Regular Season Ends in Bedlam

¹⁰Oklahoma

¹²OKlahoma State

April 23 | Noon CT | Stillwater, Okla.

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MATCHUPS AT A GLANCE
	^#10Oklahoma	^#12Oklahoma St.
2016 Record	13-9	18-5
2015 Result	29-3 (NCAA Final)	17-10 (NCAA Second Round)
Singles Ranks	#26, #57, #71	#45, #115
Doubles Ranks	#36, #38, #55	#6, #80

NOTES AND NUMBERS FOR MATCH 23

THE MATCHUPS

The 10th-ranked Oklahoma men's tennis team will conclude its regular season on Saturday as it travels to No. 12 Oklahoma State for a noon CT match. Weather permitting, the match will be played outdoors. Forecast call for sunny skies, wind out of the south at 15 mph and a high near 80 degrees. Live scoring and video will both be available at the links above.

LAST TIME VS. OKLAHOMA STATE

The Sooners squared off with OSU in their regular season finale last year as well. OU dropped the doubles point, but won the first four matches off in singles to win 4-1. Current Sooners Alex Ghilea, Andrew Harris and Spencer Papa all turned in wins for the Crimson and Cream. The win clinched a share of the Big 12 regular season title for Oklahoma. The Sooners have won their last eight matches against Oklahoma State dating back to 2009.

SCOUTING THE COWBOYS

Oklahoma State is having an historic season in 2016. The Cowboys have risen as high as No. 5 in the nation, a program record, three times this year. They currently rank 12th nationally with a record of 18-5. OSU boasts wins over Wake Forest, South Florida, Cal and Texas Tech.

SINGLES
No. 45 - Julian Cash
No. 115 - Arjun Kadhe

DOUBLES
No. 6 - Julian Cash/Arjun Kadhe
No. 80 - Lucas Gerch/Temur/Ismailov

Andrew Harris hits a forehand against Baylor. Harris has won each of his last three singles matches and is 3-1, all at the No. 2 spot, since returning to singles play.

RETURN TO FORM

Junior Andrew Harris has returned to singles play for Oklahoma and has done so in convincing fashion. Harris had been sidelined with a knee injury since the conclusion of the 2015 season. Since reentering the OU lineup, Harris has jumped out to a 3-1 record, all at No. 2 singles, including wins in each of his last three matches. The Melbourne, Australia, native is well on his way to recapturing his 2015 form. A year ago he rose as high as No. 5 in the ITA singles rankings and earned All-America honors in singles as well as being name the ITA National Player to Watch.

LAST TIME OUT

OU split its Big 12 matches last weekend. On Friday, head coach John Roddick's bunch swept Baylor 4-0. Strong doubles play and singles wins from Harris, Ghilea and freshman Maxime Mora secured the win over the Bears, OU's fifth in a row dating back to 2015.

Oklahoma was not as fortunate on Sunday against Texas Tech. All three doubles matches went to tiebreakers, but the Red Raiders would win two of them to take the opening point. In singles, the Red Raiders carried their momentum to three wins, good enough to clinch the dual.

BIG 12 STANDINGS

The Sooners can't earn a share of the regular season Big 12 title this year, but they can improve their seeding for the upcoming Big 12 Championship with a win on Saturday. The Sooners are seeking their second consecutive tournament title and their fourth in the last five years. The championship will be held in Stillwater, Okla., on the campus of Oklahoma State April 28 through May 1.

STANDINGS
1. TCU - 4-0
2. Texas Tech - 2-1
3. Oklahoma State - 2-2
4. Oklahoma - 2-2
5. Texas - 1-3
6. Baylor - 1-4

CHASING HISTORY

Senior Axel Alvarez is nearing Sooner history. OU's ace joined 2015 graduate Dane Webb as just the second Sooner in program history to reach the 200-win mark for his career after a doubles win against Memphis on Feb. 29. Alvarez now boasts 2010 total wins (96 doubles, 114 singles) and is nearing a pair of OU records. He needs just one win in singles to tie Oliver Lorin's record for career singles wins (115) and just two total wins to tie Webb's record for career wins (212).

Axel Alvarez celebrates the clinching point against TCU in the Sooners' 2015 NCAA semifinal. Alvarez will tie the OU program record for singles wins (115) with a win this weekend against Oklahoma State

BIG 12 PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

Sophomore Spencer Papa picked up his first career Big 12 Player of the Week honor on April 7. The Edmond, Okla., native won five total matches in a span of three duals, including two ranked wins in singles to push OU to a perfect 3-0 week. Alvarez was named Big 12 Player of the Week on Feb. 24. The Asturias, Spain, native picked up a dominant, straight-sets win over No. 97 Carlos Bautista of No. 22 Tulsa to help propel the Sooners to a 4-1, road win.

BNP PARIBAS OPEN

The Sooners had the Easter weekend off, but last weekend OU earned a split against a pair of ranked teams at the 2016 BNP Paribas Open Collegiate Challenge presented by Oracle in Indian Wells, Calif. Oklahoma fell 4-1 to No. 12 USC on the first day of play, but rebounded the following day with a 4-3 win over No. 14 California. Against the Golden Bears, OU won the doubles point, but with one match left the dual was knotted at 3-all. Ghilea delivered the clinching win by upsetting No. 10 Andre Goransonn at No. 3 singles to clinch the win for OU.

PLAYING IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Oklahoma will continue to lead collegiate tennis in televised matches this season, as the Sooners have already played four matches on live TV this season. 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 also played live on Fox against No. 4 Ohio State and Baylor. The Sooners also played live on ESPN3 in its win over No. 22 Florida State. The Sooners played a total of seven televised matches in 2015.

BIG 12 DYNASTY

The Sooners are seeking an unprecedented fifth consecutive conference title in 2016 as they navigate conference play. 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.