No. 1 USC men’s water polo put its depth on display in a 22-13 win against No. 10 UC Santa Barbara on Saturday at Uytengsu Aquatics Center. The Trojans’ dominating control of the ball throughout the game gave them time to create multiple different scoring opportunities, allowing 14 players the chance to find the back of the net.

After beating two top-four teams in the nation last weekend, the Trojans (18-2, 4-1 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation) made playing a top-10 team look easy, holding the lead for the entire duration of the game. USC presented not just an unrelenting offensive front to the Gauchos (16-13, 2-2 Big West), but a unified one.

On the attack, the Trojans’ ball movement was tight and controlled, allowing USC to get clear looks at shots with a 65% shooting efficiency and scoring contributions from across the lineup. Alternatively, the Gauchos’ struggle against the Trojans’ defense forced them to take much more difficult shots, leaving UCSB scoring on only 39% of attempts.

Junior driver Robert López Duart affirmed his position as one of the Trojans’ most dangerous offensive weapons with a hat trick, adding to his lead as the highest goal scorer on the team and tallying his 14th multi-goal game this season.

Senior Driver Jack Vort recorded a hat trick as well, netting the first two goals in the third quarter within 38 seconds of each other. After his first scoreless game of the season last Sunday, senior driver Mihailo Vukazić was back in regular form, contributing two goals to the Trojans’ 22.

Aside from the goalies, most Trojans in the pool had a decent look at a goal over the course of the game. Freshmen drivers Gavin Conant and Efe Naipoglu, as well as freshman 2-meter Strahinja Krstić, notched two goals each. Junior Driver Zach Bettino started the fourth quarter with a goal and led the team in assists with three.

Sophomore utility Ben Mirisch, alongside sophomore drivers Chase Landa and Taj Whitehead, continued the fourth quarter scoring with a goal each. Junior and senior utilities Stefan Branković and Andrej Grgurevic each found the back of the net, as did senior driver Evan Ausmus and redshirt senior 2-meter Jack Martin.

Though redshirt senior driver Brock Zamanian’s six-goal heroics improved the Gauchos’ score, they were unable to overtake the Trojan defense and strong goaltending. Redshirt sophomore starting goalkeeper Charles Mills had seven saves on the day, splitting time with redshirt junior goalie Bernardo Herzer and sophomore goalie Nemo Pavoggi, who recorded two saves each.

UCSB’s defensive struggles were evident in their desperate attempts to stop the Trojan offense, which gave the Trojans multiple opportunities to shoot from 2 and 5 meters, converting on all but one penalty shot. The Trojans picked up most of their exclusions in the second half of the game, but still managed to score 13 goals, offsetting any potential damage from the Gauchos’ offense.

The win improves the Trojans’ record against the Gauchos to 50-3. In the Trojans’ most recent matchup with UCSB on Aug. 30, the Gauchos were within one point of USC at multiple moments of the game. On Saturday, however, there was not a moment during the matchup where Trojan fans felt any sense of uncertainty in a USC victory.

USC will face No. 2 UCLA (21-1, 4-1) on Nov. 15 at Uytengsu Aquatic Center in their final game of the regular season, with major implications for the MPSF playoff picture. After USC upset the Bruins on Oct. 18, another Trojan victory would seal their number-one ranking heading into the playoffs, but a loss would likely hand the top ranking to their crosstown rival.