Beijing ball.

The Long Beach Breakers, a team in the semi-pro American Basketball Association, will be traveling to Singapore later this month to play two exhibition matches against the Beijing National Team.

For Breakers owner Carl Williams, the 15-hour flight is a challenge, but he's accepting it in order to get his team exposure to more than a billion people on the continent.

"I've been trying not to go, but now we will take advantage of it and maybe get a few more sponsors," said Williams.

In order to raise funds for the trip, Williams is looking for sponsors to help offset the cost of the flights. One of his partners is New Line Cinema, which has slated a Feb. 29 release of Will Ferrell film "Semi-Pro," a comedy about an ABA player in the '70s. The Breakers will distribute promotional items for the film at their Feb. 18 fundraiser at Smooth's Sports Grille in Long Beach.

The Breakers is one of a few ABA teams invited to play in China as the nation prepares to host the Olympic Games later this summer. Several players on the Chinese national team will compete in the game.

The Breakers feature younger players who are hoping to make it into the National Basketball Association as well as some retired NBA talent. California State University, Long Beach, alumnus and former Utah Jazz guard Bryon Russell mentors younger players and plays for the team while NBA veteran Olden Polynice coaches. Russell and Polynice will conduct a basketball clinic for kids in China.

Staff reporter David Nusbaum can be reached at [phone], ext. 236, or at [e-mail].