BYU men's volleyball: Cougars face final set

PROVO — The second-ranked BYU men's volleyball team heads into the final weekend of regular-season matches in a three-way tie atop the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation standings, eyeing the coveted top seed in the MPSF tournament.

The Cougars (21-4 overall, 16-4 MPSF) finish by playing host to 10th-ranked Southern California (13-13, 10-10 MPSF) tonight and Saturday in a pair of 7 p.m. Smith Fieldhouse matches.

BYU is tied with third-ranked Cal State Northridge (21-5, 16-4) and fourth-ranked Long Beach State (21-5, 16-4 MPSF). The three trail once-beaten Penn State in this week's CBS C/AVCA Top 15 coaches poll.

BYU has beaten USC in their last 12 meetings. The last Trojan triumph came in February 2001 in Los Angeles; the last USC victory in Provo dates back to 1996.

Before Saturday's regular-season finale, the Cougars will honor their five seniors — opposite Jonathan Charette, setter Brian Congelliere, outside hitter Ivan Perez, and middle blockers Russell Holmes and Trent Sorensen.

But the Cougars are far from finished, with the postseason ahead and at least one home MPSF tournament match — and hopefully two.

BYU is guaranteed at least a No. 3 seed in the tournament and a home MPSF quarterfinal match next week. However, the Cougars would rather win the No. 1 seed, which includes a quarterfinal bye and hosting rights to the tournament semifinals and title match.

Having home court is seen as crucial, since the tourney champion receives the MPSF's automatic NCAA Final Four berth.

In head-to-head competition this year, BYU is 2-0 vs. CSUN and 0-2 vs. LBSU, meaning the Cougars hold a tiebreaker advantage over the former but not the latter.

Two wins against USC, and the Cougars are guaranteed a No. 2 seed. Two wins and a Long Beach State loss, and BYU wins the No. 1 seed and the MPSF hosting privileges.

And an LBSU loss is not out of the question, as the 49ers play their final two on the road, including Saturday's finale at third-ranked CS Northridge, which won at Long Beach State earlier this year.

Long Beach State holds the most tiebreaker advantages — two wins this weekend and the 49ers earn the No. 1 seed, no matter the other outcomes.

Also, if all three teams finish with five league losses, LBSU still takes the top seed, either by head-to-head results or by having the highest percentage of games won between the three trio.

Northridge finishes with two home matches — tonight against UC San Diego and Saturday in the aforementioned finale against LBSU, with the Matadors claiming the earlier meeting in Long Beach.

Just like the Cougars, the Matadors are assured a No. 2 seed with two victories. And two wins and a BYU loss give CSUN the regular-season title outright along with the No. 1 seed.

---

E-mail: taylor@desnews.com