Alex Sobel (born February 8, 2000) is an American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player who plays the forward position for

Hapoel Haifa Hapoel Haifa Football Club (, ''Moadon HaKaduregel Hapoel Haifa'') is an Israeli professional football club located in the city of Haifa. The club won one championship (1998–99) and 4 Israeli cups (1962–63, 1965–66 and 1973–74, 2 ...

of the

Israeli Basketball Premier League Ligat HaAl (, lit., ''Supreme League or Premier League''), or the Israeli Basketball Premier League, is a professional basketball league in Israel and the highest level of basketball in the country. The league's name is abbreviated as either BSL ...

(ISBL). He attended

Middlebury College Middlebury College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Middlebury, Vermont, United States. Founded in 1800 by Congregationalism in the United States, Congregationalists, Middlebury w ...

, where in 2022-23 he was second in the nation in blocks and blocks per game, led the

New England Small College Athletic Conference The New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) is an intercollegiate athletic conference that competes in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division III, Division III comprising sports teams from eleven highly s ...

in points and rebounds per game, and was named the D3hoops.com National Player of the Year. The following season, he attended

Sacred Heart University Sacred Heart University (SHU) is a private, Roman Catholic university in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States. It was founded in 1963 by Walter W. Curtis, Bishop of the Diocese of Bridgeport, Connecticut. Sacred Heart was the first Catholi ...

and played in the

Northeast Conference The Northeast Conference (NEC) is a collegiate athletic conference whose schools are members of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Teams in the NEC compete in Division I for all sports; football competes in the Division I Foo ...

, and led the conference in blocks (as he was sixth in the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

) per game and two-point field-goal percentage, and was fourth in the conference in rebounds per game.

Early life and high school career

Sobel's hometown is

Setauket, New York Setauket is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the Town of Brookhaven, Suffolk County, New York, United States, on the North Shore of Long Island. As of the 2010 United States census, the CDP population, which at the time included ...

. He attended

Ward Melville High School Ward Melville High School is a public high school in the Three Village Central School District of Suffolk County, New York on Long Island, serving grades ten through twelve. It is fed by the two junior high schools in the district: Paul J. ...

, where he played for the basketball team and was named a Suffolk County All Star. He is tall, and weighs ."Alex Sobel,"
sports-reference.com.

College career

Middlebury College

Sobel first attended

, studying for a double major in computer science and American studies. There, playing for the

Middlebury College Panthers The Middlebury Panthers are the 31 varsity teams of Middlebury College that compete in the New England Small College Athletic Conference. The Panthers lead the NESCAC in total number of national championships, having won 42 team titles since the ...

in the

, in 2018-19 he averaged 13.9 minutes, 6.1 points, 5.5 rebounds per game (leading the conference in blocks), and had a field goal percentage of .564."Old Field resident scores big during college basketball career,"
''TBR News Media''. In 2019–20, he averaged 19.5 minutes, 11.4 points, and 6.8 rebounds per game. Between 2020 and 2021, because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Sobel took a year and a half off from school. In 2021–22, he averaged 28.8 minutes, 18.3 points, 12.1 rebounds per game, and was captain of the team."Junior forward powers Panther men's hoop,"
''Addison Independent''. In 2021–22, Sobel was named First-Team All-

NESCAC The New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) is an intercollegiate athletic conference that competes in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III comprising sports teams from eleven highly selective liberal a ...

, D3hoops.com First-Team All-Region 1, NABC First-Team All-District I, and D3hoops.com Fourth-Team All-American. In 2022–23, Sobel was 2nd in the nation in blocks (101) and blocks per game (3.88), and led the NESCAC in points (19.4), rebounds (11.8), and blocks per game (3.88)."Alex Sobel,"
middlebury.edu. He was named a Small College Basketball's Clarence “Bevo” Francis Award Finalist, the D3hoops.com National Player of the Year, a D3hoops.com First-Team All-American, a NABC First-Team All-American, to the D3hoops.com First-Team All-Region 1, the D3hoops.com Region 1 Most Outstanding Player, to the NABC First-Team All-District I, the NABC District I Player of the Year the NESCAC Player & Defensive Player of the Year, to the First-Team All-NESCAC, and a 2x

USBWA The United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) was founded in 1956 with the urging of National Collegiate Athletic Association director Walter Byers to serve the interests of journalists who cover college basketball. Scholarships The U ...

National Player of the Week."Alex Sobel,"
Sacred Heart University Pioneers. He was also a finalist for the Bevo Francis Award, which recognizes the top small college basketball player in the United States for a given season.

Sacred Heart University

Sobel then attended

, and played basketball for the

Sacred Heart Pioneers The Sacred Heart Pioneers are the 32 sports teams (14 men, 18 women) representing Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, Connecticut in intercollegiate athletics. The Pioneers compete in the NCAA Division I and are members of the Metro Atlantic A ...

in the

. In 2023-24 he played 31 games (30 starts), and averaged 12.3 points and 7.4 rebounds (4th in the conference), 1.2 steals, and 2.8 blocks (leading the conference, and 6th in the

) per game, as he had a .591 two-point field goal percentage (leading the conference). He was named to the All-NEC Second Team. He scored a season high 23 points in a loss against Albany on December 19, 2023.

Professional career

Hapoel Haifa (2024–present)

On September 19, 2024, he signed with

of the

(ISBL).

References

External links

Middlebury Panthers bioSacred Heart Pioneers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sobel, Alex 2000 births Living people American expatriate basketball people in Israel American men's basketball players Basketball players from Suffolk County, New York Forwards (basketball) Hapoel Haifa B.C. players Middlebury Panthers men's basketball players People from Setauket, New York Sacred Heart Pioneers men's basketball players Ward Melville High School alumni