Gloomy weather surrounded Senior Day.
But the Bruins still managed to light up the Los Angeles Tennis Center.
In its penultimate weekend and last home match of the regular season, No.

Bruin Day was not the Bruins’ day.
Injuries forced coach Billy Martin to deviate from his typical lineup – putting healthy players with limited experience on the court while veterans could not do much more than watch.

Postseason play is fast approaching.
And for the Bruins – who have the chance to retrace their path to a Big Ten championship and NCAA regionals berth – that means closing out the season strong.

No. 24 UCLA men’s tennis (13-5, 7-2 Big Ten) has the chance to earn its first top-25 win since March 13 when it hosts No. 14 Illinois (19-5, 8-2) at the Los Angeles Tennis Center on Saturday.

Mark Twain once said history does not repeat itself, but it does rhyme.
The Bruins proved themselves to be rhymesters this weekend – but whether they can disprove the first half of Twain’s assertion will be determined at April’s end.

Gianluca Ballotta gripped his ankle and writhed in pain on the heat-charged asphalt.
The wounded senior was unable to place any weight on his leg.
But Ballotta returned to the court just a few minutes later, using his racket as both a cane and a sword.

Rivalries bring intensity.
But once the matchups are in the rearview, teams look to carry that energy forward.
No. 24 UCLA men’s tennis (9-3, 3-0 Big Ten) will have the chance to do just that as it prepares to face Wisconsin (11-3, 2-2) on Friday and Nebraska (9-6, 1-3) on Sunday at the Los Angeles Tennis Center.