PROVO, Utah — No. 8 BYU men's volleyball is on the road to face the No. 1 team in the country, the UCLA Bruins, for matches Thursday and Saturday nights to close up the regular season.
About the Cougars
The Cougars come into the week with a record of 20-9 and are 7-5 in MPSF play. BYU split two matches with No. 4 USC last weekend at home.
With MPSF seeding on the line, the Cougars are currently fourth in the conference at 7-5. USC is third at 9-3. Both Stanford and Vanguard are right behind BYU at 6-6.
BYU has the eighth-best hitting percentage in the country at .341 and the 11th-most blocks per set at 2.338.
BYU setter Tyler Herget is averaging 10.37 assists per set this season. That is the fourth-highest average in the country. Herget is also currently No. 6 in all-time assists in BYU program history with 2668 in his career. He needs 122 more to reach Rob Neilson who is No. 5 at 2790. Herget would need to average 41 assists per match in three more matches or 31 assists per match in four more matches to reach No. 5.
About the Bruins
The Bruins are 24-1 this season and are tied for the top spot in the MPSF with Pepperdine at 11-1. Pepperdine is the only team to defeat UCLA this season, 3-2 on April 2. The Bruins have bounced back with four wins in a row since then.
UCLA leads the nation in hitting percentage at .385, is ranked first in the country in assists per set at 12.88, second in kills per set at 13.66 and fourth in aces per set at 1.94. Andrew Rowan is first in assists per set at 11.53. Sean Kelly is seventh in hitting percentage at .403.
Zach Rama leads the team in kills with 286. He has hit .348 on the year, totaled 3.81 kills per set, and 4.21 points per set. His 286 ranks 15th nationally, and his hitting percentage of .348 is the third-highest hitting percentage of any player with at least 265 kills. He has been named to the AVCA National Player of the Year Watch List.
Series Snapshot
BYU leads the all-time series 8-6, but UCLA is 4-1 in matches played in Los Angeles.
Broadcast Information
Both matches this weekend will be available to watch live on Big Ten Plus.