Sandy Cohen (basketball)

(Redirected from Sandy Cohen III)

Sandy Cohen III (Hebrew: סנדי כהן; born September 22, 1995)[1] is an American-Israeli professional basketball player for Hapoel Afula B.C. of the Israeli Basketball Premier League. A standout at Seymour Community High School who led the team to two Bay Conference championships, Cohen played college basketball for Marquette University and later the University of Wisconsin–Green Bay.[2] Cohen went undrafted in the 2019 NBA draft, and signed a four-year contract with Maccabi Tel Aviv in August 2019.[3]

Sandy Cohen
סנדי כהן
No. 1 – Hapoel Afula B.C.
PositionShooting guard / small forward
LeagueIsraeli Basketball Premier League
Personal information
Born (1995-09-22) September 22, 1995 (age 29)
Green Bay, Wisconsin, U.S.
NationalityAmerican / Israeli
Listed height6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
Listed weight200 lb (91 kg)
Career information
High schoolSeymour (Seymour, Wisconsin)
College
NBA draft2019: undrafted
Playing career2019–present
Career history
2019–2022Maccabi Tel Aviv
2021–2022Bnei Herzliya
2022–2024Bnei Herzliya
2024–presentHapoel Afula B.C.
Career highlights and awards

Early life and high school career

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Cohen was born in Green Bay, Wisconsin, U.S. to Linda King and Sandy Cohen, Jr. Cohen's family are members of the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin,[4] and he is of Jewish descent through his father.[5] Cohen has 3 siblings, including Connecticut Sun player Natisha Hiedeman.

He attended Seymour Community High School, winning two Bay Conference championships in 2012 and 2014, and receiving First Team All-Conference honors twice. Cohen led the Bay in points per game his senior year, and was named Bay Conference Player of the Year.[6] Cohen also received an All-State Honorable Mention from the Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association his junior year. After his senior season, Cohen ranked as a top-100 consensus recruit (83rd by ESPN, 87th by Scout.com, and 97th by Rivals.com).[1]

College career

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Marquette (2014–2017)

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Cohen enrolled at Marquette University for the 2014–2015 season, coming mostly off the bench. His career highs his freshman season were 12 points, six rebounds, and 31 minutes. His sophomore season, Cohen set career records of 24 points, eight assists, and 36 minutes. Citing a desire to play more and have a larger role on the team, Cohen requested to be released from his scholarship at Marquette in November 2016 after playing three games of his junior season. He subsequently announced he would be transferring to Green Bay.[7]

Green Bay (2017–2019)

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Due to NCAA transfer rules, Cohen was to sit out the 2016–17 season and would have had only one year of eligibility remaining. In October 2017, Cohen was granted an NCAA waiver, which provided an extra year of eligibility. Cohen's first appearance with Green Bay was on December 21, 2017 against Bowling Green State University, scoring 16 points and grabbing six rebounds.[8] His redshirt junior season in 2017–18 saw Cohen increase his career high in points to 36, receive Horizon League Player of the Week honors for the week of February 22, and lead the Horizon League in steals (1.8 SPG) while ranking sixth in scoring with 17.1 points per game.[1]

His redshirt senior season, Cohen led the Phoenix in all statistical categories, set Green Bay's single-season scoring record at 666 points, and received multiple awards and accolades from the Horizon League and beyond.

Professional career

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Maccabi Tel Aviv

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Cohen went undrafted in the 2019 NBA draft, and played for the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Summer League, while also working out with the Minnesota Timberwolves and Indiana Pacers.[3] On August 12, 2019, Cohen signed a four-year contract with Maccabi Tel Aviv of the Israeli Premier League.[3]

Beni Herzliya

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On July 14, 2021, Cohen was loaned from Maccabi Tel Aviv to Beni Herzliya, along with guard Dori Sahar.[5] On July 8, 2022, he signed a 1+1 contract extension with Beni Herzliya.[9]

Personal life

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Due to his father's Jewish background, Cohen was naturalized as an Israeli citizen in May 2020.[5]

Career statistics

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Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

College

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2014–15 Marquette 31 7 15.0 .371 .333 .607 1.6 .8 .5 .2 3.8
2015–16 Marquette 32 15 23.3 .439 .355 .741 3.2 1.8 .8 .4 5.9
2016–17 Marquette 3 0 6.3 .000 .000 .000 1.0 .3 .0 .7 .0
2017–18 Green Bay 22 20 33.0 .474 .349 .709 5.7 2.5 1.5 .6 16.1
2018–19 Green Bay 38 37 34.1 .475 .337 .773 6.4 4.7 1.9 1.1 17.5
Career 126 80 25.8 .457 .343 .739 4.1 2.5 1.1 .6 10.5

Source: RealGM

Awards and honors

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High school

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  • Bay Conference championship (2012, 2014)
  • 2× Bay Conference First Team (2013, 2014)
  • Bay Conference Second Team (2012)
  • Bay Conference Player of the Year (boys basketball, 2014)
  • All-State Honorable Mention, Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association (2014)
  • Consensus top-100 recruit

College

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References

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  1. ^ a b c "Sandy Cohen III – Men's Basketball – University of Wisconsin Green Bay Athletics". August 12, 2019. Archived from the original on August 12, 2019. Retrieved August 12, 2019.
  2. ^ "Sandy Cohen III College Stats". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved August 12, 2019.
  3. ^ a b c "Maccabi signed Sandy Cohen III". Maccabi Tel Aviv Basketball Club. Retrieved August 12, 2019.
  4. ^ "Sandy Cohen III (Oneida Tribe) to Play for Cleveland Cavaliers in NBA Summer League – NDNSPORTS". Retrieved August 12, 2019.
  5. ^ a b c "בשורה למכבי תל אביב: סנדי כהן קיבל אזרחות וייחשב ישראלי בליגה". Haaretz הארץ (in Hebrew).
  6. ^ "Bay". Wisconsin High School Sports | Wisconsin Sports Network | WisSports.net. Retrieved August 12, 2019.
  7. ^ "Sandy Cohen transferring to UW-Green Bay". August 12, 2019. Archived from the original on August 12, 2019. Retrieved August 12, 2019.
  8. ^ "Sandy Cohen III Granted NCAA Waiver". Green Bay Phoenix.
  9. ^ "Remains blue: Sandy Cohen will continue with Bnei Herzliya". time.news. July 8, 2022. Retrieved August 15, 2022.
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