All eyes will be on Citizens Business Bank Arena tonight as the Los Angeles Lakers and the Oklahoma City Thunder play an exhibition basketball game in the first event in the new building.
The game will be nationally televised on ESPN.
"This is a great way of letting people know there is such a great venue here in Southern California,"
said Sue Oxarart, the arena's director of marketing.
When officials learned that the game would be nationally televised, Oxarart said it was "the icing on the cake."
But fans across the Inland Empire, such as Ontario Councilman Alan Wapner, were holding their collective breath earlier this week when it seemed that Lakers star Kobe Bryant would miss the game because of an injured knee.
Bryant is hopeful of playing tonight.
If he does, it will make the experience of watching the Lakers play in Ontario a little more enjoyable for Wapner, who bought four floor tickets behind a basketball hoop.
"I'm anxious and excited about the event,"
Wapner said.
Doors for the Lakers game will be opened an hour before the 7:30 p.m. tip-off.
Preparations for the game started Wednesday with a conversion crew covering the ice rink and installing the basketball court.
The arena has also been prepared for hungry fans as concession stands are fully stocked, arena officials said.
The seats are clean and the staff is prepared to make the experience the best possible for the community as well as the athletes, Oxarart said.
Saturday night marks another first for the $140 million arena, as it will be the home opener for the Ontario Reign, a minor-league hockey team affiliate of the Los Angeles Kings.
When the Lakers game is over, the conversion crew will spend the next couple of hours preparing the ice for the hockey game, Oxarart said.
While tickets are sold out for the Lakers game, there are still tickets available for the Reign's home opener with the Las Vegas Wranglers.
"The Ontario Reign is the local team everybody has been waiting for,"
Oxarart said.
For those heading out to either game, Oxarart suggests they visit the arena's fan guide section on its Web site at cbbankarena.com.
While the NBA exhibition game is the first major event at the arena, officials with AEG Facilities have already lined up music acts such as Carrie Underwood, Alan Jackson and Trace Adkins.
The arena has been dubbed by many in the community as the entertainment icon of the Inland Empire, partly because there is no other arena within a 40-mile radius, Oxarart said.
Aside from the hockey games, the goal is to hold about 125 events that range from concerts and family-oriented events to sporting events.
"It is a dream come true,"
Wapner said.
The 225,000-square-foot arena is in the 4000 block of Ontario Parkway.
