The Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Championships are set to pit the top two men's gymnastics teams in the country against each other for the second time this season on Saturday, April 8, in Berkeley, CA.

No. 1-ranked Oklahoma is seeking its six straight conference title, while No. 2 Stanford is looking to supplant the Sooners atop the podium for the first time since 2011. In their previous meeting this season, OU posted a team score of 432.300 to edge Stanford by less than 0.3 of of point on March 4 in Palo Alto, CA.

Watch the 2017 MPSF Championships LIVE on FloGymnastics on Saturday, April 8

Unlike the women's ranks, the NCAA men's postseason utilizes an international scoring system and advances teams to the NCAA Championships straight from their conference championships. A year ago, each of the MPSF's four teams, including Air Force and California, moved on to the NCAA Championships, where Stanford finished runner-up and Oklahoma claimed its second straight title.

While the two MPSF blue bloods are once again the favorites this weekend, the 10th-ranked Falcons and No. 11 Cal Bears will be looking to maintain their postseason credentials with big performances. 

Oklahoma

RANKING: 1

Best Event: Vault (ranked first)
The Sooners are the defending NCAA champions and enter the conference championships ranked first on every event except for floor exercise. They have been consistent on vault, hitting at least a 14.0 on all vaults except four this season. Tanner Justus is the top-ranked gymnast in the country with a four-score average of 15.000. He has scored over a 15.0 three times this season to lead the Sooners.



Matt Wenske has also been a standout for the Sooners with two scores over 15.0 this season.

Check out freshman Matt Wesnke's HUGE 15.050! #Sooners are FIRED UP! @FOXSportsOK #LetItR3ign pic.twitter.com/Pm1a9su0JN

— Oklahoma Men's Gym (@OU_MGymnastics) March 19, 2017

Gymnast to Watch: Yul Moldauer
Moldauer is ranked second in the all-around and ranks first on floor, still rings, and parallel bars. He posted a season-best 87.600 in the all-around against Iowa and Minnesota on Feb. 10. He posted the top floor score in the country on March 11 with a huge 15.550. Moldauer missed the head-to-head matchup against Stanford on March 4, as he was competing on the international stage at the American Cup, which he won.


 

Stanford

RANKING: 2

Best Event: Floor (ranked first)
The Cardinal enter the meet as the top-ranked team on floor exercise. Stanford has scored at least a 71.850 in six meets this season. Taylor Seaton has been consistent for the Cardinal this season, scoring a 14.000 or better in six of eight meets. He ranks sixth in the country on floor and eighth on vault. Akash Modi has been the other top floor worker for Stanford, ranking second in the country behind Moldauer, his U.S. men's national team teammate. Modi posted a season-best 15.250 last week against California in the final regular-season meet of the season.

Gymnast to Watch: Akash Modi
Like Moldauer, Modi missed the regular-season meeting between Oklahoma and Stanford while competing at the American Cup. The Cardinal came up just short with a 432.050, which is Stanford's season best by 10 points. Modi has been a stellar and consistent all-around performer with four scores this season better than 87.0. He ranks second on parallel bars and floor exercise. He has posted back-to-back scores over 15.0 on parallel bars in each of the past two meets.

Air Force

RANKING: 10

Best Event: Still Rings (ranked seventh)
The Falcons have had a bit of an up-and-down season this year but have been strong on still rings. They have posted at least a 66.100 on seven occasions this season. Air Force is led by Tim Wang, who is ranked seventh in the country on rings. Wang has competed on rings in all but one meet this season. He opened the season with a huge 15.200 on the event and has scored at least 13.8 nine times this season.

Gymnast to Watch: Tim Wang
Wang isn't just strong on the rings--he is the fifth-ranked all-arounder in the country and is ranked fifth on pommel horse and is tied for seventh on vault. Pommel horse is traditionally one of the toughest events on the men's side. Wang has been incredibly consistent on the event, scoring at least a 14.0 in 12 meets this season. He posted a season-best 14.900 on Feb. 4 against Stanford. He has hit the 14.0 mark on vault 10 times this year with a season-high 14.900 on March 10.

California

RANKING: 11

Best Event: High Bar, Floor Exercise (ranked sixth on both)
The Bears have struggled with consistency this season but have flashed strong performances on both high bar and floor exercise. Aaron Mah has scored well on both events this season but especially on floor exercise, where he ranks fifth in the country. Yordan Aleksandrov has been the top performer on the high bar for the Golden Bears. He is ranked 14th in the country on the event and has posted at least a 13.700 on six occasions. His season-best performance came on Feb. 11 when he scored a season-high 14.800.

Gymnast to Watch: Aaron Mah
Mah has competed in the all-around in eight of nine meets this season and has a total of 80.500 in seven of those meets. He has shown consistency on vault, where he has scored no lower than 13.900 all season. Mah is particularly impressively on floor, where he has posted at least a 14.0 in all but two meets this season. His best performance came at the Cal Benefit Cup on March 4, when he posted a 14.850 to win the event.

How To Watch

ON TV: Now available on Roku and Apple TV 4
STREAMING: Available on FloGymnastics.com
Must be a FloPRO subscriber. A yearly FloPRO subscription provides access to ALL FloSports sites. SIGN UP HERE.