UCLA has been dominating its rivalry against USC recently.
The men’s tennis team beat USC twice last season and once thus far this season.
The No. 13 Bruins (8-3), looking to continue their success against their crosstown rival, will take on the No. 14 Trojans (12-2) at Marks Stadium on Thursday.
Though UCLA has had their way against USC in the past two seasons, their last match during the International Tennis Association Division I National Men’s Team Indoor Championship came down to the third set on the first singles court and culminated in a 4-3 nail-biter.
“We were fortunate enough to win,” said head coach Billy Martin. “We’re right there with them. One day slightly better, another day maybe not.”
[Related: Men’s tennis to focus on doubles after losses at ITA National Indoors]
In spite of the narrow margin of victory, Gage Brymer said he was confident given the Bruins’ previous results against the Trojans – the senior has defeated USC’s Logan Smith in each of their last three dual matches.
“We’ve been successful against them multiple times,” Brymer said. “We know their game styles well and it gives us information on how to play against them.”
Freshman Evan Zhu, however, did not have much success in his first match against USC, dropping his singles and doubles matchups.
“I was a little scared to miss last time,” Zhu said. “This time I want to play more aggressive. Go for the right shots and play the right way.”
Last time the teams played, UCLA dropped the doubles point. To work on their doubles’ game, Bruins participated in the Pacific Coast Doubles Championship over the weekend.
Zhu and his doubles partner, junior Martin Redlicki, reached the semifinals before losing to the eventual champions. On the other hand, USC’s No. 1 team of Brandon Holt and Riley Smith lost in the round of 16 while its No. 2 team of Nick Crystal and Laurens Verboven made it to the quarterfinals.
[Related: Men’s tennis reaches semifinals at Pacific Coast Doubles Tournament]
While the Bruins’ top-seeded doubles team has been performing well and has won eight of its 10 matches, their other pairings haven’t worked out swimmingly. In the last four games, the team’s combined record at No. 2 and 3 doubles is a measly 1-7.
Brymer, who plays with sophomore Maxime Cressy, believes that practice is the key to doubles’ success.
“Our doubles team has switched around in the last couple of years,” Brymer said. “Max and I are playing consistently now and with practice, we’re building a relationship on the court.”
The duo will look to bounce back after losing the first time around to Crystal and Verboven.
Cressy and Brymer have vastly different game styles. Earlier in the season, Cressy suggested that his game style doesn’t match up very well with Brymer’s, yet the senior was optimistic of the pairing’s future.
“It’s true that Max is more of a serve and volleyer and I’m better from the back court,” Brymer said. “We’ve still had success playing like that. I think we just got to work on making the best of our game styles together.”