Lake Superior State has enjoyed three straight men’s basketball seasons of .500 or better with coach Steve Hettinga at the helm.

Hettinga, a Three Oaks, Mich., native, became the 13th head coach in LSSU’s 62-year men’s basketball history on July 1, 2007. He enters his fifth year with four players who have experience as starters. Seniors Kyle Hunt and Mike Boylan have never had a losing season, having been a part of teams that finished 22-9 in 2008-09, 14-14 in 2009-10 and 15-12 in 2010-11.

Last year’s team was in the midst of a five-game win streak when Hunt, who was the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference’s leading scorer at the time, went down with a season-ending injury. Hunt, who is a healthy returnee in 2011-12, took the lead from former guard Scott Perkins, who averaged 17.8 points per game in 2009-10.

Hettinga is 63-51 all-time at LSSU, including a .500 finish in 2009-10. That team was led by four-year starting guards Perkins and Garrett Konuszewski, who earned All-GLIAC First Team and GLIAC All-Defensive Team honors, respectively. Perkins was also one of 20 finalists from all sports and all divisions for John Wooden Citizens Cup and received the GLIAC Commissioner’s Award.

Led by All-Great Lakes Region First Team forward Tim VanOudheusden and All-GLIAC First Team center Ryan Kuhl, the 2008-09 Lakers won the GLIAC North Division title, finished 22-9 overall and earned the second NCAA Tournament berth in the program’s history. With an impressive inside/outside attack, LSSU led the nation in three-point field-goal percentage (.431) and was ranked fourth nationally in assist/turnover ratio (1.43).

In 2007-08, during Hettinga’s first season at LSSU, the Lakers recovered from an 0-7 start and went 12-9 the rest of the way for their first winning sseason since 2001-02. The Lakers ended the regular season with four straight wins, including conference road victories at Ferris State, Northern Michigan and Michigan Tech. They advanced to the GLIAC Tournament for the first time since 2001 and reached the tournament semifinals for the first time since 1996.

After serving as an assistant coach at his alma mater, Olivet College, for four seasons, Hettinga became one of the nation’s youngest head coaches when he took over the Comets men’s basketball program in 1997. Olivet finished 5-20 during his first season in 1997-98, but posted back-to-back 15-10 records during the next two years and enjoyed its first winning season since 1982.

Hettinga left Olivet after 11 seasons and served as head coach of the IBL’s Grand Rapids Flight in 2004-05. The Flight were 15-5 during their inaugural season, and Hettinga was named IBL West Coach of the Year.

In 2006-07, Hettinga was head coach at MacMurray College, a Division III institution with an enrollment of 700 students located in Jacksonville, Ill. A team that finished seventh in the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference prior to his arrival finished 14-4 for its best record in two decades and won the SLIAC title during his first season. Hettinga was named SLIAC Coach of the Year.

Hettinga quickly embraced Sault Ste. Marie’s unique attributes and seeks the right kind of players who will thrive at Lake Superior State.

"We are looking for great student-athletes and high-character kids who fit in with the philosophy of what we want to do," Hettinga said. "We want this to be a family atmosphere. We want to find our own niche, and get that type of kid.

"The faculty here is great, and there are so many positives at LSSU. We can offer some things that other schools can’t, and we want to focus on that...The reality is that people are drawn to winners and want to be part of something special. It’s up to us to make sure that happens."

Hettinga, a 1993 graduate of Olivet, earned an M.A. in teaching from Olivet in 2003.

Tim Kisner, who was the first point guard to total 1,000 career points and 400 assists at Central Michigan University, was named assistant men’s basketball coach at Lake Superior State in September, 2011.

Kisner followed a Mid American Conference regular-season championship season at CMU by playing two seasons in the now-defunct Continental Basketball Association, three in Finland and two in Poland. He was part of national championship teams in both European leagues and was the first American player to be named captain for a game in Poland. He played over 350 professional games in seven countries before retiring as player in 2008.

After returning to Michigan, Kisner served as director of athletics and varsity basketball coach at Tri County High School in Howard City.  

Kisner is involved in all aspects of the coaching process and specializes in working with point guards. 

“He will be great for the development of our point guards,” LSSU head coach Steve Hettinga said. “He’s considered a very smart basketball player and has a good feel for the game.”

Brandon Lokken is in his third year with the Laker men's basketball team serving as a student assistant coach. Lokken was also a student manager for one season. He is a secondary education major.