LOS ANGELES >> With a 9-6 victory over UCLA in the MPSF tournament championship game last month, USC’s men’s water polo team ensured its return to a familiar setting.
The Trojans earned an automatic berth in the NCAA tournament, their 12th consecutive appearance. The trips have often finished with hardware.
From 2008-13, they won a record six consecutive national championships.
The past two Decembers, though, yielded disappointments. The Trojans narrowly lost to UCLA in the NCAA title games — by one goal in 2014 and by three last year.
As USC returns to the national semifinals, facing Harvard on Saturday night in Berkeley with a potential finals rematch with the Bruins looming, coach Jovan Vavic relishes a roster now led by upperclassmen, particularly two juniors from across the Pacific.