Ohanon, Itzik

Itzhak Ohanon

Itzik is a highly athletic small forward with extremely long arms. His strength is mid-range shooting, particularly from the high-post. A starter for at St. Louis University as a junior during the 2004-05 season, Ohanan averaged 11.7 points (second on the team), 5.4 rebounds (led the team), 1.0 steals and 1.7 assists per game. The Billikens finished the season with a record of 9-21 (6-10 in conference).

Birth and Death Dates:
b. Feb 15, 1980

Career Highlights:
Itzik played for the Hapoel Ra�anana youth team but played his first professional games for Hapoel Galil Elyon. He made his debut during the 1999-2000 season, averaging 7.0 minutes per game. He emerged as a star during a successful European Championship in Slovenia.

In 2000, the forward was a starter on the Israeli under-20 team participating in the European Championship. In the first game, Israel took on the favored Greeks. Ohanon was among the best players on the court as he scored 13 points and collected 7 rebounds in Israel�s 80-77 victory. The young team beat Lithuania and Macedonia on the way to a historic quarterfinal berth. Itzik then scored 12 points as Israel beat France 72-55. In the semi-final, Israel shocked NBA star Pau Gasol�s powerhouse Spanish team, winning 69-65 in overtime. Once again the forward excelled, scoring 8 while putting on an impressive defensive display. Israel lost in the final, but Ohanon was among the revelations of the tournament.

Bnei Herzelyia signed the youngster and he often started for the top-league team in the 2000-01 campaign. Earning 22.6 minutes per game, he scored 8.6 points per game, took 3.6 rebounds and made 1.1 assists. At the end of the season he was courted by Israel�s top teams and a few mid-level European teams as well.

In the 2001 World Championship, the Jerusalemite was the starting small forward for Israel again. Ohanon helped Israel to a respectable seventh place finish. He scored 9 points against Japan, 8 against Croatia and 11 in a particularly memorable performance against Spain.

In 2001-02 Itzik signed with Hapoel Jerusalem, the second biggest team in the country. He became a bench player in his hometown, and had a notably poor rapport with the vociferous local fans. His minutes suffered, plummeting down to 11.8, with 5.0 ppg. However, Jerusalem enjoyed a solid season and came in second behind Maccabi Tel Aviv.

With his reputation in Israel at an all-time low, the forward traveled to St. Louis University in the 2002-03 season. He never fully found his rhythm, since he was suspended from the first eight games due to his professional background. As a freshman he found himself on the bench once again. In just 14.5 minutes per game, he scored 4.9 ppg and plucked 3.2 rpg. He showed promise with a 14 point, 6 rebound performance against Houston. The Billikens went 18-14 for the season and enjoyed an eight game winning streak midseason.

In 2003-04 Ohanon slowly but surely established himself as the starting small forward and worked his way up to 22.0 minutes per game. He averaged 7.2 ppg at 42% from the field. Once again the forward excelled against Houston as he scored 18 points, took six rebounds and made two steals. Against Grambling he scored a career high 21 points. St. Louis University finished with a solid 20-14 season mark.

Origin:
Jerusalem, Israel

Career Dates:
Ohanan plays at St. Louis, 2002-present.

Position:
Small Forward

Physical description:
6"9, 220 pounds

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