Champions League Fourth Round

This week none of the domestic leagues were nearly as great as the Champions League matches. Champions League is where the top teams in Europe battle it out. You'll see some dream matchups throughout this tournament.

January 11th and 12th

Lokomotiv Novosibirsk from Russia defeated OK Maribor out of Slovenia. Fenerbahce got smoked by Perugia. No big surprises here...

Match of the Week Zaksa vs. Lube

Holy $&#!! This match was absurd (Volleymetrics link for those in the know). Zaksa and Lube are at the top of two of the best leagues in the world, and proved that they are both still strong contenders to win Champions League. The match started off with a pretty insane one handed set by Dave Smith on the first point, and is almost worth watching just for that play. Shows you just how good these players are outside of the skills they "own."

We were blessed to watch a five set battle between some of the best players in the world. We got to see De Cecco set, Robert Landay Simon be the world's scariest middle blocker and Dave Smith, Erik Shoji and company continue their road to defend their Champions League title. This game definitely has an unconventional flow, but still absolutely incredible.

Also, very cool to see BYU alum Gabi Garcia Fernandez starting over Zaytsev for Lube. Shows you that the NCAA can produce some elite level talent.

January 13th

While all these matches were pretty clear cut, they were still pretty cool. Jastrezebski Weigl (Poland) defeated Friedrichshafen (Germany) in three sets. Dinamo Moscow, one of the most exciting teams in the world, beat Ziraat from Turkey. And the Italian side Trentino, defeated Cannes from France.