After coming up just short of winning their third Intercollegiate Tennis Association National Men’s Team Indoor Championship in four years, the Illini will open the Big Ten season this weekend.

Illinois, the third-ranked team in the country, takes on No. 69 Indiana on Saturday at noon before playing Penn State on Sunday at 11 a.m. at the Atkins Tennis Center.

“It’s going to be exciting,” said Illinois head coach Brad Dancer. “If we can win those matches, we’ll get a step up in the conference.”

In the days directly following their loss to Georgia, the Illini reflected on their chances for success within the Big Ten conference and at the national level.

Illinois has won the last nine Big Ten regular season titles and is now looking for its 10th title. The Illini have won eight of the last nine Big Ten Tournament titles as well.

This year, however, the Big Ten conference is improving. Ohio State, led by head coach Ty Tucker figures to be the Illini’s top competition, despite the loss of Joey Atas, who transferred to Duke. Illinois will have to get by Minnesota as well, if the team would like to claim the conference’s top honor.

Among noteworthy conference foes is Michigan. The Wolverines, under the direction of former Illinois associate head coach Bruce Berque, is one of the many conference teams that is making a bid for a place at the top of the Big Ten conference. In his first year at Michigan, Berque led the team to a third-place finish in the conference, the best results for a Michigan team since 1999.

“Michigan and Minnesota are improving,” said Illinois junior GD Jones. “And as years go by, we need to make sure we keep improving to stay ahead of the pack.”

In the days following their defeat at the ITA National Men’s Team Indoor Championships, the Illini have had time to reflect on their loss and regroup for the weekend.

“Every one of us truly believes that we’re the best team in the country,” Jones said. “I think it was only miraculous circumstances that had us not win Indoors.”

Others might agree with Jones. When the latest national rankings were released Wednesday, Illinois was the only team with two singles players ranked in the nation’s top 10. Illini senior Ryler DeHeart is the second-ranked tennis player in the country. Sophomore Kevin Anderson, checks in at the nation’s No. 6 spot.

Sophomore Ryan Rowe and Anderson are the nation’s fifth-ranked doubles team. They are undefeated so far this year and beat defending NCAA doubles champions John Isner and Antonio Ruiz of Georgia on Sunday. Ohio State’s Scott Green and Ross Wilson are currently the nation’s top-ranked doubles duo.

“We’re showing that we’re one of the best teams in the country,” Rowe said, about the entire Illinois team. “But that we still have improvements to make and we’re making them.”

Rowe attributes his and Anderson’s success to their increased comfort together.

He said he believes that the men will only become a better doubles team as the season progresses, which may prove crucial throughout the Big Ten season when winning the often-deciding doubles point will be important.

Last year, Illinois narrowly edged out Indiana 4-3 when the teams clashed in Bloomington, Ind. Since then, the Hoosiers have lost their former No. 1 player to graduation. The Nittany Lions, who put up a tough fight last season, could put up another strong showing. Still, Illinois is confident that it can capitalize on its homecourt advantage.

“We can’t take the Big Ten season lightly,” Rowe said. ” We’re going to come out fighting this weekend.”