Bears Open Hoops Practice in Advance of Tour to Cancun
8/20/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Aug. 20, 2007
WACO, Texas - Baylor's men's basketball team will begin practice Monday in preparation for a four-day foreign tour to Cancun, Mexico. The Bears get an early jump on their 2007-08 season by playing two games against Mexican club teams over Labor Day weekend.
"Our basketball team is very excited to get a head start on the season," head coach Scott Drew said. "This will be a great opportunity to gel and a great learning experience for our team to visit a foreign country and have a chance to see some of the world."
Per NCAA rules, schools can take one foreign tour every four years and are allowed 10 additional practice days. Baylor will begin practice Monday; because the trip begins after the start of classes the entire roster is eligible to travel. The Bears depart for Cancun after the conclusion of classes Aug. 31, and return to Waco Sept. 3.
Baylor plays two games, the first against Selecciones de Belize Sept. 1, at 6:30 p.m. CDT. In game two, Sept. 2 at 8 p.m., the Bears play the Quintana Roo Pioneros of Mexico's Liga Nacional de Baloncesto Profesional (LNBP). The Pioneros, which open their LNBP schedule Sept. 6, lost two games to Auburn during a foreign tour earlier this month.
This marks Baylor's first foreign basketball tour since a trip to Australia in 1997.
The Bears return all five starters in 2007-08 as well as nine lettermen from last season's squad that finished 15-16. The Bears tip off the season Nov. 2 when they host Tarleton State in an exhibition game. The regular-season opener is Nov. 11 against Jackson State at the Ferrell Center.
BAYLOR CANCUN FOREIGN TOUR GAME SCHEDULE
Sept. 1 vs. Selecciones de Belize, 6:30 p.m. CDT
Sept. 2 vs. Quintana Roo Pioneros, 8 p.m. CDT
