Texas, Washington Play First NCAA Men's Basketball Game In China

The Univ. of Texas and Univ. of Washington on Saturday took part in the "first-ever regular-season men's basketball game played in China." The crowd of 7,188 at Shanghai's Mercedes-Benz Arena did not include "much loyalty to either team." But the spectators "seemed entertained by the game nonetheless." Former NBAer Yao Ming "got a big reaction" when shown on the videoboard (AP, 11/14). Washington "embraced every minute of the first Pac-12 China game, hustling and muscling its way around Mercedes-Benz Arena." It was "awful basketball." Neither team "could get any consistent flow, and fans saw 42 free-throw attempts in the first 20 minutes" (HOOKEM.com, 11/14). The game was not sold out, as the arena can seat up to 18,000 fans (THE DAILY).