Men's Basketball Holds Joint Practice With Tsinghua on Tuesday

HIGHLIGHT VIDEO | PHOTO

St. Louis, Mo., November 30, 2010 – Washington University in St. Louis head men's basketball coach Mark Edwards said it best, "Lets have fun to culture."

And that is what the Washington University and Tsinghua University men's basketball teams did during a joint practice on Tuesday, Nov. 30, at the WU Field House in St. Louis.

Edwards and Tsinghua head coach Bo Li led drills during the two hour practice from 4-6 p.m. The practice ended with a group team photo taken of both teams.

“When we started the Lopata Classic tournament, we wanted to bring good academic institutions here and let them compete athletically,” said Edwards."At the same time, we wanted to provide all participating teams an experience outside of athletics. I think having the Tsinghua team here will add another level of interaction that everyone will benefit from.”

This marks the first time a team from China in any sport will visit the WUSTL campus. It is believed to be the first time a team from China has visited the St. Louis area.

The 27th Annual Lopata Classic will be held Friday and Saturday, Dec. 3-4, at the WU Field House. It is a four-team tournament that includes teams from Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges, Franklin & Marshall College Tsinghua and Washington University. The host Bears will take on Tsinghua at 8 p.m., on Friday, Dec. 3.