CROOKSTON, Minn. - "You are a product of your environment." This is a big lesson that University of Minnesota Crookston men's basketball player Malcolm Cohen said he has learned from his time in Crookston, Minn., over the last three years. Crookston has been a change of pace, for the native of Detroit, Mich. It has been a quiet place filled with friendly, supportive people, free from the outside influences that plagued him back in his hometown. While he was raised right by his mother Lisa Cohen, along with a supportive grandmother and auntie, it wasn't without hardships growing up. Lisa Cohen raised Malcolm and his twin brother Malique Cohen by herself. Their father was in and out of their lives before passing away this summer.

It was with the guidance of his family and the sport he loved, basketball, that Cohen was able to chase his dream of playing basketball but more importantly get a college degree. You see, a college degree to Malcolm is special. As he will become the first person in his family , and really anyone that he knew growing up in Detroit, that will have earned a four-year college degree.

Cohen first picked up organized basketball as an eight-year old. It was when his father had come back into him and his brother's lives that they were encouraged to pick up sports. So even though his father had left again prior to tryouts for third grade basketball, Cohen still followed through and ultimately made the team.

"I first started playing basketball when I was eight," Cohen said. "Before that point I had never been on a team or anything. My dad, who recently passed away this summer, back then he was seven or eight years old is when he had first come around. He got us into sports. He taught us to dribble. When he had left again we had tryouts for our basketball team in third grade. I decided to still try out to stay more active. Since I first joined the team in third grade, I haven't missed a season of basketball since."

Cohen continued to play basketball, along with football and track and field as he started high school. Cohen began his high school career at Cass Technical High School in Detroit, but transferred mid-way through the year to the high school his brother was attending, Michigan Collegiate High School in Warren, Mich. Cohen found success in all three sports throughout his high school career.

"I had a really good high school career," Cohen said. "My last year at Michigan Collegiate, I was an All-State, All-City, All-County and All-League pick for basketball. My senior for football, I was also an All-County selection. I played track, football, and basketball year round during my high school career. I was a strong multi-sport athlete in high school and earned Athlete of the Year my senior year. I was good in every sport that I did. In track I competed in high jump, and 300 hurdles. In football I played wide receiver and linebacker. In basketball, everybody knew me as the basketball player because I was one of the best player's out on the court."

Cohen was under-recruited on the hardwood despite averaging 18.0 points and 10 rebounds per game and earning Detroit Free Press All-East Second Team accolades as a senior. It was actually on the gridiron that the 6-6 athlete found the greatest opportunity to continue his collegiate athletic career. Cohen had four or five offers, mostly at the NCAA Division II level from the likes of Alma College and Saginaw Valley State University. His only offer coming out of high school to continue his basketball career was from Macomb Community College, located in the same place as his high school in Warren, Mich.

"I had a lot of offers for football coming out of high school because my high school was a really good football school," Cohen stated. "But because I loved basketball so much, I couldn't see myself playing football forever, so I decided to take the basketball route. It was actually harder coming from the school I came from. The only offer I had was the junior college that offered me. They wanted to get me exposure and they wanted my help in getting the program turned around."

Cohen was able to do just that at Macomb Community College, as he helped lead the Monarchs to an 18-13 mark during his freshman season in 2015-16, while averaging 10.9 points and 4.4 rebounds per game. He had helped the school improve their wins mark, a trend that would continue into his sophomore season. In his second season as a Monarch, Cohen lifted Macomb Community College to an amazing 28-7 record as they made it to the 2016-17 NJCAA Division II National Tournament. Cohen's two seasons as a Monarch were the program's best two seasons at the time, and helped lift them to strong performances in each of the last three seasons. Cohen relished being part of a turnaround, something that would come into play again at his next stop.

"Before I had come, the program at Macomb was not known for winning games and they hadn't had a winning season in quite some time," Cohen said. "The year I got there and the other members of my class got there, we went to the district championship game and then the next year we ended up winning the district championship. It was great to be a part of that changing that program, just like I have been able to here at Minnesota Crookston."

Cohen's path to Minnesota Crookston was one of chance. The 6-6 swing man had been heavily recruited early on in his final junior college season from the likes of Sam Houston State University, North Carolina Central University and several Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU's). However, patellar tendonitis in his knee limited Cohen's minutes through the last part of his sophomore season, which caused several schools to fall off the recruiting trail. However, it was a connection between his assistant coach Terrance Williams and former Minnesota Crookston basketball player James Sparkman from Ypsilanti, Mich., that helped lead him to the Red River Valley.

"My assistant coach at Macomb Community College had a friend that had played basketball at Minnesota Crookston," Cohen recalled. "So he had put in the word for me and had contacted the athletic director. Coach Weisse had contacted me to come on a visit. Because my assistant coach knew about Minnesota Crookston, they had seen my film and I went on a visit and they gave me an opportunity."

Cohen saw an opportunity at Minnesota Crookston to help change the culture for the Golden Eagles, just like he had done at Macomb Community College. When he arrived during the 2017-18 season, Minnesota Crookston had just come off an eight win season. Minnesota Crookston had historically struggled, but Head Coach Dan Weisse was entering his fourth season of a rebuild and Cohen saw the chance to be a part of a turnaround.

"The success we had at Macomb motivated me to go to Minnesota Crookston, because I had just left a program that had struggled before," Cohen said. "Myself and my classmates helped change the culture and win a district championship and break records. It helped motivate me to come to Minnesota Crookston and try to do the same things here. I wanted to go to Minnesota Crookston and see if I could help change something."

Cohen did just that, as he has been a part of the team's winningest three seasons since joining NCAA Division II in 1999. He helped the program to a school-record 17 wins. The ultimate moment of the Minnesota Crookston men's basketball teams achievements  came on Feb. 27, 2019, as the Golden Eagles used a commanding 87-72 win over 2016 NCAA Division II National Champion Augustana University to book their first-ever ticket to the NSIC/Sanford Health Tournament quarterfinals at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D.

"My best memory at Minnesota Crookston would have to be playing at the Sanford Pentagon," Cohen recalled. "Even though we ended up losing to Winona State. It was still a good game and I played well. That would definitely have to be my favorite memory at Minnesota Crookston. Overall with the friends I made and the great memories and experiences I have had at Minnesota Crookston they have all been great."

Cohen thoroughly enjoyed his experience at Minnesota Crookston on and off the court for the Golden Eagles, with the bonds he formed with teammates, professors, and coaches. Ultimately though, it was the role Minnesota Crookston had in his maturing and showing him a different lifestyle than he was accustomed to back home in Detroit that impacted Cohen the most during his three years in Crookston.
"I have become more mature and have a better understanding of different lifestyles and opportunities outside of Detroit," Cohen stated. "I was exposed to other norms outside of what I was accustomed to. I learned a lot about myself and how to treat other people. I learned how to approach myself and prepare for things."

Cohen double majored in manufacturing management and quality management and minored in information technology at Minnesota Crookston. With a heavy load, he attributes his success to his professors and the campus as a whole in helping him succeed.

"It was really tough taking on three different subjects especially with just three years or college," Cohen said. "I transferred from the junior college and didn't bring in many prerequisites. The professors have helped me out a lot. Christine Bakke has been a big one that has helped me out. If I was struggling in class, they do take into consideration what you have going on outside of school that can effect classes. Even though I had teachers in junior college that were understanding, but the professors were very patient with me and provided me the resources I needed. I have never been anywhere where everyone is so friendly. In Detroit, you don't get a lot of good vibes or friendly vibes from people you don't even know. In Crookston it is a very friendly place and they welcome anyone who comes here. That is what I have really liked about Crookston."

Cohen's journey at Minnesota Crookston has ended on the basketball court, and will soon end on the academic side. When Cohen gets the University of Minnesota diploma he will become the first person in his family to ever earn a four-year college degree. It will be a big moment from Cohen and his family, as his hard work has led him to a major accomplishment. One that he and his family and friends should be very proud of. An achievement that wouldn't be possible without a hero of a single mother that helped him down a path to accomplish his goals.

"It does mean a lot to me, but I would say it means way more to my mom," Cohen said regarding becoming the first college graduate in his family. "My mom brought me up to get good grades, go to school and don't be in the streets. Especially being a kid from Detroit, there are a lot of distractions. There are a lot of things that I could do outside of school that I wasn't supposed to be doing. With her motivation and coaches that have helped me along the way and told me I could use my athleticism to take the college route. So it motivated me to be different and go get a degree like nobody else that I know has ever done. I really have to give a lot of kudos to the people around me. No matter what the people around me were doing, even if they were doing bad things, they still kept me in the right direction and told me to keep doing what I was doing. They encouraged me to keep my head on straight. The fact that it is actually happening is just a really good feeling. I thought that it would really hit me at graduation with that actual accomplishment. To know that it is going to be done is great. My mom is happy, my grandmother is happy."

Cohen is still deciding on what his path will be after getting his diploma from the U of M. He is still trying to chase his dream of playing professional basketball, but if that doesn't work out he will not be disappointed because he used basketball as an investment in something bigger than just playing college basketball and focusing on a basketball career overseas.

"Right now I have been talking to a lot of agents," Cohen stated. "They have been contacting me on Instagram and Facebook. I got an offer right now on the table and a couple other offers that are being processed. With the Coronavirus going on right now, there really isn't any telling when I can get out there. I am waiting for this to blow over, so we can restart that process. I probably couldn't even leave the country right now if I wanted to. Talking to them, I plan on leaving in July or August. I have a knee problem right now that I have to see a doctor for. If they give me some good news and I can compete the best I can, then I will go overseas and play basketball. Being a pro basketball player has always been my dream. If that doesn't work I won't be disappointed and I won't be let down because I did use basketball as an investment for something else, which is my degree. If basketball doesn't work, I will immediately apply for jobs. Since I will have a good degree from a good school, I don't think I will have issues finding work back home in Detroit. It will be exciting to get that first job offer or that first contract offer."

Wherever Cohen's prospects take him, whether his journey on the court continues or his life as a professional in the job field begins, he can be proud of the work he put in to accomplish the goal he set out to do in a place in Minnesota Crookston that provided him a safe environment to chase his dreams on and off the court and meet phenomenal people that helped set him up for success.

"My biggest takeaway that I come home and tell people about is that you are a product of your environment," Cohen said. "You are what you have around you. The people that you have around you are going to make you what you are. If you are talking to someone that isn't on the up-and-up, then you aren't going to be on the up-and-up. Anyone who wants to succeed, if you surround yourself with people that want the same things out of life it makes it easier to focus and put forth your same effort. It makes it easier to not be distracted by people that aren't on the same path. I don't know if I would have gotten a degree if I had to go to school from home. It probably would have been impossible with the outside distractions. I just really learned that if you can isolate yourself from things that aren't good for you, you can accomplish the goals you want for yourself. People don't realize that it has a lot to do with what is going on around you. That is something that I really learned from being at Minnesota Crookston."

It is due to this great environment at Minnesota Crookston that Cohen will soon have a prestigious U of M degree and be able to help support a family that brought him up right and that helped him focus on what was important. Though we are proud of the basketball player Cohen was, averaging 9.0 points and 3.1 rebounds and shooting 34.6 percent from beyond the arc as a senior, and his role in helping the Golden Eagles to their best three-year stretch as a program. The University of Minnesota Crookston is even prouder of the man Cohen has become and can't wait to see the accomplishments he has as a U of M graduate.