There are measurables. Black and white. The facts, sometimes harsh, but nonetheless true.

Joe Worsley is 73 inches tall. USA Volleyball confirmed that last month during the national team open tryouts that drew more than 80 to the American Sports Center in Anaheim, Calif.

The Hawaii senior setter was one of 14 at his position, a position where being 6-foot-1 normally means going to another line: libero.

But his younger brother, Gage, was already there, accompanied by a pedigree that included being the libero for the 2017 U.S. junior national team.

That the siblings were together and could be playing on the same court — as they did for years on the beach and in club, and two in high school — was the whole point of being in different lines last month. It was the whole point during Joe Worsley’s college recruiting process, where he knew he was a Division I setter — when most coaches doubted it — and waiting to be on the same team as Gage.

“I know I could have been a libero anywhere else,” Joe Worsley said as Hawaii prepared to open the season tonight with an exhibition against defending Canadian champion British Columbia. “I wasn’t satisfied with that. I usually sugar-coat it, but … so many guys from my class who were setters were being recruited over me. That was a motivation for me because I felt I had the potential to play at this level.

“I understand why other coaches felt that way about me and my position. I respect that. When it came down to it, I made the best decision for me. I’m very, very excited for this season, getting to play with this group of guys and, specifically the (senior) class that I came in with. And to be here with my brother, I’m excited to do this together with him.”

The Worsleys are scheduled to start against the Thunderbirds, the first start of Gage’s Warriors career. He spent last season as a backup to senior Tui Tuileta and was used as a serving/defensive specialist.

That his older brother, who is about an inch shorter, is setting for the third-ranked team in the country comes as no surprise to Gage.

“He’s impressive in what he does, on and off the court,” Gage said. “He’s a leader, the glue to our team. Nothing he does surprises me, other than he puts up with me.

“I know what he’s capable of. He is showing people what he can do, that you can’t give up on yourself, and that’s pushed him to be better. This is what he loves and he’s one of the best.”

Both got a taste of the Stan Sheriff Center when their father, Roger, was the technical adviser for the Rainbow Wahine in 2000 and the Warriors in 2001.

“I have very few memories of us living here, but I do remember being in the arena when I was like 3 or 4,” Joe said. “This is absolutely the best place to play volleyball — the support, the fan base. I tell anyone who will listen that. I tell recruits that if they decide to play anywhere else, they’ve made the wrong decision.”

What Worsley enjoys most about setting “is that everything is so mental,” the psychology major said. “The more you develop your mental side the more it becomes instinct. At some point, the game becomes instinctual. If you have to think about a play, it’s already past — the game moves that fast.

“What my dad has ingrained in me is to be physical and aggressive. When he coached us, he wanted our teams to be aggressive, and that’s how he developed me as a setter. Blocking, dumping … I want to make sure the other team has to think about me, where I am, what I’m doing. It helps to open up things for the other guys on the team.”

Worsley, named a second-team All-American last season, has been a setter almost exclusively since age 9. When he made the U.S. boys youth national team in 2015 it was as a libero “after hopping in there when the coaches said they wanted to look at me there (during the tryouts),” he said.

Hawaii was the only major program that recruited Worsley as a setter. During his high school and club career, he helped Campolindo (Calif.) High to four sectional and three regional titles, and won two (club) junior national championships for Pacific Rim Volleyball Academy, the club his father co-founded.

Winning at a high level “usually correlates to winning at the next level,” Hawaii coach Charlie Wade said. “This season, we’re expecting Joe to be Joe. And I think you’ll see an even better version of Joe.

“I think he’ll have a lot of fun because we have a lot of guys on the floor who play fast, and that fits his style of setting.

“Pound for pound, he’s probably the best player in all of college volleyball. I’m glad he’s on our team.”

That was the other measurable at the tryout. Worsley weighed in at 184.