Tulsa lands preseason NBA game

Associated Press

TULSA, Okla. - Oklahoma City's new NBA team will play a preseason game against the Houston Rockets at Tulsa's new downtown arena.

The game will be played Oct. 13, the date Houston initially was scheduled to take on the Orlando Magic in the arena.

It will be the first game played in the state by the new team.

Clay Bennett, the chairman of the Oklahoma City team's ownership group, announced the game Monday on the floor of the 18,000-seat BOK Center.

Oklahoma City and Tulsa are separated by an 86-mile stretch of Interstate 44, and Oklahoma City team officials often have said they consider Tulsa to be part of the team's potential fan base.

Tulsa city officials supported Oklahoma City's bid to land the NBA franchise.