Sooners Ride Turnpike for Top-30 Showdown

No. 8 Oklahoma vs. No. 29 Tulsa

Feb. 20, 5 p.m. CT | Michael D. Case Tennis Center

Tulsa, Okla.

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NOTES AND NUMBERS FOR WEEK FIVE

THE MATCHUP

The eighth-ranked Oklahoma men's tennis team takes the short drive up I-44 this weekend as they take on No. 29 Tulsa on Saturday at 5 p.m. CT at the Michael D. Case Tennis Center. The Sooners are fresh off a 2-1 weekend at the ITA National Indoor Championship that saw OU pick up ranked-wins over No. 16 San Diego and No. 12 Illinois. The match will be played indoors.

SCOUTING TU

Tulsa, who also hosts Santa Clara on Friday night, enters the weekend at 5-2 with its best wins coming against No. 18 Cal and No. 31 Notre Dame. The Golden Hurricane's losses came against No. 64 Purdue and No. 20 Northwestern. TU's doubles teams are a combined 10-9 in dual play and have gone 3-4 in the doubles point.

SINGLES

No. 30 Or Ramm-Harel - 2-4 in dual play
No. 94 Carlos Bautista - 4-2 in dual play

DOUBLES

No. 52 Bautista/Gonzalez - 5-1 in dual play

NATIONAL INDOORS

The Sooners entered the 2016 ITA National Indoor Championship as the defending champions. OU stumbled in the first round against No. 10 Wake Forest, but rebounded with a pair of ranked-wins in the consolation draw. Playing against No. 16 San Diego on the second day, Oklahoma took the doubles point and then the first three matches off to sweep the Toreros 4-0. In the consolation semis, OU faced No. 12 Illinois and jumped out to an early advantage with a pair of wins in doubles. The Illini would rally and push the final two singles matches to third sets, but freshman Andre Biro delivered a win at No. 6 singles to clinch a 4-2 for the Sooners.

KICK-OFF WEEKEND

The Sooners earned their spot in the Indoor Championship field with a dominant performance during the 2016 ITA Kick-Off Weekend. Hosting for the fourth year in a row, OU swept both Utah State and Troy to secure its place in the Indoor Championship field.

DYNAMIC DUO

Against No. 7 North Carolina, junior Andrew Harris, who had missed time due to injury, made his season debut in pairing with Ghilea in doubles. Perhaps OU's best duo, Harris and Ghilea faced the nation's top ranked doubles team of Robert Kelly and Brett Clark at number one doubles. The Sooner pair rode a pair of breaks to a 6-4 victory that helped propel OU to the doubles point win. In 2015, Harris and Ghilea were both named All-Big 12 in doubles and were the only duo to go unbeaten in league play.

NEARING HISTORY

Alvarez is nearing a pair of historic marks for OU. The senior ace currently owns 197 career wins (88 doubles, 109 singles), needing three more to join 2015 graduate Dane Webb as just the second player in Oklahoma history to hit the 200-win mark. Alvarez is also just 16 wins shy of breaking Webb's school record of 212 career wins. Alvarez has won at least 50 total matches in each of his previous three seasons at OU.

PLAYING IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Oklahoma will continue to lead collegiate tennis in televised matches this season. Three of the Sooners' home matches will be broadcast live on Fox Sports and OU could see even more televised action if it makes a deep run in the postseason. In addition to its early-season match with Wake Forest, Oklahoma will also play on live TV against No. 9 Ohio State on March 6 at noon and against No. 5 Baylor on April 15 at 6 p.m. CT. The Sooners played a total of seven televised matches in 2015.

BATTLE TESTED

After racking up 22 wins over teams ranked in the ITA top 30 a year ago, the Sooners face another loaded schedule in 2016. With a road match against No. 7 UNC under its belt, Oklahoma also travels to national contenders Tulsa, TCU and Texas and hosts Wake Forest, Arkansas, Ohio State and Baylor. OU will also play neutral site matches against defending NCAA national champion Virginia and perennial power USC.

BIG 12 DYNASTY

The Sooners are seeking an unprecedented fifth consecutive conference title in 2016. Oklahoma earned a share of the regular season title in 2015 and then claimed its third Big 12 Tournament title in the last four years last four years (2012, 2013, 2015) with a pair of wins at the Big 12 Championships in Waco, Texas. After receiving a first-round bye, Oklahoma topped Texas 4-3 in the semifinal round to advance to the final where it would face Baylor for the fourth time on the year. In the final, the Sooners outlasted the Bears to win 4-3 and claim the Big 12 Championships title.

2015 AWARDS

OU pulled in an impressive haul of awards following the 2015 season. Axel Alvarez became the first Sooner ever to be named the ITA National College Player of the year, and just the second Sooner in history to be named the Big 12 Player of the Year, joining Costin Paval who won the award in both 2012 and 2013. Alvarez also became just the second Sooner to ever earn All-America honors in both singles and doubles in a single season. He was also named All-Big 12 in both singles and doubles.

For the fourth straight season, head coach John Roddick was named Big 12 Coach of the Year, sharing the honor with TCU's David Roditi. Sophomore Florin Bragusi added another honor for the Sooners as he was named the Big 12 Newcomer of the Year. Oklahoma has taken home the award in back-to-back years as Andrew Harris won it in 2014.

In addition to Big 12 awards, Harris was named ITA National Player to Watch. Harris earned the central region Rookie of the Year award in 2014 as a freshman. Harris also took home All-America honors in singles and All-Big 12 honors in both singles and doubles. Alex Ghilea rounded out Oklahoma's presence on the all-conference team by earning a place on the doubles team.

BACK FOR MORE

After back-to-back NCAA runner-up finishes, and fresh off their fourth consecutive Big 12 title, the 2016 Sooners feature a lineup loaded with experience and talent. OU lost just one starter from last year's postseason lineup and returns some of the nation's best players. Alvarez, the reigning Big 12 and national player of the year, won 39 singles matches in 2014-2015, the most ever by a Sooner in a single season. Harris was named 2015 ITA National Player to Watch and rose as high as No. 5 in the nation last season as he racked up 25 singles wins. Ghilea recorded a singles record of 36-10 last year, the fourth most singles wins in a single season in OU history, and earned Most Outstanding Player honors at the 2015 ITA National Indoor Championships. Papa and junior Florin Bragusi also played key roles in 2015 with the latter picking up Big 12 Newcomer of the Year honors.