UCLA Team Page
LOS ANGELES - The No. 2 UCLA men's tennis team won the doubles point and then took five of six singles matches on Friday, posting a 6-1 win over Utah in a Pac-12 showdown at the Los Angeles Tennis Center.
UCLA (17-1; 3-0 Pac-12) domintated doubles play, losing a total of three games in the two matches that finished. After 60th-ranked Marcos Giron and Dennis Novikov dispatched of Utah's Slim Hamza and Devin Lane, 8-1 at court No. 1, the Bruins clinched the point when Alex Brigham and Dennis Mkrtchian were 8-2 winners over Ben Tasevac and Cedric Willems at court No. 3. UCLA was leading 6-3 at court No. 2 when play was suspended.
Playing at the No. 1 singles position on Friday, Giron, who is UCLA's highest-ranked singles player at No. 14, was near flawless on the day, as he dispatched of Dmytro Mamedov, 6-0, 6-1 to put the Bruins ahead 2-0 in the match. Two more straight-set singles victories, this time by No. 114 Clay Thompson and Karue Sell, ended up clinching the win for UCLA.
The Bruins would also get singles wins from Dennis Mkrtchian at court No. 3 and Maxime Tabatruong at court No. 6.
The Utes (11-8; 1-2 Pac-12) were able to get on the board in the final match of the afternoon, as Hamza upset 19th-ranked Adrien Puget, 7-5, 6-4 at court No. 2.
UCLA hosts Arizona on Saturday at the Los Angeles Tennis Center beginning at 1:00 p.m.
#2 UCLA 6, #75 Utah 1
Apr 05, 2013 at Los Angeles, CA (Los Angeles Tennis Center)
Doubles
1. #60 Giron/Dennis Novikov (UCLA) def. Hamza/Lane (UTAH) 8-1
2. Puget/Thompson (UCLA) vs. Mamedov/Medinilla (UTAH) 6-3, unfinished
3. Alex Brigham/Mkrtchian (UCLA) def. Tasevac/Willems (UTAH) 8-2
UCLA Wins Doubles Point
Singles
1. #14 Marcos Giron (UCLA) def. Dmytro Mamedov (UTAH) 6-0, 6-1
2. Slim Hamza (UTAH) def. #19 Adrien Puget (UCLA) 7-5, 6-4
3. #57 Dennis Mkrtchian (UCLA) def. Alejandro Medinilla (UTAH) 4-6, 7-5, (10-6)
4. #114 Clay Thompson (UCLA) def. Devin Lane (UTAH) 6-1, 6-2
5. Karue Sell (UCLA) def. Cedric Willems (UTAH) 6-1, 7-5
6. Maxime Tabatruong (UCLA) def. Ben Tasevac (UTAH) 7-6(5), 6-3
Match Notes
Utah 11-8; 1-2 Pac-12; National ranking #75
UCLA 17-1; 3-0 Pac-12; National ranking #2
Order of finish: Doubles (1,3); Singles (1,4,5,3,6,2)