IRVING, Texas – Five American Athletic Conference teams were among the 64 squads that were chosen for the 2021 NCAA Men's Tennis Championship.
UCF, which won its first American Athletic Conference men's tennis title April 23, earned the No. 9 overall seed in the tournament, sending a four-team pod to the USTA National Campus in Orlando for the first and second rounds.
The Knights will begin tournament play May 7 against Northeast Conference champion Monmouth and would face either Miami (Fla.) or Mississippi State in the second round with a win against the Hawks. UCF brings a 13-match winning streak into the postseason as the Knights reached the NCAA tournament for the sixth time in program history.
USF will make its 14th NCAA appearance as the Bulls were paired against Duke in the first round in Gainesville, Florida. The Bulls, who fell to UCF in the final of the American Athletic Conference Championship, would face either top-seeded Florida or South Alabama with a win against the Blue Devils. USF defeated Duke 4-0 in a first-round match of the 2017 tournament the last time the teams met in postseason play.
Memphis is in the NCAA Championship for the seventh time overall and the fourth time in the last five tournaments. The Tigers will face Georgia Tech in a first-round match in Knoxville, Tennessee, with a second-round match against either No. 3-seeded Tennessee or Alabama A&M awaiting the winner.
Wichita State was chosen for the NCAA Championship for the first time as a member of The American as the Shockers reach the national field for the 12th time in program history. Wichita State, which last played in the NCAA tournament in 2016, will face Arizona State in a first-round match in Fort Worth, Texas. The Shockers would take on either No. 7-seeded TCU or Arkansas with a victory.
Tulane is back in the NCAA Championship for the fifth consecutive season (not including the shortened 2020 season) as the Green Wave faces Middle Tennessee in a first-round match in Oxford, Mississippi. A win against the Blue Raiders would send Tulane to a second-round matchup against either No. 15-seeded Ole Miss or Belmont.
The five American Athletic Conference teams selected for the NCAA Championship ties the conference record, matching the league's contingents in the 2016 and 2017 tournaments.
The first and second rounds of the NCAA Championship will take place at 16 sites that were selected from a group of 20 predetermined sites. The winners from each site advance to the USTA National Campus in Orlando, where the 16 remaining teams will compete for the national championship May 17-28. The national finals are hosted by UCF and the Greater Orlando Sports Commission.
2021 NCAA MEN’S TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIP
American Athletic Conference pairings
First Round | May 7 or 8
Gainesville, Fla.
USF (16-9) vs. Duke (12-10)
(1) Florida (20-2) vs. South Alabama (12-7)
Orlando, Fla.
(9) UCF (21-3) vs. Monmouth (14-2)
Miami (Fla.) (8-10) vs. Mississippi State (16-9)
Knoxville, Tenn.
Memphis (9-8) vs. Georgia Tech (13-9)
(3) Tennessee (24-3) vs. Alabama A&M (6-6)
Fort Worth, Texas
Wichita State (15-8) vs. Arizona State (16-8)
(7) TCU (16-7) vs. Arkansas (10-14)
Oxford, Mississippi
Tulane (14-7) vs. Middle Tennessee (17-7)
(15) Ole Miss (11-10) vs. Belmont (13-4)