Friday, May 12
Norman, Okla.
10:00 AM
Mississippi State
vs
SMU
No. 18 MSU takes on No. 38 SMU to begin NCAA action on Friday at 10 a.m.
Bulldogs Open 26th NCAA Appearance Against SMU On Friday
May 11, 2017 | Men's Tennis
STARKVILLE, Miss. – Seeking to recapture the magic from last year's postseason run, 18th-ranked Mississippi State (20-8) will take on 38th-ranked Southern Methodist (13-11) on Friday to open NCAA action in Norman, Okla.
First serve between the Bulldogs and Mustangs is slated for 10 a.m. CT, from the Headington Family Tennis Center. Soonersports.com will provide live stats for the match on Friday.
"We've had a great week of training and our guys are excited to compete on Friday," head coach Matt Roberts said. "SMU has a good team and has had a lot of success, so we will have to be on our best games and not give them anything. Our guys always battle, so tomorrow should be fun."
SMU, the three seed for the Norman Regional, received one of the 31 at-large bids to the field of 64 after going 13-11 in 2017.
The Bulldogs enter the NCAA Tournament playing some of their best tennis of the season after the Maroon & White advanced to the SEC finals for the first time since 1996. MSU has earned eight wins against this season's NCAA field, taking down Arkansas, Florida State, Kentucky, South Carolina, Texas A&M (twice) and Tulane. One of the major reasons for those wins has been the stellar play of No. 4 Nuno Borges.
The sophomore, who was named an All-American and SEC Player of the Year following the regular season, has built an impressive 31-6 singles record overall while also downing 21 ranked foes. The Bulldog has also provided an almost automatic win at the No. 1 spot in singles play, going an SEC-best 19-3 this year.
Who To Watch For MSU
SMU has only won two ranked matches this season, while dropping 11. In those ranked matchups, the Mustangs have dropped seven of the doubles points. It will be key for MSU to get off to a good start and that has been the case for MSU this season with the Bulldogs taking 16 doubles points this season. No. 8 Niclas Braun and Trevor Foshey have taken seven of those, with Mate Cutura and Vaughn Hunter earning five for the Maroon & White.
Previewing The Mustangs
Friday's match will feature a pair of 2016 NCAA Round of 16 participants as both the Bulldogs and the Mustangs reached Tulsa last season. SMU downed Washington and Texas Tech to punch its ticket, before falling to Florida. This season, the Mustangs have faced two SEC foes as SMU earned wins over Ole Miss and Arkansas.
Who To Watch For SMU
Yates Johnson and Hunter Johnson are the highest ranked players for SMU, with the pair ranking 28th overall in doubles action after earning a 7-2 record this season. Hunter Johnson is also ranked No. 96 in singles, with teammate Ronald Slobodchikov leading the way at No. 68 for SMU. Slobodchikov leads the team with an 8-6 record at the No. 1 position in singles, while going 11-8 overall.
Up Next
If MSU should defeat SMU on Friday, the Bulldogs will advance to Saturday's second round matchup against host Oklahoma or Bryant at 11 a.m. CT.
Live Video/Stats
Live stats can be found here, while no live video stream will be available for this weekend's action.
NCAA First & Second Round Info
For information on past matches, teams, tickets or venue details visit here.
Additional Notes
Social Media
For more information on the Mississippi State men's tennis program, follow "HailStateMT" on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
First serve between the Bulldogs and Mustangs is slated for 10 a.m. CT, from the Headington Family Tennis Center. Soonersports.com will provide live stats for the match on Friday.
"We've had a great week of training and our guys are excited to compete on Friday," head coach Matt Roberts said. "SMU has a good team and has had a lot of success, so we will have to be on our best games and not give them anything. Our guys always battle, so tomorrow should be fun."
SMU, the three seed for the Norman Regional, received one of the 31 at-large bids to the field of 64 after going 13-11 in 2017.
The Bulldogs enter the NCAA Tournament playing some of their best tennis of the season after the Maroon & White advanced to the SEC finals for the first time since 1996. MSU has earned eight wins against this season's NCAA field, taking down Arkansas, Florida State, Kentucky, South Carolina, Texas A&M (twice) and Tulane. One of the major reasons for those wins has been the stellar play of No. 4 Nuno Borges.
The sophomore, who was named an All-American and SEC Player of the Year following the regular season, has built an impressive 31-6 singles record overall while also downing 21 ranked foes. The Bulldog has also provided an almost automatic win at the No. 1 spot in singles play, going an SEC-best 19-3 this year.
Who To Watch For MSU
SMU has only won two ranked matches this season, while dropping 11. In those ranked matchups, the Mustangs have dropped seven of the doubles points. It will be key for MSU to get off to a good start and that has been the case for MSU this season with the Bulldogs taking 16 doubles points this season. No. 8 Niclas Braun and Trevor Foshey have taken seven of those, with Mate Cutura and Vaughn Hunter earning five for the Maroon & White.
Previewing The Mustangs
Friday's match will feature a pair of 2016 NCAA Round of 16 participants as both the Bulldogs and the Mustangs reached Tulsa last season. SMU downed Washington and Texas Tech to punch its ticket, before falling to Florida. This season, the Mustangs have faced two SEC foes as SMU earned wins over Ole Miss and Arkansas.
Who To Watch For SMU
Yates Johnson and Hunter Johnson are the highest ranked players for SMU, with the pair ranking 28th overall in doubles action after earning a 7-2 record this season. Hunter Johnson is also ranked No. 96 in singles, with teammate Ronald Slobodchikov leading the way at No. 68 for SMU. Slobodchikov leads the team with an 8-6 record at the No. 1 position in singles, while going 11-8 overall.
Up Next
If MSU should defeat SMU on Friday, the Bulldogs will advance to Saturday's second round matchup against host Oklahoma or Bryant at 11 a.m. CT.
Live Video/Stats
Live stats can be found here, while no live video stream will be available for this weekend's action.
NCAA First & Second Round Info
For information on past matches, teams, tickets or venue details visit here.
Additional Notes
- This is MSU's 26th NCAA Team Championship appearance
- State has earned a postseason trip the past seven seasons
- MSU is 23-21 all-time in the NCAA Team Championship
- The Bulldogs are 17-4 in the opening round
- MSU has not lost a first round match since 2001
- This will be MSU's first trip to Norman for an NCAA postseason match
- State is 0-3 all-time against SMU, with the last match coming in 2001
- The 2001 contest was an NCAA Round of 16 matchup in Athens
- Head coach Matt Roberts is 3-2 all-time in NCAA postseason action
- The 20 wins prior to NCAA action are the most by any MSU team in program history
- Nuno Borges and Niclas Braun each went 2-1 last season in NCAA action
- Mate Cutura and Vaughn Hunter earned a 2-1 record in doubles last NCAA postseason
Social Media
For more information on the Mississippi State men's tennis program, follow "HailStateMT" on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
/ Men's Tennis
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