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Wednesday, January 29, 1997

M. TENNIS:

UCLA looks for win against UC Irvine, despite lack of practiceBy Mark Shapiro

Daily Bruin Staff

Considering how difficult it is to hit tennis balls in the rain, there is little surprise that the UCLA men's tennis team is a rusty machine.

The second-ranked Bruins (2-1) have practiced only twice in the past six days and have played only two dual matches in nearly three weeks. Thus, UCLA will be fighting the combined elements of inactivity and a pack of Anteaters when they take on UC Irvine today at 1:30 p.m. at the Los Angeles Tennis Center.

It's been a grind for the coaching staff to get the team to play up to its level, a struggle that took a turn for the worse in the team's loss to Boise State. The Anteaters, however, who lost their top two players to graduation, pose little threat if the team can meet the coaches' demands.

"We're not sharp; we weren't sharp before the Boise St. match," UCLA Head Coach Billy Martin said. "(UC Irvine is) certainly a solid team, but if we're playing anywhere near to our ability level, we should beat them.

"We're not going to play sharp. I don't see that happening. We just need to go out there and not play great and still win. That's what being a champion is."

While the team has had its share of recent struggles, there are no lineup changes in the offing. Eric Taino is still undefeated at No. 1 singles, and Matt Breen and Kevin Kim both came up with convincing victories against Texas after losing to Boise St.

It is the No. 4 singles spot that is giving the coaches the most pause, for highly touted transfer Alex Decret has been struggling in singles competition.

Decret, who played No. 1 for UC Santa Barbara last year and broke into the Top 25 in the nation, has dropped two matches in a row, including a 6-2, 6-1 mauling against Boise St.

"(Decret) has not shown any of his real playing ability yet," Martin said. "He's not really happy playing four. When he's playing well, he can be as good as anyone in the country, but he has not shown that yet. We need him to start getting his game on track."

The last two singles spots will still be held down by sophomores Vincent Allegre and Jason Cook, with Brandon Kramer lurking on the outskirts of the lineup.

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