2004 ITA Men's Midwest Regional -- Quotes
10/26/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Tennis
On his play at the ITA Regional ... "I think I've improved a lot since Bruce (Berque) has been here. I'm just trying to improve my game right now and trying to play more all-court. I think it's working well. In the finals, I wasn't used to playing an opponent with a lot of pace, so I will have to work on that more often in practice. I'm still trying to keep playing my game, working on the slice, the charge and also the serve.
On the change in atmosphere since Bruce Berque has taken over ... "It's just so different. Everything is more professional now and we have very strict rountines here. It's really helped me out and I like it a lot. It's kind of tough getting up in the morning and doing weights, but it's good for my body. The afternoon practices are also going really well."
On playing in the ITA National Indoor Championships in two weeks ... "The guys are going to be tough, they're the best from every region. I'm just going to try my best and keep improving. I've got nothing to lose. I'm still a sophomore and there's a lot of time left."
Michigan Head Coach Bruce Berque
On the team's overall effort at the ITA Regional ... "I was very happy with the overall effort in terms of the way we went about things and the way we competed. That was our No. 1 priority. I also think we showed a lot of improvement from where we were in the first couple weeks of practice. In terms of progress and how they played and competed, I definitely think it was a positive. In terms of results, I think we did okay. I think Brian's (Hung) results and getting to the finals is obviously very strong and I think Brian and Ryan (Heller) getting to the quarters in doubles is good. We had a couple of near misses that made us fall just short of what I would think is having a great tournament. I think we did reasonably well results-wise and did very well in progress with some of the things we've been practicing."
On Brian Hung's finals match ... "I think he was a little intimidated by Ryler's (DeHeart) pace in the beginning. Ryler, even for a top player, hits the ball pretty hard. That's his strength. If he's on, he can kind of blow people off the court and that's what he started to do in the beginning. I was trying to express to Brian that the reason he was down 5-0 in the first set wasn't so much because he was being completely outplayed but because he wasn't doing a good job of holding serve. He had a couple of easy shots he missed and wasn't making enough first serves, and that's why he got broken twice. If he would have made a few more first serves and a few more shots he was certainly capable of making, things might have been different. I stressed to him the importance of taking care of his own service game and staying in it and sticking with the plan. I think he did a good job of staying positive and chipping his way back into the match. There were a couple things that hurt him. He had three games receiving serve in the second set where he was ahead 15-40 and he didn't capitalize on any of them. I think that if there is one thing you can take away from that match is that if you have an opportunity to hurt somebody that is a good player, if you don't do it to them, then they're going to do it to you."
On Hung earning a spot in the ITA National Indoor Championships ... "I think it's pretty big for our program. Now we can have two of our guys in singles and one in doubles. I think that's pretty significant. What I told the guys is that they need to start thinking of themselves as elite players and as people who expect to win when they go out on the court. I think it gave Brian a vote of confidence knowing that he earned a spot. Playing against Ryler, who is one of the better players, he lost but he realizes now that if he would have done a few things differently he might have had a chance to win. That should give him confidence, not only to get into the tournament but to also do well. Ohio State and Illinois have been the two elite teams in the conference the past couple of years, and I felt like we were in almost every match with them. We have to work hard for a long period of time, not just a month or two. I expect more of the same. I told Brian after his semifinal win and his quarterfinal win that he did a good job. But did I think it was some fantastic win that I'm going to jump up and down about No, because I feel like that's exactly what he should do. When he beat the No. 1 seed yesterday, I did feel like he was 6-4, 6-0 better than that guy, and I told him that. I want the guys to be happy that they're having some success but also to come to expect it."
On the team's progress heading into the dual match season ... "I feel pretty good. To be honest, I was a little disappointed at the beginning when watching practice. I think that had more to do with the guys not playing that much over the summer. I think we did pretty well last week and I think we did pretty well this week. I think that after a month and a half of work, I think they've shown that they can play and still have a lot of room for improvement. So, I have been getting a lot more optimisic in the last week or so. I think we can do well. I think the key is that when we're done practicing here in the next couple weeks, the guys must stay motivated and continue to do the work on their own. Tennis is pretty much a year-round sport. If they stick with it and keep working hard, I feel that we can make a big jump this year."
Players Mentioned
