The first event held in the Sawyer Center was SNU's annual Excel Auction on February 11, 1998. The first sporting event was one week later, when the men's and women's basketball teams took on their cross-town rivals from
Oklahoma City University. The Crimson Storm defeated both teams. From 2001 to 2008, the Sawyer Center was home to the championship games of the National Christian Homeschool Basketball Championships. Every year the event was held there, the Sawyer Center held capacity crowds. In the last 2 years of the tournament, people were being turned away because of firecodes. Due to the catastrophic devastation brought by
Hurricane Katrina, the
New Orleans Hornets franchise temporarily relocated their base of operations to
Oklahoma City for two seasons in 2005–06 and 2006–07. During this time, the franchise was known as the New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets. In these two seasons, the vast majority of home games were played at the
Ford Center in Oklahoma City, while a few remained at
New Orleans Arena. During the
New Orleans Hornets temporary relocation to
Oklahoma City, the Sawyer Center was the official practice facility for the Oklahoma City/New Orleans Hornets. The Sawyer Center will also serve as the temporary practice facility for the new
Oklahoma City Thunder basketball team, until a permanent facility is built. ==References==