Rest and relaxation is necessary to compete against top-ranked teams.

Coming off a bye week, No. 1 UCLA men’s water polo (18-1, 2-1 MPSF) will face reigning national champions No. 7 California (11-8, 1-2) at Spieker Aquatics Complex in Berkeley on Saturday before traveling to Palo Alto, California, to attempt to avenge its sole loss of the season against No. 2 Stanford (15-2, 2-1).

The Bruins’ week of rest came at a crucial juncture in their season. Before the week-long break, UCLA claimed a 13-10 victory over No. 2 USC on Oct. 19. Following the rivalry battle, No. 10 UC Davis went the distance with UCLA the next day, knotting the game at 11-11 before the Aggies’ upset effort faltered in overtime.

Freshman attacker Ryder Dodd scored eight goals across both contests. Despite his offensive prowess through the stretch, Dodd said the defensive effort of graduate student goalkeeper Garret Griggs, who tallied 22 saves against the Trojans and Aggies, was critical to keep the Bruins in the game against both teams.

“He was incredible coming from that (match against USC) and then having to go into another good opponent,” Dodd said. “He’s been incredible all year for us, and we’re just really proud of him and what he’s still got in the cage.”

Griggs – a four-time UCLA Athletic Director’s Honor Roll recipient – said the team planned to use the week away from the pool to work on academics and other priorities.

“Just taking some extra time to really focus on the little things, focusing on our schoolwork that we have,” Griggs said. “Just take care of other responsibilities and then be able to place all of our focus on the pool when we come here.”

The Golden Bears will enter Saturday’s match with a losing conference record and two defeats at the hands of the Bruins already this season. However, Cal will carry some momentum after winning a nail-biter over Stanford 13-11 at home to knock the Cardinal off their spot as the No. 1 team in the nation.

Cal coach Kirk Everist’s squad remains a threat in the conference despite losing three-time Cutino Award winner Nikolaos Papanikolaou as Cal has retained many other pieces of the team that defeated the Bruins last year to secure a three-peat at the NCAA Championships.

Meanwhile, Stanford has proved itself as one of the most dominant teams in the country, handing UCLA its only regular season loss in nearly two years in a close affair in Westwood nearly a month ago.

Led by driver Riley Pittman – who paces the team in goals and assists – the Cardinal remain one of the strongest teams in the conference even after the loss to the Golden Bears put the Bruins back atop national rankings.

For coach Adam Wright, though, the Bruins’ recent marginal victories showed the team needed to refine their consistency, especially on defense, over their bye week.

“We got to be able to have everybody in the water. We’ve still yet to play a game this year with our full roster,” Wright said. “So, for me, I’m excited, because we do have a chunk of time to put in some work.”

The Bruins will face the Golden Bears on Saturday at 1 p.m. and the Cardinal on Sunday at 1 p.m.