Dec. 14, 1999

LEXINGTON, Kty. – The Intercollegiate Tennis Association has released the tournament bracket for the 26th installment of the National Men?s Team Indoor Championships to be held from Feb. 24-27 in Louisville. In the 16-team tournament field that features the top 12 teams in the nation, the host 19th-ranked Kentucky Wildcats received an opening round match-up with the 4th-ranked Duke Blue Devils, the team that eliminated the Cats from the 1999 NCAA Championships. The tournament will take place at the Louisville Tennis Club on Herr Lane.

The Blue Devils have had the Wildcats? number in recent years, having taken the last eight meetings between the two schools, including last season?s 4-2 Duke win in the NCAA Round of Sixteen. The last UK win over Duke came in the third round of the National Indoors in 1994 when the Cats beat the Blue Devils, 4-3.

Other first round matches pit the No. 1 team in the nation, the UCLA Bruins, against 25th-ranked Harvard, No. 5 Florida and No. 12 Southern Methodist, No. 6 Ole Miss and No. 31 New Mexico, No. 38 Indiana State and defending NCAA Champion and eighth-ranked Georgia, No. 10 Illinois and No. 3 Stanford, No. 9 Tennessee and No. 7 Baylor and No. 11 Southern California and No. 2 Louisiana State.

Each team is guaranteed to play three matches in the four-day event.