Forget all the other “rivalries” the UCLA
men’s volleyball team has with teams such as Hawai’i
and Brigham Young University.
The Bruins want to win tonight’s game against the Trojans
more than anything.
This is the real thing.
UCLA (5-4, 1-2 MPSF) will be coming out in full force tonight in
hopes of extending its 12-match winning streak against crosstown
foe USC (4-4, 3-2) in USC’s North Gym.
The No. 5 Bruins are coming off an emotionally draining two-game
split against the previously undefeated BYU Cougars but have moved
on and set their sights on the No. 13 Trojans.
“They’re gonna come out as always, fired up,”
redshirt senior setter Dennis Gonzalez said. “It’s
never been really easy for us. (In) rally scoring volleyball,
anything can happen. I’m confident that we’re gonna be
well prepared, but it won’t be easy (to beat
them).”
Leading the Trojan offense are outside hitters Joao Grangeiro
and Juan Figueroa. The Bruin attackers stand at least 4 inches
taller than the Trojan power hitters, but the 6-foot-tall Grangeiro
and 6-foot-1 Figueroa easily make up for their lack of height.
“(The Trojans) have really quick explosive spikers,”
UCLA coach Al Scates said. “The Brazilian (Grangeiro) is very
explosive ““ quick to hit the ball.”
Figueroa leads USC with 4.64 kills per game this season, while
Grangeiro averages 4.16, according to USCTrojans.com. Freshman
opposite C.J. Schellenberg has also been a core contributor,
putting down 3.29 kills per game. Commanding USC’s balanced
attack is Jimmy Killian, the highly touted sophomore setter.
When hosting the SAC tournament back in November, the Bruins
swept the Trojans 30-21, 30-25, 30-19. In the middle of the match,
UCLA junior outside hitter Paul George spiked a ball into
Killian’s face, and Killian had to leave the match because of
blurred vision. USC backup setter Gio Altamura came into the match
for Killian, but the offensive results were not the same, Scates
said.
“It was quite a difference between Killian and the backup
setter,” Scates said. “He was a good high school setter
and an experienced college setter.”
“Gio came in ““ he’s a great setter
also,” Gonzalez said. “But if (Killian’s) been
running their offense till now, then that might be an aspect of the
game that they’re gonna be more consistent in.”
In addition to having Killian back in the USC lineup, a lot has
changed since the November preseason matchup.
Starting Trojan middle blocker Andrew Vernon was out during the
SAC tournament because of an injury, and the Bruins have since lost
redshirt freshman middle blocker Jamie Diefenbach to a torn
meniscus. Before his injury, Diefenbach led the team in hitting
efficiency and blocks per game.
“(The USC) blocking will be better and we’ll see how
our blocking is,” Scates said. “Others will have to
pick it up. They’ll be a stronger team than we saw in the
Men’s Gym.”
The last time the UCLA men’s volleyball team lost to USC
was on Feb. 4, 2000. The Bruins certainly don’t want to end
that streak anytime soon.
“It’s USC,” George said. “I don’t
care how many times we’ve beaten them; you never want to lose
to your rival.”