hickey to coach at kaiser

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SoCalHoops Recruiting News

More Inland Empire News: Hickey
To Coach At Kaiser--(Aug. 11, 1999)

The opening of a new high school can sometimes be "news" especially if it's in an area that usually feeds players to schools like Fontana High, AB Miller and other traditional Inland Empire basketball powerhouse schools. Last week we came across an article published in the San Bernardino County Sun which profiled the new Kaiser HS coach, Steve Hickey, a local player who will be the first head coach of the new school. It's an interesting article and features some nice stuff on Hickey and even some of the other area teams and coaches.

Home-Team Hero
Steve Hickey Has Returned To His Old Stomping Grounds
In Fontana To Coach Basketball At New Kaiser HS.
By DANNY SUMMERS, San Bernardino County Sun

Steve Hickey has come full circle.

Born and raised in Fontana, Hickey attended Cal State San Bernardino, later moved to Colorado, and now returns home as basketball coach at a brand new high school.

The 29-year-old Hickey was named coach of Henry J. Kaiser High School in south Fontana last month his first head coaching job after four years as an assistant. "I played under some great coaches," said Hickey, who will teach special education and physical education at Kaiser. "My coaches have been like mentors. They helped me understand the game and play the game. I will seek their advice and lean on my past experiences."

Kaiser will open in the fall with just freshmen and sophomores. It will play a freelance junior varsity basketball schedule this season, before joining the Sunkist League in the 2000-2001 school year. The league also will include Bloomington, Ramona, Norte Vista, Rubidoux and Martin Luther King Jr. high schools.

"The game has changed so much from when I played," Hickey said. "Practice has lost its form or purpose. Kids think they don't need to work on things. You have to have control of your kids. I want to stress structure and discipline and an understanding of the game."

Discipline and unselfishness were Hickey's hallmarks as a player. A two-year starter at Fontana, Hickey was a key member of the Steelers' first Citrus Belt League title-winning team during the 1986-87 season. His coach that season was former Redlands star Tom McCluskey. Current Lakers backup center Sean Rooks was the star of that team.

Ed Kearby took over for McCluskey before Hickey's senior year. Hickey was named first-team all-CBL as a senior. Kearby now is athletic director at Kaiser and is the person responsible for hiring Hickey. "Steve has a lot of patience," Kearby said. "He's in a position where he can grow
with the kids. Even though he's in his first job, he's been around for a long time. I have a lot of confidence in Steve."

After graduating from Fontana in 1988, Hickey moved on to Cal State [San Bernardino], where he was a four-year team member and three-year starter for the Coyotes from 1988-92. As a senior, Hickey led the Coyotes in scoring and rebounding and was named all-California Collegiate Athletic Association in the school's first season at the NCAA Division II level. Hickey left Cal State as the school's No.2 career rebounder, and in the top 10 in scoring and assists.

While at Cal State, Hickey played three years under Jim Ducey and one year under Reggie Morris. After graduating from Cal State, Hickey moved to Colorado and worked three years as a high school assistant. He moved back to the Southland in 1996 and hooked on as an assistant at San Bernardino Valley College under Kearby. "Steve did a little bit of everything at (SBVC)," Kearby said. "I was the head coach, but it was a collaborated effort."

Hickey joins a Kaiser coaching staff that is in its infancy. The one veteran is former Fontana football coach Dick Bruich, who Hickey believes will add stability to the entire sports program. "All you have to do is look at the success of coach Bruich to understand how to work with kids and build a quality program," Hickey said. Said Bruich: "(Kaiser) is a place for young guys to get started. Steve will do a fine job here."

Kaiser is expected to open with 900 students. It should top out at about 2,000 students during the 2001-2002 school year, when it will become a four-grade school. But the chances of Kaiser ever growing large enough to join the other two Fontana schools, Fohi [Fontana High] and A.B. Miller, in the CBL [Citrus Belt League] are slim. Kaiser's capacity is set at about 2,400. Kaiser's basketball schedule next season includes just one game against a varsity team Trona. Kearby said about 75 percent of the schedule is filled. Hickey said he anticipates having a good relationship with Fontana and Miller. "I don't want to fight with anybody over players," Hickey said. "If anything, I'd like to continue to expose Fontana for what it's becoming a basketball town as well as a football town. It's been a two-sport town for a long time."

Fontana will be the school most affected by the opening of Kaiser. Steelers basketball coach John McNally said he lost "about a half dozen players" from his freshman team to Kaiser. McNally said he does not view Kaiser or Hickey as a threat since they will be competing in different leagues and at different levels. "I don't think there will ever be a rivalry with Kaiser because they won't ever be big enough," McNally said. "In fact, we may never even play them. I don't know how it would benefit us."

Hickey and Kaiser will not be strangers when the school opens in September. The basketball team has been working together for the past three weeks in a summer league, practicing up to three hours a day. Hickey said there are six sophomores and 14 freshmen on the team. "Right now the kids don't know what to expect from me and I don't know what to expect from them," he said. "But through hard work we can achieve success."

Hickey File:
Age: 29
Born: Fontana
Resides: San Bernardino
High school: Fontana (1988)
College: Cal State San Bernardino (1992)
Notable: Has a bachelor's degree in physical education. ... Played for Fontana's first-ever Citrus Belt League championship basketball team in 1987. ... His father, Chuck, will be one of his assistant coaches this season. ... His brother, Chuck Jr., is a San Bernardino County Sun sports staffer...Is single.