The last time the UCLA men’s tennis team won a national
championship was 1984. Ronald Reagan was in the White House, the
Detroit Tigers won the World Series, and UCLA sophomore Chris Lam
was one year old.
Flash forward to 2003. We now have our second Bush in the White
House, the Tigers are 9-28, and Lam has grown up to become
UCLA’s No. 4 singles player.
Now the No. 5 Bruins (22-3) have another chance. They open play
Saturday in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament in Athens, Ga.
against No. 25 Oklahoma State (18-4) at 9 a.m. ET.
Things have certainly changed since 1984, but the Bruins still
haven’t been able to get over that final hump.
“We’d definitely like to win it, but I don’t
think that’s adding any extra pressure,” UCLA head
coach Billy Martin said. “It is what it is, and we’re
certainly trying to break the drought. But it’s such a
difficult thing to do.”
If Martin’s words appear conservative it’s because
his Bruins have been here before. Last year they lost to Georgia in
the semifinals as the tournament’s No. 4 seed. In fact, the
Bruins have been defeated in the championship match four times
since 1984. Though they haven’t finished a season ranked out
of the top-10 in the years since Reagan’s reelection, an NCAA
title has proven elusive.
“For sure, before you get on your court you’re
thinking that it’s been a really long time,” junior
Martin Matkowski said. “But when you step on the court, you
don’t think about it. You just want to win.”
A UCLA win against Oklahoma State would set up a rematch with
No. 3 Florida (24-4), a team that defeated UCLA in the National
Team Indoors quarterfinals back in February.
But first things first. The Bruins must get past an Oklahoma
State squad that upset No. 11 Minnesota (21-6) in the second round
of the tournament. Two of Oklahoma State’s losses came at the
hands of No. 2 Baylor (27-1). The other two came against southern
powers Texas and Tulane.
“They’ve had a very good season,” Martin said,
“and obviously we have to take them very seriously, prepare
for them, and not look ahead.”
Senior co-captain Erfan Djahangiri doesn’t care who the
Bruins are up against.
“Right now it’s all about business,” he said.
“There’s no difference who we play.
“Every match now is tough. You can’t lose your
concentration, because if you lose, you’re out.”
Oklahoma State’s only ranked player is sophomore Mark Van
Elden. Currently ranked No. 59 in the country, he will face
UCLA’s Tobias Clemens, ranked No. 5, at the No. 1 singles
position.
Clemens has been the subject of some controversy lately. His
eligibility was brought into question by coaches of rival schools,
namely Illinois, Texas and Texas A&M. They alleged that he had
taken money while playing in Germany, thereby giving up his amateur
status. Investigation by UCLA revealed no wrongdoing by
Clemens.
“He is cleared,” Martin said Wednesday. “We
feel there is no doubt in anyone’s mind he is absolutely fine
to play.”
With the pieces in place, could this be the year? If recent
history provides any indication, then probably not.
But Martin remains optimistic.
“If we play good tennis and have some good luck, this
could be the year that we finally win a national
championship,” he said.