links at USCTrojans.com.
LAST TIME OUT: USC fell to eighth-ranked Pepperdine in four sets at Galen Center on Saturday (March 30) after 15 days between matches. Dillon Klein put up his 17th match with double-digit kills this season (the 37th of this career) and led the Trojans with 17 kills and 19.5 points. Caleb Blanchette posted 33 assists and led the team with eight digs to go with a career-best three kills. Kyle Paulson had a match-high six blocks to go with five kills. Noah Roberts set new career marks with .435 hitting on 10 kills and 23 attacks without an error.
POLL POSITION: The Trojans were ranked No. 12 in the AVCA/NVA Preseason Coaches Poll. 2024 marks the expansion of the poll to 20 teams (previously 15). USC is currently ranked No. 13 in the April 1 poll.
BIG BLOCK ENERGY: The Trojans’ 2.47 blocks per set ranks second in the MPSF and is eighth in the nation. USC has produced 10 matches in double-digit blocks and set a season-high mark with 15.5 blocks against No. 4 Ohio State on Jan. 20. During a four-match stretch from Jan. 11-19, USC progressively finished with a higher block total; and had 12.5 against Harvard (Jan. 11), 13.0 against Lincoln Memorial (Jan. 13); and then put up 15.0 against Ball State (Jan. 19) before the 15.5 against the Buckeyes. In all, USC has out-blocked its opponent 14 times this spring. In one other match (vs. UC Irvine, Feb. 10) the Trojans had the same block total as the Anteaters (13.0).
HIT ‘EM HIGH: USC has hit better than its opponent in 12 contests. In fact, USC has hit better than .300 in 12 matches and had a season-high .614 hitting percentage in a win over Morehouse College (Jan. 6). The Trojans have also hit .400 or better six times and have recorded two matches over the .500 mark. USC’s .309 hittingranks fourth in the MPSF and is 12th nationally.
First appeared on usctrojans.com