News & notes

The other shoe dropped for the Albany Empire, and the rest of the Arena Football League, for that matter, on Wednesday when it was announced that the league had filed for bankruptcy under chapter 7, keeping the league shuttered permanently.

The league had to deal with a multi-million dollar lawsuit that predated the introduction of the Empire prior to the 2018 season, but could not raise enough capital to overcome and cancel the debt.

This makes Empire star Malachi Jones perhaps the smartest player in the league, having signed with an XFL franchise last month, ensuring he will see action at least in the first half of 2020. For everyone else, there'll be free agent tryout camps in the US & overseas, and maybe, just maybe, the XFL, overseen by WWE CEO/Chairman Vince McMahon, might open its doors to more AFL players. Stay tuned.
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There are a fair number of basketball tournaments opening up tonight throughout Section II. Unfortunately, pre-game details are sketchy at the moment, including a tournament at the Washington Avenue Armory, which will feature, among others, Watervliet, Shaker, Catholic Central, Notre Dame-Bishop Gibbons, and host Bishop Maginn. A phone call to the Armory on Wednesday netted nothing, only because event organizers hadn't been in contact with the venue in advance. That usually spells trouble.
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Former Shenendehowa star Kevin Huerter, in his 2nd season with the NBA's Atlanta Hawks, has been sidelined of late with a shoulder injury, and, at last check, was held out of the team's current road trip. We'll keep you updated.
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Just as he's basking in the glow of national television exposure for the first time in his career, NXT star and Albany native Bobby Fish was pulled from the Undisputed Era's tag title defense vs. Keith Lee & Dominic Dijakovic (whom local wrestling fans will remember as Donovan Dijak) on Wednesday when he suffered a knee injury after Lee dropped Fish over the top rope and onto Kyle O'Reilly. NXT North American champion Roderick Strong replaced Fish and finished the match. As of press time, there's no word on how long Fish will be out of the ring. Best wishes for a speedy recovery to one of the 518's very own.