What’s the common link between a kibbutznik from Israel’s embattled north; the granddaughter of Israel’s first woman Olympian; and quite possibly the only student ever to transfer from Harvard to California Baptist University?
They’re all hitting the hardwoods this season as Jewish players on U.S. college basketball teams.
The NCAA season tipped off on Monday, and both the men’s and women’s leagues feature rosters of exciting players, some at basketball powerhouses and some at smaller programs. In women’s college hoops, no less than two dozen Israelis are taking the court across the country.
Here are 10 women and 10 men to watch this season. All athletes play in Division I hoops unless otherwise noted.
Women
Nitzan Amar, Manhattan College
Nitzan Amar during a college basketball game between the UNCG Spartans and the Wofford Terriers, Feb. 21, 2022, in Spartanburg, S.C. (John Byrum/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
One of 24 Israeli women playing college basketball stateside, according to Israeli outlet Sport 5, the 5-foot-10 guard is in her senior year and second season with the Jaspers after transferring from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. A native of Yiron, a kibbutz on Israel’s embattled northern border, Amar started in all 26 of her appearances last year, averaging 8.8 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.8 assists across 34.4 minutes per game.
Mariah Elohim, Fresno State University
A Second-Team All Northeast Conference pick with Long Island a season ago, the 5-foot-10 junior guard transferred close to her native Westlake, California, for this season. Elohim averaged 12.7 points per game last season, including a 30-point romp against Chicago State. She started and scored 16 points in her Fresno State debut this season.
Yarden Garzon, Indiana University
Yarden Garzon during a game against the South Carolina Gamecocks in the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament, March 29, 2024 in Albany. (Sarah Stier/Getty Images)
Now a three-year starter for an always-relevant No. 25 Hoosiers program, the 6-foot-3 junior guard earned All-Big Ten Honorable Mention honors last year after averaging 11.7 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game, following All-Big Ten Second Team and Freshman Team honors her first year. The Ra’anana, Israel, native scored 16 points and dished out three assists to go with three steals in Indiana’s season-opening win over Brown University.
Lior Garzon, University of Colorado
Yarden’s older sister, Lior transferred to Colorado for her final season of eligibility after two-year stints at Oklahoma State and Villanova. The 6-foot-1 forward averaged 9 points and 1.8 assists per game last year. Both Garzons were among the 20 players named to the Cheryl Miller Small Forward of the Year Preseason Watch List by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association.
Tova Gelb, Vassar College (Division III)
The Sharon, Mass., native has played in 78 of the Brewers’ 79 games over the past three seasons, posting her best offensive performance in 2023-24 with 14.3 points and a team-best 9.3 rebounds per game. Gelb, who plays guard, was a finalist for Vassar Athletics’ Betty Richey Performer of the Year Award last season, while earning First Team All-Region III and First Team All-Liberty League honors. Gelb’s father, Rabbi Ed Gelb, has led Camp Ramah New England since 2005.
Adara Groman, South Dakota University
A two-time gold medalist with Team USA at the Maccabi Games, Groman transferred to South Dakota this year after four seasons at the University of New Hampshire. The 5-foot-8 guard from Scituate, Massachusetts, started in her Coyotes debut, scoring 7 points and dishing out 3 assists across 28 minutes in an overtime loss to Saint Louis University.
Romi Levy, University of South Florida
Romi Levy during the American Athletic Conference Basketball media day, Oct. 13, 2024, in Irving, Texas. (Andrew Wevers/Getty Images)
The 6-foot-3 forward enjoyed a breakout campaign in her first season with the Bulls after transferring from Auburn University, averaging 14.7 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game en route to winning American Athletic Conference Newcomer of the Year and All-Conference Second Team honors. The Herzliya, Israel, native is the granddaughter of Tamara Metal Schumacher, a high jumper who was the first woman to represent Israel in the Olympics.
Shirel Nahum, University of California, Irvine
Shirel Nahum, center, reacts with teammates on the sideline during the semifinal game of the Big West Conference basketball tournament against the Long Beach State 49ers, March 15, 2024, in Henderson, Nevada. (Zak Krill/Getty Images)
A Big West All-Freshman Team selection a year ago, the 5-foot-9 guard from Ra’anana is looking to build off a strong rookie campaign. Nahum averaged 5.1 points and 2.2 rebounds per game, starting twice in 32 appearances for an Anteaters team that reached the NCAA Tournament for the second time in program history and the first since 1995.
Emmi Rinat, University of Toledo
Emmi Rinat during a game between the St. John’s Red Storm and the Toledo Rockets, March 24, 2024, in Toledo, Ohio. (Scott W. Grau/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
The 6-foot senior guard transferred to Toledo last year after two seasons at the University of Rhode Island. Hailing from Zafririm, Israel, Rinat averaged 4.9 points, 2.1 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game across 34 appearances, including six starts, helping Toledo to the Women’s Basketball Invitational Tournament quarterfinals.
Riley Weiss, Columbia University
Riley Weiss during a game between the Columbia Lions and the Princeton Tigers, March 16, 2024, in New York City. (Gregory Fisher/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
The 5-foot-10 sophomore guard is hoping to build on a standout freshman campaign in which she averaged 7.1 points per game. The Hewlett, New York, native earned three Ivy League Rookie of the Week honors and helped the Lions to the NCAA Tournament. She won gold at the 2022 Maccabiah Games with Team USA.
Men
Yoav Berman, Queens University
A 6-foot-6 freshman guard/forward from Tel Aviv, Berman has represented Team Israel in international play on the U-14, U-16, U-18 and now U-20 national teams. He chose Queens in North Carolina over several more prominent programs including Illinois, Florida and Virginia Commonwealth. Berman scored 13 points, pulled down four rebounds, handed out three assists and swiped two steals across 23 minutes in his collegiate debut Monday, a 90-39 win over Division III University of Lynchburg.
Zach Bloch, University of Northern Colorado
A 6-foot-2 senior guard, the Lawrence, Kansas, native averaged a career-best 5.8 points per game last year across 33 appearances, with 26 starts, and helped the Bears to the College Basketball Invitational.
Ben Callahan-Gold, Binghamton University
After four years at Division III Trinity COllege, the 6-foot-8 forward took his talents to the Division I level for his final season of collegiate eligibility. The New York City native started in his first game with the Bearcats, scoring 6 points in 27 minutes. Callahan-Gold traveled to Israel for the Maccabi games in 2022, but an injury prevented him from playing.
Benny Gaeler, Stanford University
The only high schooler selected to the U.S. gold medal-winning team at the 2022 Maccabi games, Gaeler initially joined the Cardinals program as a walk-on. The 6-foot-1 junior guard from Palos Verdes Estates, California, worked his way into a key role last season, averaging 4.2 points, 1.6 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game across 32 appearances.
Jon Mani, University of Denver
A Los Angeles native, Mani was the 46th overall-ranked shooting guard and a three-star recruit per 247Sports, the highest-ranked recruit since the program bumped up to Division I in 1998. The 6-foot-6 guard played 11 minutes off the bench in his collegiate debut this year, a loss to Stanford, and scored his first career bucket. Mani told the L.A. Times in 2022 that he and his brother, Jac, who plays at the University of California, Davis, were “painting a new wave for Jewish hoopers” during their successful high school careers in Beverly Hills.
Blake Peters, Princeton University
Blake Peters shoots in a game against the Harvard Crimson at Lavietes Pavilion in Allston, Mass., Feb. 25, 2023. (Erica Denhoff/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
A 6-foot-1 senior guard from Evanston, Illinois, Peters turned heads during the 2023 NCAA Tournament, where NJ.com called him “the most interesting man” among the 68-team field because of his lofty goals off the court — namely, to “be one of the next leaders in American foreign policy.” Peters started in all 29 of his appearances last season and averaged 7.8 points and 2.5 rebounds per game.
Zevi Samet, Yeshiva University (Division III)
Yeshiva University men’s basketball star Zevi Samet. ((Kodiak Creative/Jimmy Naprstek)
One of the best players in Division III hoops, the 6-foot-2 junior guard averaged 22.7 points and 4.1 rebounds per game last year, earning Skyline First-Team All-Conference honors. The fastest player to score 1,000 points in Maccabee history, the Monsey, New York, native notched four performances with 30 or more points last season.
Ben Shtolzberg, University of California, Santa Barbara
Ben Shtolzberg during a game against Loyola Marymount, Dec. 16, 2023, in Phoenix. (Zac BonDurant/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
A 6-foot-4 junior from Northridge, California, Shtolzberg enters his second season with UCSB after spending his freshman year at Creighton University. He appeared in 23 games off the bench last year, averaging 2.9 points and 1.1 assists per game. In 2021, he told ProInsight that he wanted to set an example for Jewish basketball players.
Sam Silverstein, Cal Baptist
A captain of Harvard’s team as a junior two years ago, Silverstein sat out last season with the intention to graduate, transfer and play his final two years of eligibility elsewhere, ultimately choosing Cal Baptist. The Glencoe, Illinois, native averaged 7.2 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2 assists per game as a junior at Harvard in 2022-23. He competed at the 2022 Maccabi Games with Team USA.
Danny Wolf, University of Michigan
Danny Wolf during a game against the Cleveland State Vikings, Nov. 4, 2024, in Ann Arbor. (Aaron J. Thornton/Getty Images)
This Glencoe, Illinois, native transferred from Yale to Michigan for his junior season this year. The 7-foot center put up 19 points, 13 rebounds and 2 assists across just 24 minutes in his Wolverines debut. Wolf, who holds dual American and Israeli citizenship, won a silver medal with Team Israel at the 2023 FIBA Under-20 European Championships in Heraklion, Greece. After averaging just 2.6 points per game as a freshman, he exploded as a sophomore at Yale last year, averaging 14.1 points and 9.7 rebounds per game, earning first team All-Ivy honors.
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