In just one week, the Illinois men’s tennis team will look to defend its status as Big Ten Tournament Champions, but that does not mean the team will overlook Iowa or Minnesota when it faces them this weekend.

“We’ll need to bring our ‘A’ game (against Minnesota),” said Illinois associate head coach Brad Dancer.

The Golden Gophers are led by Avery Ticer, who is No. 25 in the nation in singles. Illinois junior Ryler DeHeart, who is the country’s seventh-ranked singles player, knows that Ticer is a fierce competitor and that the match cannot be taken lightly.

“He always competes pretty hard, and he doesn’t give you an inch,” DeHeart said. “It’ll be a good test for me as far as mental composure, and just staying focused and focusing on the tennis and the ball – and not my opponent.”

The tough competition is not the only obstacle in the Illini’s way this weekend. The trip to the Twin Cities is one of the longest throughout the Big Ten season, and the athletes will have to battle road weariness.

“We’re at that point of the season where we probably don’t need to be on the road unless we’re playing for Championships, and yet that is what we get to do this weekend,” Dancer said.

However, Illinois freshman Ruben Gonzales said he is not worried about whether the long hours on the road will affect his performance. Instead, he said, he expects his performance to benefit from playing on the slow courts.

“I love slow courts – I like them better than fast courts,” Gonzales said. “I can use my forehand more, which is my weapon.”

Gonzales also said that his kick serve would be more effective. Not all of the Illini are as excited about the slow courts. The Atkins Tennis Center, where the men train and compete, has faster courts, which the older athletes have adjusted to. DeHeart said one of the main adjustments when playing at Minnesota will be being patient and realizing points may be a little longer. He said he is concentrating on not getting flustered or losing composure when he has to work at the points more than usual.

“The biggest thing for me is making the transition between what you do in practice and implementing it in a match,” DeHeart said. “Often times when you play in pressure situations, you back off of the things that you’re trying to improve.”

Whether the athletes can show improvements will be critical for the Illini’s success – especially if they want to clinch the regular season Big Ten title. The coaches are still trying to determine the lineup for the end of the season, as well. As of last weekend, Illinois head coach Craig Tiley was still experimenting with the doubles lineup, although he said he was “pretty close” to having the lineup in place. Dancer said Wednesday that it was likely Illinois would use a doubles lineup similar to the one used last weekend.

“What we looked at last weekend was definitely an interesting look for us,” Dancer said. “We feel that it might possibly give us the best chance to win at all three doubles spots.”

The need for improvement does not permeate the doubles lineup exclusively. Dancer said he would like to see some of the singles players excel at a higher level.

“We’re still looking for improvements at each spot,” Dancer said. “No one has had a perfect season so far.”

Tiley said on Saturday that there are still several athletes in contention for a space in the singles lineup. The Illinois athletes see the need for improvement as well.

“We’re still not where we want to be,” said Illinois senior Evan Zeder. “We’ve gotten better, but we still have some work to do before we get to the point where we should be at heading into the tournament season.”

The tournament season, the culminating point of months and years of work, is quickly approaching too. Illinois will host the Big Ten Tournament beginning Thursday and could host the opening rounds of the NCAA tournament as well.

“It will be another opportunity for us to make a statement in the Big Ten,” DeHeart said. “And, end our regular season off with a bang and have a good start to the post-season.”