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Men’s water polo to face Cal in MPSF tournament with focus on defense

Senior defender Chancellor Ramirez and the No. 2 UCLA men’s water polo team will get to face top-five competition at home this weekend for the first – and last – time all year, starting with No. 3 California, in the critical Mountain Pacific Sports Federation championship tournament. (Jintak Han/Assistant Sports editor)

By Ishan Ayyalasomayajula

Nov. 17, 2016 11:35 p.m.

As the final buzzer sounded at Uytengsu Aquatics Center last weekend, there was disappointment on the faces of the Bruins. Coach Adam Wright said after the game that the loss to the Trojans showed that the team that had reeled off of 57 straight wins had plenty to work on.

This weekend at the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation championship tournament, the No. 2 UCLA men’s water polo team (24-1, 2-1 MPSF) will have a chance to rebound from its first loss in nearly two calendar years with a prime-time slot against No. 3 California.

The defeat has not shaken the team’s resolve or belief in its philosophy – in fact the loss seems to have re-energized the players.

“We’ve reviewed video on areas we can improve,” said senior defender Chancellor Ramirez. “We focused on every detail of our (defensive) system and we came into the week motivated and ready to learn from last week’s mistakes.”

UCLA lacked in a key facet – its power-play defense. The usually stringent Bruin squad allowed the Trojans to convert five of nine power-play opportunities.

“We gave up three post goals and we missed several shot blocks last week, and that’s the difference in the game,” said coach Adam Wright. “USC took advantage of our inabilities to execute when we’re down a person. We’ve spent a lot of time this week on it. If we play it the right way, we have the best five-man (defense) in the country.”

[Related: UCLA loss to USC sends ripples through water polo world]

The defense will have to step up this weekend if UCLA hopes to contain the offensive juggernaut that is No. 3 California. The Bears are led by the high-flying duo of attackers Johnny Hooper and Luca Cupido, who have combined for 80 scores this season.

“Cal is a very counter-oriented team,” said senior attacker Patrick Fellner. “If we have a well-balanced attack, they won’t have (chances) to counterattack and (they will) suffer greatly.”

The Bears’ offense averages more than 14 goals a game, the production in large part due to its fast pace of play and array of playmakers in the pool.

“They have so many dynamic, explosive players,” Wright said. “They’re really tough to defend and as far as pure attacking players, they probably have the most in the country. They play a fast-paced game, and we know when we play Cal, we’ll have our hands full defensively.”

[Related: No. 1 men’s water polo buoyed by defense in close win at No. 2 Cal]

Because six teams left the MPSF last year and Penn St. Behrend joined, the tournament format is half-round-robin. The winner of the UCLA-Cal game Friday will go straight to the MPSF championship game Sunday. USC, Stanford and Penn St. Behrend will all play each other, and the team with the best record at the end of it all gains a ticket to the MPSF finals.

The winner of the MPSF championship will get an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament the week after Thanksgiving.

UCLA understands the magnitude of this weekend’s matches – not only is an entry into the NCAA Tournament at stake, but also a chance to reaffirm its place at the top of collegiate water polo.

“We’re more motivated than ever to get back on top and prove that we are a great team,” said junior utility player Alex Roelse. “The focus is there, everybody is hungry to do better than the last game, nobody wants (to lose) again.”

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Ishan Ayyalasomayajula | Alumnus
Ayyalasomayajula joined the Bruin as a freshman in 2015 and contributed until 2016. He spent time on the men's water polo and women's tennis beats.
Ayyalasomayajula joined the Bruin as a freshman in 2015 and contributed until 2016. He spent time on the men's water polo and women's tennis beats.
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