The Sweet 16's still sweet, but the Kentucky men's tennis team is looking for a taste of something new.

When the Wildcats meet Stanford Friday at 4 p.m. in the NCAA Tournament's Sweet 16 in Athens, Ga., they'll be playing in the tournament's third round for the third straight season and seeking their second straight trip to the Elite Eight.

And that would be nice. But it won't be quite enough. Sixth-ranked Kentucky (28-5) has designs on a Final Four - and maybe more. Dennis Emery is in his 30th season as the Cats' head coach, and he might have his best shot yet at winning an NCAA title.

"We're just better than we have been, in terms of our talent," Emery said. "We have the ability to make mistakes and outrun them, out-jump them, out-serve them. Our talent level is just significantly better this year. We're more athletic. I've been around long enough that I had forgotten how important it is to have the best players."

Emery's confidence starts at the top of the lineup, where UK has talent and experience at No. 1 and No. 2 singles in seniors Eric Quigley and Alex Musialek, ranked third and 15th, respectively, in the latest Intercollegiate Tennis Association rankings.

Two other Wildcats, No. 22 Anthony Rossi and No. 80 Tom Jomby, are ranked in the Top 100, and Kentucky has two doubles teams ranked in the ITA Top 40.

"When you're here, when you're at Kentucky, when you're in the SEC, one thing I've learned over 30 years is when you have a good team, you better win," Emery said. "... It's important when you're good to seal the deal and really put the nail in the coffin. That's what we have to do this week coming up."

The Cats face a tall task in tackling No. 11 Stanford (19-8), which beat UK 4-1 at the National Team Indoor Championships in February. The Cardinal has two singles players - No. 29 Ryan Thacher and No. 36 Bradley Klahn - in the ITA top 40, and that duo also forms the nation's fourth-ranked doubles team.

Quigley said the Wildcats "definitely want to get some revenge" for the loss to Stanford at the National Indoors. More than that, Kentucky wants to advance back to the Elite Eight and beyond.

"We don't just want to improve on the previous year," Quigley said. "We want to go all the way. We're just trying to take it one match at a time. We've got our hands full with Stanford, and we'll see after that."