Rebecca Lobo Dissed Albany & Now The People Of Town Are Furious At ESPN

A caustic remark by Rebecca Lobo abruptly drew unwanted attention to the host city on Monday night as Caitlin Clark and the Iowa watched the clock run down on their Elite Eight triumph in Albany, N.Y.

Rebecca Lobo Dissed Albany & Now The People Of Town Are Furious At ESPN

As Iowa prepared to go on in the N.C.A.A. women’s basketball championship, an ESPN commentator shared a story about how star shooting guard Clark had instructed her family to spend the night in the capital of New York and leave her alone before the game. Rebecca Lobo, the second commentator, chuckled.

“Good luck finding something to do in Albany,” she said.

After former UConn and Liberty standout Rebecca Lobo disparaged the city during Monday’s LSU-Iowa March Madness game on ESPN, the citizens of Albany are retaliating.

As the broadcast showed Caitlin Clark’s parents, Brent and Anne, and one of her brothers near the end of the game, play-by-play man Ryan Ruocco said, “[Clark] told us, ‘they’ve been reaching out to me,’ and I’ve told them, ‘just go find something to do in Albany. I’m just staying in my room and just waiting for the game.”

Todd Shapiro, the proprietor of the “War Room Tavern” in Albany and a former spokesperson for Ivana Trump, was infuriated by this and demanded that restaurants and bars terminate their ESPN subscriptions and issue an apology to Lobo.

Clearly, Lobo did not mean any harm when he made the joke about Albany. That didn’t stop the outrage over Lobo’s remarks on social media. Following the ESPN college basketball analyst’s late-game jab at the city, here are some of the greatest responses.

William Kennedy, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author who has penned several fiction works centered on Albany and its people, expressed his sympathy for Lobo.

“If she can’t find something to do in Albany, there’s some psychological problem going on,” Kennedy, the 96-year-old Albany native, said.

“Albany is not the capital of entertainment in the world, but it’s a livewire city.

Albany Mayor Kathy Sheehan responded to a video of Lobo’s comment on X, defending the city as a happening place.

“There’s plenty to do if you take the time to look — some of the nation’s oldest museums, a stately Capitol, award-winning restaurants, and a basketball game or two downtown,” Sheehan wrote on X. “@RebeccaLobo, let’s take a ride before you leave town. Happy to show you all there is to see and do.”

Those eight words could have been the hardest hit in a game that saw 36 fouls. In addition to the over 14,000 spectators that flocked Albany’s hotels and eateries on Monday, many more fans went from across the nation to witness some of the best women’s college basketball teams play during the weekend.

A further million people watched the telecast. All eyes, that is, were on Albany.

Former W.N.B.A. player Lobo, who attended the University of Connecticut, subsequently expressed regret on social media, stating that she had visited Albany on several weekends while serving as a coach for her kids’ sports teams.

The head coach of South Carolina, who is still unbeaten, Dawn Staley, was all praise for Albany’s choice as the host city for the women’s NCAA Tournament.

“I thought this region did an excellent job at hosting all the teams, the hotels, the gym was very accommodating,” Staley said after the Gamecocks beat Oregon State on Sunday to advance to the Final Four. “If you make a bid for it again, you’ve got my vote.”

Lobo responded to the backlash on X.

“I’ve spent many fun-filled weekends in the Albany area over the years coaching my kids’ AAU teams,” she wrote. “No shade intended towards the capital city and the outstanding job they did hosting the regional.”

What did Rebecca Lobo say about Albany NY?

In the closing moments of Iowa vs. Louisiana State University, ESPN Announcer Rebecca Lobo threw a jab at the host city, saying, “And by the way, good luck finding something to do in Albany.”

What is Rebecca Lobo famous for?

One of the first female players to sign with the WNBA in 1997, Lobo went on to become an All-Star and an All-WNBA performer. Lobo has been a prominent commentator for Women’s College Basketball and the WNBA at ESPN since he retired from the game in 2003.

What happened to Rebecca Lobo?

Currently residing in Granby, Connecticut, with her spouse and four kids, Lobo is regarded as a college basketball commentator on ESPN where she is known for her intelligent, insightful coverage of the sport she has helped to promote and define for more than two decades.

 

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