IRVINE, Calif. — The No. 5 BYU men's volleyball team is set to face No. 2 UC Irvine on Wednesday, Jan. 22 and Friday, Jan. 24 in the Bren Events Center in Irvine, California this week, the first top-five matchup of the 2025 NCAA men's volleyball season.
COUGARS (6-0)
BYU is coming off a sweep against No. 6 Ball State on the road in two five-set matches. BYU’s reverse sweep on Friday was the first of of its kind this NCAA men’s volleyball season. Keoni Thiim led the Cougars in kills with 42 and Niko Hales led with 11 blocks over the weekend. Senior transfer Thiim has recorded double-digit kills in all six of BYU's matches this season, totaling 103 kills as the top leader in the NCAA.
A 6-0 record is BYU’s best start to a season since 2020 when the Cougars won their first 16 matches in a row.
ANTEATERS (3-0)
No. 2 UC Irvine is 3-0 after sweeping Menlo, Tusculum and Missouri S&T at the UC Santa Barbara ASICS Invitational. The Anteaters, who moved up one spot in the national polls this week, haven't played since Jan. 11.
Reigning AVCA National Player of the Year and Big West Player of the Year, Hilir Henno won the first Big West Offensive Player of the Week award after averaging 4.11 kills and hit .542 in Santa Barbara. The outside hitter had just five errors in 59 swings with 37 kills during the Invitational.
COUGARS VS. ANTEATERS
This week's top-five matchup features two undefeated teams. Most recently, BYU hosted UC Irvine in the Smith Fieldhouse in 2024 and dropped two matches, falling 3-1 and 3-2.
In the preseason, the Cougars competed in a scrimmage against UC Irvine on Nov. 16, 2024 and fell to the Anteaters 3-1 in St. George, Utah. The teams competed at Snow Canyon HS in front of a packed crowd.
BROADCAST INFO
- Wednesday, Jan. 22 at 6 p.m. PT on ESPN+
- Friday, Jan. 24 at 6 p.m. PT on ESPN+