The MPSF Tournament got going last week with the quarterfinals round as now the week turns and the last four remaining get ready to duke it out in the MPSF Semifinals. As we did last week with a pre-tournament preview and a look into the quarterfinals, we take a deep-dive into the next round that will put us one match closer to an automatic NCAA Tournament bid.
SCHEDULE:
*Teams will reseed following the quarterfinals round
MPSF Quarterfinals (at higher seed)
Saturday, April 14
No. 7 Stanford at No. 2 UCLA (3-0 UCLA)
No. 6 USC at No. 3 Pepperdine (3-1 USC)
No. 5 Grand Canyon at No. 4 Concordia Irvine (3-0 Concordia)
No. 7 Stanford at No. 2 UCLA (3-0 UCLA)
No. 6 USC at No. 3 Pepperdine (3-1 USC)
No. 5 Grand Canyon at No. 4 Concordia Irvine (3-0 Concordia)
MIVA Semifinals (Played in Provo, Utah at BYU)
Thursday, April 19
Semifinal #1: No. 4 Concordia Irvine vs. No. 2 UCLA
Semifinal #2: No. 6 USC at No. 1 BYU
MIVA Championship (Played in Provo, Utah at BYU)
Saturday, April 21
SEMIFINALS BREAKDOWN:
4-seed/#14 Concordia Irvine (16-14, 5-7) vs. 2-seed/#3 UCLA (23-6, 9-3)
- Season series: UCLA, 2-0 (UCLA 3-0 at Concordia; UCLA 3-0 vs. Concordia)
- UCLA handled Concordia Irvine well this season, winning every set while allowing the Eagles to reach the 20-point plateau in just two of the games. Not only did the Bruins click offensively in both and hit .396 and .400, but the numbers for Concordia Irvine in some stats that would slow it down were not good – just seven blocks and two aces combined for the two matches. They’ll need to find more to give themselves a chance in this one, while they’ll also have to fend off the aggressive UCLA serve that trades a rash of serve errors to provide pressure and garner aces, such as the 18 total they got in the first two meetings.
6-seed/#19 USC (8-19, 3-9) at 1-seed/#2 BYU (20-6, 10-2)
- Season series: BYU, 2-0 (BYU 3-1 at USC; BYU 3-1 vs. USC)
- Despite the record and being the 6-seed, USC hasn’t been a pushover all season. They’ve played teams close but have found an inability to make that final push – although maybe after downing Pepperdine they’ve figured it out. That was the case in both meetings this year as BYU won in four in both, but USC scored 23 or more in six sets. The BYU block – which ranks #1 during MPSF play – has been an advantage for the Cougars in the previous two (19-8) over USC, who ranks sixth. Maybe the biggest difference was the serve, as BYU totaled 15 aces vs. six for USC – which could explain the edge in hitting percentage for the Cougars. Knowing that BYU should own the block again, serving aggressively and serve receive will be the key for both sides.
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