USC men’s water polo has cruised to dominant victories and won tightly ranked competitions during its undefeated start to the season. This weekend, however, the Trojans will enter a tournament where almost every opponent is among the nation’s best.

No. 2 USC (7-0) will travel to Stanford for the Overnght MPSF Invitational, which runs Friday through Sunday at Avery Aquatic Center. The second-seeded Trojans will open against the No. 16 California Baptist University (9-1), which is seeded 15th, at 2 p.m. on Friday.

The 16-team field includes 15 programs ranked in the latest national top-20 Division I list from CWPA. The exception, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges (1-5), sits atop the Division III poll. USC will play four games in three days, including two Saturday, with each opponent after CBU determined by the Trojans’ results.

This tournament will give USC its clearest early-season measurement after it finished third at the 2025 invitational and ended the season at No. 2 after losing to No. 1 UCLA in the 2025 NCAA championships. 

Ranked opponents narrow USC’s advantage

USC has yet to lose regardless of its opponents’ rankings, but the margin of its victories has shifted against stronger competition.

The Trojans averaged 29 goals while allowing an average of seven goals across their two games against McKendree University, which is outside the top 20 list, and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, which sits as No. 1 in the Division III poll. The Trojans won the pair of games at 30-5 and 28-9, respectively.

Their five victories against ranked teams have been less lopsided, outscoring ranked opponents 107-59, averaging 21.4 goals scored and 11.8 allowed. The Trojans’ average margin of victory dropped from 22 goals against unranked opponents to 9.6 against ranked competition.

Despite the smaller margin, decisive victories over No. 14 UC Santa Barbara and No. 13 UC Irvine show the Trojans can dominate top competition. USC’s narrowest result came against No. 11 Pepperdine, which featured competitive gameplay until the Trojans came out on top 17-14. 

The Trojans will enter the invitational following a 24-15 victory over UC Irvine, which marked their fifth game with at least 20 goals this season. Last Saturday, they opened with five consecutive goals before scoring eight in the third quarter to pull away.

Fast starts have helped USC control games before opponents can settle in. The Trojans have established an average 6-2 advantage in the first quarter and have led in scoring after the opening period.

Maintaining early control will become more important during a tournament in which one slow stretch can move a team out of championship contention. 

Scoring depth prepares USC for four-game weekend

USC’s depth could be its greatest advantage as the team prepares for a loaded weekend.

This season, 18 Trojan field players have already scored this season, and 13 have recorded at least five goals. Against UC Irvine, 12 different players found the net, including seven multi-goal scorers.

Senior driver Robert López Duart and sophomore driver Apostolos Georgaras are tied at the top of  team depth with 34 points, though they reached the summit in different ways. López Duart has 23 goals and 11 assists, while Georgaras has balanced 15 goals with a team-high 19 assists.

Sophomore driver Efe Naipoglu sits only one point behind them with 15 goals and 18 assists, while sophomore 2-meter Strahinja Krstić  serves as USC’s leading goal scorer with 27 goals.

The four players are separated by only six points, giving opposing defenses multiple threats to contain. That distribution should also allow Head Coach Marko Pintaric to rotate his lineup without losing the Trojans’ offensive production during their demanding schedule.

CBU presents exclusion challenge

Although the Lancers are the second-lowest seed on USC’s side of the bracket, they enter Friday on an eight-game winning streak.

Their lone loss was a 16-14 defeat against No. 18 Brown University on opening day. CBU responded the following morning by defeating Harvard University 16-15 and has not lost since.

Junior attacker Andrea Nuzzo holds the team best of 46 points thanks to 19 goals and 27 assists. Junior center Rafa Martinez boasts a team-high 23 goals and has drawn 31 exclusions, making USC’s defensive discipline around the cage a point of interest.

The Trojans have been excluded 80 times through seven games — an average of more than 11 per match — committing a season-high 16 exclusions against UC Irvine. Giving CBU repeated opportunities with an extra attacker could allow the opposition to keep the opening-round game closer than the seeds might suggest.

USC is 15-0 all-time against the Lancers, but the teams’ most recent meeting showed that the matchup is not always comfortable: The Trojans allowed the first three goals of their 2024 NCAA quarterfinal before recovering for a 17-13 victory.

Bracket leaves little room for error

A Friday victory would put USC in Saturday’s 10:40 a.m. matchup against the winner of the match between No. 8 Princeton University and No. 11 San Jose State University.

The Trojans’ second Saturday opponent would come from a section of the bracket containing No. 3 Stanford, No. 17 Santa Clara University, No. 6 Long Beach State and No. 14 UC Santa Barbara. USC has already defeated Long Beach State and UC Santa Barbara this season, but neither game came during a doubleheader, which is how Saturday will play out.

Top-seeded No. 1 UCLA and No. 4 University of California occupy the opposite side of the bracket, meaning USC could encounter either program Sunday if it advances into the top placement games.

Last season, California handed USC its first loss in the invitational semifinals, taking down the Trojans 13-11. USC recovered the next day with a 14-12 overtime victory against Stanford to secure third place.

Placement games will take place Sunday, with the championship scheduled for 2 p.m. USC’s opening game against CBU begins at 2 p.m. on Friday at Avery Aquatic Center.