Whittier College

Mark Jensen was named the Head Men’s Basketball Coach of Whittier College in the Spring of 2017 after serving as an assistant coach for twelve seasons for the Poets.

Over his first five seasons, he has amassed 52 wins, with several All-SCIAC performers in Luis Kuihara (currently playing professionally in Japan), Kenyatta Louder, Nick Potthoff, Ahmad Young (currently playing professionally in Palestine) and Bryant Howing, as well as one SCIAC Newcomer of the Year in Blake Lander in 2024.  He also serves as the SCIAC All-Stars Head Coach/Coordinator, traveling with a group of seniors from the conference abroad each summer to compete against professional international teams. Coach Jensen also conducts regular camps and coaching clinics in various parts of Latin America each off-season, including countries such as Colombia, Mexico, El Salvador and Costa Rica. His international connections have brought several players to the Poets’ program from various foreign countries including Australia, Ghana,Hungary and Argentina.

During his time as an assistant at Whittier College, he helped lead the team to four SCIAC Tournament berths and recruited ten All-SCIAC performers, including two SCIAC Newcomer Award recipients. Coach Jensen has also helped a handful of former Poets play professionally around the world including Nick Demusis (Thailand, Philippines), Jordan Lingard (Australia), Louis Kuihara (Japan), Greg Preer (Mexico), Michael Archuleta (Germany), Tim Fanning (Spain), Nate Easterman (England), Nick Potthoff (England), Chester Lewis (Hungary), Ahmad Young (Palestine) and Eric Davis (TBL).

After graduation, Coach Jensen spent a season as an assistant coach at Cypress College before coaching at Rogers High School in Spokane, WA under 14-Year NBA standout Craig Ehlo. After that, he went on to coach three seasons of Junior College basketball as an assistant at Rio Hondo College before coming back to his alma mater in 2006 as an assistant.

Education

Mark graduated from Whittier College ‘00 with his B.A. in History and minored in Latin American Studies and then returned to earn his M.A. in Education ’07. Mark currently resides in Brea, Calif. with his wife Emily and their three children Devon, Drew, and Jordan.