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Sam Iorio
סם איוריו
No. 22 – Hapoel Be'er Sheva
PositionForward
LeagueIsraeli Basketball Premier League
Personal information
Born (1998-08-31) August 31, 1998 (age 26)
Allentown, Pennsylvania, U.S.
NationalityAmerican-Israeli
Listed height6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
Listed weight228 lb (103 kg)
Career information
High schoolParkland High School (Allentown, Pennsylvania)
College
Medals
Representing  United States
Basketball
Maccabiah Games
Gold medal – first place 2022 Israel Basketball

Sam Iorio (סם איוריו; born August 31, 1998) is an American-Israeli professional basketball player who plays the forward position for Hapoel Be'er Sheva of the Israeli Basketball Premier League.[1] Playing for Parkland High School in Allentown, Pennsylvania, he graduated in 2017 as the school's all-time leading career scorer. In college, he played for American University for two seasons, for the University of South Alabama for one season, and for Niagara University for two seasons. He won a gold medal with Team USA at the 2022 Maccabiah Games in Israel. In 2023 he signed a three-year contract with Hapoel Be'er Sheva.

Early and personal life

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Iorio was born in Allentown, Pennsylvania, in the United States.[1] His parents are Mike (who played basketball at Philadelphia University) and Donna Iorio, and his grandfather is former Villanova University basketball player Sam Iorio.[2][3][4][5] At seven years of age, with his mother making the decision for him, he converted to Judaism from Christianity.[4] He had a bar mitzvah, and a tattoo on his left wrist that with the inscription “Baruch Hashem,” which translates from Hebrew to “Blessed Is The Name,” his mother's favorite saying,[6] In 2022 he said: "If you would’ve told me when I was 7 years old, where converting to Judaism would take me, I would have never believed you. It’s just been one of the biggest blessings of my life, and I owe my mom a lot of credit for having the faith and courage to do that."[4] American-born, he also obtained dual Israeli citizenship.[7][8]

Iorio attended for Parkland High School in Allentown, playing guard and forward for its Trojans basketball team.[9][10][11] He graduated in 2017 as the school's all-time leading career scorer with 1,892 points as he averaged 16.5 points and 6.5 rebounds per game.[12][13][10][14] He was named Class 6A Player of the Year and First Team All-Pennsylvania, and was named Player of the Year in both 2015 and 2016 by the The Morning Call.[5][15]

He is 6' 7" (201 cm) tall, and weighs 228 pounds (104 kg).[1]

College

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Iorio attended three different colleges in seven years, playing parts of six different college seasons, and scoring 1,459 career points.[7][10]

American University

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Iorio attended American University, where he played for the American Eagles men's basketball team for two seasons.[16][3]

In 2017–18 in his freshman year, Iorio averaged 14.9 points (8th in the Patriot League), 6.5 rebounds (5th), 0.9 blocks (5th), and 1.4 steals (9th) per game, as he shot 47.7% from the floor (7th) and 43.7% from three point range.[16][5][13][17] He was named to the Patriot League All-Rookie Team.[16]

In 2018–19 in his sophomore year, he started 27 games and averaged 13.3 points, 6.5 rebounds (5th in the Patriot League), and 0.9 blocks (8th) per game, as Iorio shot 80.3% from the free throw line.[18][16][5][17]

South Alabama

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Iorio transferred to the University of South Alabama, whose South Alabama Jaguars basketball team plays in the Sun Belt Conference, which he attended from 2019–21.[16][19] He did not play in 2019–20, sitting out his first year at the school to comply with NCAA transfer rules.[16]

In 2020–21, he played in 25 games (11 starts) and averaged 7.6 points and 3.8 rebounds per game, as Iorio shot 80.6% from the free throw line.[20][16][17][21]

Niagara University

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Iorio started 55 of 60 games playing for Niagara University's Niagara Purple Eagles basketball team in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference from 2021–23, starting immediately as a graduate transfer as he studied for his MBA.[6][22][7][23]

In 2021–22 while he was a graduate student he played in 30 games (25 starts), and averaged 8.4 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 0.8 blocks (7th in the conference) per game.[16][24]

In 2022–23 Iorio played in 30 games (25 starts), and averaged 8.0 points and 5.5 rebounds per game.[16] He graduated from Niagara University in 2023.[1][25]

Maccabiah Games

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In 2019, Iorio played for Team USA in the 2019 European Maccabi Games in Budapest, Hungary, and the team won the gold medal, defeating Team Russia in the final.[4][10][26]

Three years later, Iorio won a gold medal as part of Team USA’s men’s basketball team at the 2022 Maccabiah Games in Israel, defeating Team France in the final.[4][27] His head coach was Doug Gottlieb.[28] He played in all six games during the tournament and averaged 5.5 points and 3.8 rebounds per game.[29][30]

Professional career

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Hapoel Be'er Sheva

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In July 2023 Iorio signed a three-year contract with, and he now plays forward for, Hapoel Be'er Sheva of the Israeli Basketball Premier League.[1][12][7][31][32] His jersey is number 22.[33]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e "Sam Iorio," EuroBasket.
  2. ^ CJ Hemerly (March 2, 2016). "Iorio continues family tradition," Lehigh Valley Press News.
  3. ^ a b Anthony Dabbundo (September 20, 2016). "American nabs Parkland wing Sam Iorio," City of Basketball.
  4. ^ a b c d e Dylan Manfre (August 2022). "Sam Iorio Gets in Touch With Jewish Faith While Winning Gold at 21st Maccabiah," Maccabi USA.
  5. ^ a b c d "Sam Iorio," USA Jaguars.
  6. ^ a b Noah Friedman (June 30, 2022). "Maccabi USA Men’s Open Basketball Team To Embark on Variety of Journeys," Maccabi USA.
  7. ^ a b c d Nick Sabato (November 13, 2023). "Ex-Niagara forward Sam Iorio processing past, future as pro career in Israel is halted by war," Niagra Gazette.
  8. ^ "Former Parkland standout Sam Iorio & David Mika Jr," EasternPaFotball.com, (audio).
  9. ^ Greg Joyce (April 14, 2017). "Lehigh Valley boys hoops well represented on all-state teams," Lehighvalleylive.
  10. ^ a b c d Keith Groller (July 21, 2023). "Former Parkland star signs pro basketball contract in Israel," The Morning Call.
  11. ^ "Parkland's Sam Iorio is the lehighvalleylive Boys Basketball Player of the Week," Lehighvalleylive, February 4, 2015.
  12. ^ a b Keith Groller (December 20, 2023). "Sam Iorio was set to begin a pro career in Israel when war struck on October 7," The Morning Call.
  13. ^ a b "Sam Iorio," American University Eagles.
  14. ^ Nick Fierro (April 15, 2017). "Parkland’s Sam Iorio leads Valley’s strong All-State basketball contingent," The Morning Call.
  15. ^ "H.Be'er Sheva signs rookie Sam Iorio in his first year in pro basketball," Eurobasket News, July 3, 2023.
  16. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Sam Iorio," Purple Eagles.
  17. ^ a b c "Sam Iorio," sports-reference.com.
  18. ^ Jon Kolodny (April 4, 2019). "AU men’s basketball’s Sam Iorio to enter NCAA transfer portal," The Eagle.
  19. ^ Creg Stephenson (January 1, 2019). "Transfer forward Sam Iorio commits to South Alabama," AL.com.
  20. ^ "Purple Eagles land transfer forward Iorio," Yahoo, April 12, 2021.
  21. ^ Creg Stephenson (March 22, 2021). "South Alabama basketball’s Sam Iorio enters transfer portal," Al.com.
  22. ^ " Purple Eagles land transfer forward Iorio; NCAA MEN: 6-foot-7 sharpshooter spent last season at South Alabama," Lockport Journal, April 11, 2021.
  23. ^ Mike Meiler (September 20, 2016). "Iorio, Thomasson excited to join Niagara," Niagara Gazette.
  24. ^ "Former Parkland basketball star Sam Iorio hopes he’s finally found the right college home," The Morning Call, May 30, 2021.
  25. ^ "Niagara’s Iorio and Saint Peter’s Davis Named Hercules Tires MAAC Student-Athletes of the Week," MAAC Sports, January 25, 2023.
  26. ^ "Iorio Named To Team USA Roster For 2022 Maccabi Games," Purple Eagles, June 7, 2022.
  27. ^ "Niagara alum Sam Iorio signs professional deal with Israel team," Yahoo, July 3, 2024.
  28. ^ Joshua Halickman (July 10, 2023). "He’s about to do big things: Who are you Hapoel Beer Sheva forward Sam Iorio?," Holyland Hoops.
  29. ^ "Iorio Wins Gold With Team USA At 2022 Maccabiah Games," purpleeagles.com, July 28, 2022.
  30. ^ "Parkland grad Sam Iorio helps Team USA to gold medal in Israel," Morning Call, August 3, 2022.
  31. ^ "Niagara alum Sam Iorio signs professional deal with Israel team," Niagara Gazette, July 3, 2023.
  32. ^ "Sam Iorio," Basketball Reference.
  33. ^ "Sam Iorio," 365 Scores.
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