The Israel State Cup semifinals week has arrived, as the last four teams, Maccabi Tel Aviv, Hapoel Jerusalem, Bnei Herzliya, and Hapoel HaEmek, will battle it out for the coveted trophy at Yad Eliyahu in Tel Aviv.
The Maccabi-Jerusalem Israeli Classico semifinal will take place on Sunday night, while Herzliya and HaEmek will play in the second semifinal on Monday evening, and the final will take place on Thursday.
HaEmek is playing in its first-ever State Cup final four, which is somewhat surprising as the Gan Ner-based team has won the league championship and has featured in the league finals, but somehow has never been able to get to this stage of the tournament. However, Sharon Avrahami’s team was able to finish in the top eight in league play, and it got past Hapoel Holon to punch its ticket to the semifinals.
One of the reasons HaEmek, which had changed its name from Hapoel Gilboa/Galil prior to the season, advanced to this stage of the State Cup is no doubt because of Elijah Childs. The 27-year-old power forward out of Bradley University has been one of Avrahami’s key players since joining the club back in the middle of the 2024/25 season.
Just ahead of the huge clash for a ticket to the finals, Childs spoke to The Jerusalem Post about a myriad of topics as his club readies in earnest to continue to make history.
“It feels amazing to be a part of history,” Childs began. “It’s an honor first of all to be sharing it with the guys in the locker room and the staff; they’ve been doing an amazing job this year, so it feels amazing, and we just want to get the job done, handle business, and play to our full potential.”
Getting past Holon was key for HaEmek to make it to the final four, and even though the Purples have been struggling, it was far from automatic. Childs played a huge part in that game with a double-digit performance.
“It felt great, we felt like we owed them from the last game, from them beating us, so it felt great to beat them and move on, but it’s just one game. You try to treat every game just as one gam,e and it feels exciting to get the job done.”
Herzliya has had a superb campaign this season and will no doubt be a very difficult opponent, and the same is true of Hapoel Jerusalem and Maccabi Tel Aviv.
“I’m looking forward to it. I think that’s going to maybe be a team we will play in the playoffs, so I’m definitely looking forward to it. Herzliya is in a good groove right now. They’ve been finding their groove, and they got their guys playing well, they added some key players, so it’s going to be a great matchup, and I’m a competitor, those bright lights and those big games, I’m ready for it.”
Herzliya has stars in Chinanu Onuaku, Elijah Stewart, and now DJ Burns, and Childs will also be tasked with stopping them.
“I think I will definitely play a key factor offensively and defensively, but we just got to stay in the game plan. I think if we make it not a half-court game and try to limit their touches with Onuaku, Stewart, and Burns, we will be in good shape.”
Should HaEmek get past Herzliya, Childs knows that it will not be favored in a final that will feature either Maccabi or Jerusalem.
The underdogs
“I think everybody sees us as underdogs but I also think nobody expected us to do what we’re doing now, but like I said, I like our guys matched up with anybody, so if it’s Jerusalem, it’s Jerusalem, if it’s Maccabi, it’s Maccabi.”
Avrahami has been a huge part of HaEmek’s success, and he has been able to guide the club to some fine achievements, which is something Child’s is appreciative of.
“He brings us toughness, aggressiveness, energy, so you know what you’re going to get from Coach Sharon. He’s a simple guy; he allows you to play the game and brings a lot of confidence. I love Sharon. Sometimes he can be a little too animated, but that’s just a part of coaching and the ups and downs of the game, so I’m excited for the game plan that they’re going to be drawing up, and I believe in it.”
Kyler Edwards is one of the offensive stars of the team and could very well be the league MVP after he joined HaEmek this season, following playing with Netanya last season.
“Kyler Edwards is the MVP. I’m saying it now, he’s definitely going to be the MVP. He makes the game simple; he makes it easy for me. I’m getting wide-open shots because they’re doubling him, or the defense is drawing so much attention to him, so it makes the game very easy for me. My job is just to knock the shots down.”
Childs, who has a twin brother, began playing basketball fairly late, in fact, as a teenager.
“I’m a late bloomer. I started playing when I was 15. I was into baseball, that was my thing. My father just came to me one day and was like, hey, you want to try this? I was like, all right. I was already tall, people were telling me ‘you should do this.’ So I did it. I was a raw talent, but people worked with me, and I fell in love with it. Once people tell you, ‘you can really make a living at it,’ you kind of go harder, so that’s what I did, and I’m here today.”
After four years at Bradley University, Childs began his professional career in Italy with Trapani and then moved to Denmark and the Bakken Bears, who played Hapoel Jerusalem in BCL action.
“Jerusalem had Speedy Smith, Khadeen Carrington, Zach Hankins, and Levi Randolph. They had a great squad and we had some great guys. I enjoyed it and took some very good memories from that, playing on that big stage, the Champions League. It was very competitive, and I fell in love with it. I’m trying to help this team I’m on right now, do it with the guys that we have, because we have a great group.
Childs has enjoyed his time in Israel so far and loves so many of the country’s amazing aspects.
“The weather, beach, food. I’m a simple type of guy. Tel Aviv is amazing, Haifa, that’s where I spend most of my time. I just love it out here, it’s peaceful. Especially Afula is peaceful too; I’m in the north, and everything is a little cheaper out here than in Tel Aviv and Haifa, but I love it. It’s peaceful for me.”
Childs arrived in Israel while the country was at war
When Childs arrived in Israel last season, the country was still in the middle of a war, but that didn’t turn him off from deciding to ply his trade in the Holy Land.
“I’m the type of guy that doesn’t watch too much, so if it’s really not affecting me personally. I kind of don’t realize what’s going on. I wasn’t scared, coach Sharon and my agent did a good job of making sure I was secure and making sure I felt good about coming. So I wasn’t too worried about anything.”
As he continues to climb the ladder of success in Israel, Childs knows that he will have options if he wants to take the next step in his career with one of the three teams in the top European competitions, Maccabi Tel Aviv, Hapoel Tel Aviv, and Hapoel Jerusalem, which is also his dream.
“It just depends. Right situation, right contract, everything just has to be right. But for sure, who wouldn’t want to play for them? That’s the Euroleague, EuroCup, the next step. That’s the biggest stage. If you love what you do, you love being a competitor, and you want to travel the world playing on the big stages, you want to go there. But if I could help this organization go there too, I would definitely stay here. I love it here. They treat me very well, with very good hospitality, professionalism, everything.”
As for goals for the rest of the season, Childs wants to take it all in and win it all.
“Just finish strong. That’s the first goal for sure. We want to win every game, but just finish strong and make it to the playoffs for sure. We want to win the Cup first, but the ultimate goal, I think, for everybody is to make it to the playoffs. Definitely just finish strong, treat every game well, and try to get better every game.”
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