Wisconsin Badgers
Northwestern
Wisconsin set to face Northwestern and Illinois
April 01, 2024 | Men's Tennis
Badgers return back to Nielsen
MADISON, Wis. — The Wisconsin men's tennis team (1-15, 0-3 B1G) returns home to take on No. 64 Northwestern (7-14, 1-3 B1G) on Friday, Apr. 5 followed by No. 26 Illinois (10-8, 1-3 B1G) on Sunday, Apr. 7. First serve against the Wildcats will be at 4 p.m. from Nielsen Tennis Stadium and first serve versus the Illini will commence at 2 p.m.
Here are five things you should know before Wisconsin faces Northwestern and Illinois:
1. SCOUTING THE WILDCATS: The No. 64-ranked Northwestern Wildcats are 7-14 overall and tied for sixth in the Big Ten with a 1-3 record. Its one conference win came against Penn State back on Mar. 24, as the team won 4-2 in University Park, Pa. Since then, the team has been defeated by No. 40 Michigan, 0-4, and No. 18 Michigan State, 2-5. Its most recent match was a non-conference battle against Chicago State on Mar. 31 resulted in a 4-0 win for Northwestern. The duo of Felix Nordby and Gleb Blekher rank as the No. 48 doubles pair in the nation, with an 8-9 record, and have won their last two matches. Last season, Wisconsin and Northwestern met up in Evanston, Ill. on Apr. 16 and the Wildcats won, 4-1. In its last regular-season road match of 2023, Wisconsin's Sebastian Vile def. Trice Pickens, 6-4, 6-4, for the Badgers' lone win of the day.
2. SCOUTING THE ILLINI: The No. 26-ranked Illinois lllini are 10-8 overall this season and tied for sixth in the Big Ten with a 1-3 record. Illinois began conference play with a 6-1 victory over Penn State on the road but has followed that up with three-straight losses to No. 1 Ohio State, No. 18 Michigan State, and No. 40 Michigan. The team has secured four wins over top-20 ranked opponents this season, including No. 16 North Carolina, No. 8 Duke, No. 17 North Carolina and No. 14 Baylor. Three Illini players are ranked in singles play, with Karlis Ozolins at No. 27, Hunter Heck at No. 34 and Kenta Miyoshi. The team also boasts the No. 7 doubles pair of Hunter Heck/Karlis Ozolins and the No. 27-ranked pair of Lucas Horve/Oliver Okonkwo. The Badgers and Illini last played each other Apr. 14 in Champagne, Ill. as the No. 26-ranked Illini took a 4-0 victory.
3. LAST SERVE: Wisconsin's last time out, the team fell to No. 65 Nebraska, 6-1, in Lincoln. For the first time in over a month, the Badgers had six healthy players in the lineup and were competitive in doubles play. Michael Minasyan and Gabriel Huber defeated Calvin Mueller and Lars Johann, 6-4, in the pairs' first match together this season to kick off the day. The Badgers' second win came from Matthew Fullerton, as he secured a 5-7, 7-5, 1-0 (10-3) victory over Shunya Maruyama at No. 3 singles.
4. FOLLOW THE ACTION: Live updates on the Badgers can be found on X (@BadgerMTennis) and Instagram (@wisconsintennis), while live scoring/streaming is HERE.
5. UP NEXT: The Badgers head back onto the road to play Purdue on Friday, Apr. 12 and No. 61 Indiana on Sunday, Apr. 14. First serve against the Boilermakers will be at 5 p.m. from Schwartz Tennis Center followed by an 11 a.m. start against the Hoosiers in the IU Tennis Center.
Players Mentioned
