TEMPE, Ariz – The Sun Devil men's tennis team welcomes two top-20 programs from the City of Angels in No. 2 UCLA and No. 16 USC this weekend at the Whiteman Tennis Center.
"We've been working really hard as a group," coach Matt Hill said. "We had some discipline issues on the court – just little details like them staying mentally engaged, mentally tough throughout the difficult swings of the matches – we really stayed on them all week."
The Bruins boast the best record in the Pac-12 with 20 wins and just two losses, three more wins than second-place Stanford, who coincidentally handed UCLA their first loss of the season, 4-3, in February. UCLA's second and final loss came against No. 1 Wake Forest in the final match of the ITA Indoor Championship.
As for the Trojans, the Devils' Sunday opponent is 12-7 with one of the toughest schedules in the nation. All seven of the squad's losses have come against opponents ranked in the top-5 in No. 1 Wake Forest, No. 2 UCLA, No. 3 Ohio State and No. 4 Stanford.
"USC is always one of the better teams in the country," Hill said. "They haven't really been able to get over the hump against the top, top teams, but they still have an incredibly strong group of players with a lot of depth."
Both visiting sides are led by two of the nation's best singles players, meaning No. 27 Michaël Geerts will have his hands full again on court one. UCLA boasts four ranked players, including the No. 1 player in the nation in Martin Redlicki. USC isn't far behind with three ranked, headlined by No. 13 Brandon Holt.
"Geerts has got a good weekend in front of him," Hill said. "He's already shown he's beaten guys in that top group. He took apart Oregon's top player this past weekend who was highly ranked, and it wasn't a very close match."
Geerts is the Sun Devils' only senior, and will take to court one in his final matches at the Whiteman Tennis Center. The Belgian joined the Sun Devils squad last spring from the University of Brussels, putting a professional career in the ITF on hold and has been a staple in ASU's lineup in their comeback season.
"His ability gives the other guys confidence at their positions," Hill said. "They're playing good players as well, but it gives an extra boost for the group to see how this player that they're so comfortable with can do some damage against some of the best players in college."
The Sun Devils and Bruins face off Friday at 5 p.m., and the Trojans come to town on Sunday for a 1 p.m. showdown with ASU.
"We've been working really hard as a group," coach Matt Hill said. "We had some discipline issues on the court – just little details like them staying mentally engaged, mentally tough throughout the difficult swings of the matches – we really stayed on them all week."
The Bruins boast the best record in the Pac-12 with 20 wins and just two losses, three more wins than second-place Stanford, who coincidentally handed UCLA their first loss of the season, 4-3, in February. UCLA's second and final loss came against No. 1 Wake Forest in the final match of the ITA Indoor Championship.
As for the Trojans, the Devils' Sunday opponent is 12-7 with one of the toughest schedules in the nation. All seven of the squad's losses have come against opponents ranked in the top-5 in No. 1 Wake Forest, No. 2 UCLA, No. 3 Ohio State and No. 4 Stanford.
"USC is always one of the better teams in the country," Hill said. "They haven't really been able to get over the hump against the top, top teams, but they still have an incredibly strong group of players with a lot of depth."
Both visiting sides are led by two of the nation's best singles players, meaning No. 27 Michaël Geerts will have his hands full again on court one. UCLA boasts four ranked players, including the No. 1 player in the nation in Martin Redlicki. USC isn't far behind with three ranked, headlined by No. 13 Brandon Holt.
"Geerts has got a good weekend in front of him," Hill said. "He's already shown he's beaten guys in that top group. He took apart Oregon's top player this past weekend who was highly ranked, and it wasn't a very close match."
Geerts is the Sun Devils' only senior, and will take to court one in his final matches at the Whiteman Tennis Center. The Belgian joined the Sun Devils squad last spring from the University of Brussels, putting a professional career in the ITF on hold and has been a staple in ASU's lineup in their comeback season.
"His ability gives the other guys confidence at their positions," Hill said. "They're playing good players as well, but it gives an extra boost for the group to see how this player that they're so comfortable with can do some damage against some of the best players in college."
The Sun Devils and Bruins face off Friday at 5 p.m., and the Trojans come to town on Sunday for a 1 p.m. showdown with ASU.