DAYTON, Ohio –University of Dayton Athletics will broadcast Flyer home men's basketball games in Mandarin Chinese, online, via DaytonFlyers.com during the 2015-16 campaign. Mandarin is the most widely spoken language in China.

University of Dayton students Hang Gu, Yiqing Zhou, Ruixu Liu, Xueyin Shi, Xinsi Chen and Bin Zhou will be the announcers for the free broadcasts on a rotating basis, which start Nov. 7 with the Flyers' first exhibition game versus Saginaw State.

"This is an exceptional opportunity to promote the Dayton Flyers brand internationally and provide our students with unique real-world experience," said Assistant Athletic Director Michael LaPlaca. "The combination of basketball's popularity in China and the opportunity for international students to become more involved with Flyer athletics sets the University of Dayton apart from any other institution."

According to an Associated Press story in September, it appears only the University of Illinois, for football, is broadcasting games in Chinese — and only for football. The story mentions many pro and college teams that broadcast games in Spanish, including Texas and Texas A&M.

During University of Dayton President Daniel J. Curran's tenure, enrollment of Chinese students has increased dramatically from a bare handful to an estimated 627 the most of any international student population at UD.

In addition to partnerships with 10 Chinese universities, the University of Dayton China Institute in the Suzhou Industrial Park is a permanent Flyer presence in China, one of the world's fastest growing economic regions and home to a third of the world's Fortune 500 companies.

The University of Dayton China Institute has elevated the University of Dayton into the realm of global American universities. In one of the fastest-growing innovation centers in the world, engineers, scientists and students are collaborating with Fortune 500 companies in Suzhou Industrial Park, securing venture capital and bringing technology to the market.

"Basketball is incredibly popular in China and we are thankful for the opportunity," said student broadcaster Bin Zhou. "For us in the international community, it is a great experience and helps bring our friends and family closer to Flyer Basketball."

The announcers are all full-time University of Dayton students, whose majors range from Electro-Optics Engineering to Financial Mathematics.

Flyer fans are also still able to access the English language broadcasts for free all season long on DaytonFlyers.com and on AM 1290 and News 95.7 WHIO.

The Mandarin Chinese broadcasts represent Dayton's latest venture in distributing digital content. Over the previous seven years, DaytonFlyers.com has expanded its free live video stream broadcasts to include more than 400 free events covering eight sports.

Dayton is the preseason favorite in the Atlantic 10 after recording a 27-9 record and advancing to the Third Round of the NCAA tournament last season. UD has won 53 games the previous two seasons, including five NCAA tournament games.