Elitzur Holon, last season’s runner-up in the women’s league, signed Maya Elmalih on Tuesday, a highly rated 18-year-old guard from Israel’s U20 national program. The club was the first to report the deal, and the signing is part of Holon’s push to finish the job in the 2026/27 season after coming close last year.
Elmalih, who stands 1.70 meters tall, developed in Maccabi Ramat HaSharon’s youth system. Last season she helped the club win the girls’ championship, was named to the league’s best five, and also contributed to the senior team’s Israel Basketball Association Cup triumph in the National League. She finished the girls’ season as Defensive Player of the Year, made the season’s best five again, posted averages of 20 points, 4.3 rebounds, 3.7 steals and 2.7 assists per game, and was also named Finals MVP.
She has represented Israel at every youth level, from cadets to girls to the U20 team. With the girls’ national team, she was part of a historic run that reached the World Championship for the first time after making the 2024 European Championship semifinals. She is currently on the U20 roster ahead of next week’s European Championship in Lithuania.
Elmalih joins captain Eden Rotberg, Tal Lev and Stasha Kari, who had already signed with Holon this summer. Coach Roy Lazar said the club was “very happy” to add “a young, athletic and talented player” who brings “talent, winning mentality and great character” and can contribute on both ends of the floor. Elmalih said she was excited to begin “a new chapter” after years in Ramat HaSharon and felt welcomed by the club’s “trust, professionalism and genuine desire to develop and succeed.”
