Home, sweet home.
That’s where the men’s volleyball team will be making itself comfortable for the next three weeks, after having had to pack and unpack suitcases for the past three.
The Bruins will be playing in Pauley Pavilion for the first time since Nov. 29, when they held their annual alumni match. But this time around, the competition will be much stiffer as No. 5 Pepperdine rolls into town.
The Bruins, who are tied for fifth with the Waves in the AVCA poll, look forward to playing at home nonetheless, and hope to improve their 1-3 conference record in their own domain.
“It’s nice to be at home,” coach Al Scates said. “We have a great record at home throughout the years.”
Since 1970, UCLA has dominated in Pauley Pavilion, amassing a 361-59 win-loss record overall.
The Bruins need to capitalize on the home-court advantage, and will get six chances to fortify their conference record at home starting tonight.
“The fans are going to be on our side this time,” outside hitter Paul George said. “It’s been a long time since we’ve gone into Pauley to practice, play ““ to just see the court. It’ll be good to get in there early so we can get accustomed to playing at home.”
“It’s tough to start off the season playing away the whole time, and so it’s going to be nice to have a home court advantage for the first time,” libero Tony Ker said. “I know a lot of friends and family are gonna come out and watch so that’s gonna be exciting to play out there.”
A supportive crowd was one of the many things missing when UCLA took on BYU, UCSB and Northridge in the past few weeks. But it was also the smaller comforts that made the Bruins long to be back home.
“Some of those trips were a little bit long,” said George, who flew with the team to Utah on a Thursday and returned Sunday. “The BYU trip was long; it was a long time to be away. You definitely miss your friends and seeing them in school. You say, “˜I wanna get back, I’m tired, I wanna sleep in my own bed.’ The day trips (to UCSB and Northridge), you just really miss the support and the fans and those people that you know. You miss the fans for sure.”
Now George and the rest of the UCLA squad can enjoy the spoils of being at home, supported by their many fans.
However, the Bruins may need a bit more than a rowdy crowd on their side to tame the Waves. Pepperdine’s Paul Carroll boasts 6.38 kills per game along with one ace per game. UCLA must thus counter by serving and passing tough, Scates and Ker both noted.
But the Bruins are ready for this potential tsunami and hope to weather it with the momentum from last week’s win over Northridge.
“It was good to finally get a “˜W,'” George said. “Just getting that first win under your belt, you just say, “˜Okay, we can do this.’ We know how to play. We can play at that level. We have lots of momentum going into this week. (This week) should bring out a couple more victories and we should be on our way.”
O’MALLEY BACK: Opposite Sean O’Malley, who fractured his left wrist in fall training, participated in his first full practice, which included blocking, Monday. Scates expects him to suit up against the Waves tonight.
“He looked very good and he was pain-free,” Scates said. “We didn’t want him to block until (Monday). In fact, he could have blocked a week ago, but we kept him off for an extra week as a precaution.”
FREEBIES: Basketball fans can also join in on the fun this weekend. While volleyball matches are always free for students with a valid BruinCard, tonight’s admission for the Pepperdine game or Saturday’s match against USC is free for anyone who brings in their ticket stub from last week’s men’s basketball games against Arizona State or Arizona.