Stanford coach Tara VanDerveer won her 1,099th game Tuesday to set an NCAA record for all-time coaching victories as the Cardinal defeated Pacific 104-61. VanDerveer passed the late Pat Summitt for the most all-time coaching victories in women's college basketball.
"I really hope Pat Summit is looking down and saying, 'Great job Tara, keep it going,'" VanDerveer said after the historic victory.
The undisputed 🐐, alone at the top.https://t.co/6KALBRQ4Mb#TaraAtTheTop | #GoStanford
— Stanford Women’s Basketball (@StanfordWBB) December 16, 2020
VanDerveer, who began her coaching career at Idaho, before taking over and spending five seasons at Ohio State, is currently in her 35th season at the helm for Stanford. During her time at Stanford VanDerveer has been nothing short of remarkable. Following her first two seasons, in which she went 27-29, she has led Stanford to 32 consecutive winning seasons and 32 consecutive NCAA Tournament berths.
VanDerveer has won at least 20 games in 30 seasons, while reaching the 30-win mark 15 times. She has led the Cardinal to 12 Final Four appearances and won the national championship in 1990 and 1992.
Most all-time women's college basketball victories victories
| Rank | Coach | Seasons | Wns | Losses | Pct. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tara VanDerveer* | 42 | 1,099 | 253 | .813 |
| 2 | Pat Summitt | 38 | 1,098 | 208 | .841 |
| 3 | Geno Auriemma* | 35 | 1,093 | 142 | .885 |
| 4 | Barbara Stevens | 43 | 1,058 | 291 | .784 |
| 5 | C. Vivian Stringer* | 49 | 1,043 | 422 | .712 |
Source: NCAA, * - active.
While she has done a lot of winning in the college ranks, VanDerveer also led the 1996 USA Women's Basketball team to the gold medal.
When talking about some of the great college basketball coaches of all-time, VanDerveer should be one of the first to come to mind. Not known for being overly active on the sidelines, she is known for being one of the best teachers of the game there is.
Words of support and admiration poured in on Twitter following Stanford's victory.
1️⃣0️⃣9️⃣9️⃣
— NCAA (@NCAA) December 16, 2020
Congratulations to @StanfordWBB head coach Tara VanDerveer, who breaks the record for most @ncaawbb career wins with tonight's victory! pic.twitter.com/zaJRFP7CeN
While the COVID-19 pandemic has taken over almost every aspect of our lives and has wreaked havoc on the early parts of the college basketball season, it should not take away the opportunity to recognize, respect and admire one of college basketball's greatest achievements, for one of the game's most respected and loved people.
No. 1 Stanford did just that Tuesday improving to 5-0 this season by beating Pacific.
This season's Cardinal are a really deep, confident and talented team and that stems from VanDerveer. With Stanford starting the season off undefeated, and sitting at No. 1 in the AP Top 25 poll and No. 2 in our CBS Sports Power Rankings, Stanford is positioned to compete for a Pac 12 Championship and for another deep NCAA Tournament run. The Cardinal are loaded with talent and may be the deepest team in the country.
The mix of experienced players like senior point guard Kiana Williams and junior sharp-shooter Lexie Hull, along with sophomore Haley Jones and freshman Cameron Brink, have this team playing with confidence. Another sophomore sensation is Fran Belibi, who had the social media world buzzing following her one-handed dunk in transition on Sunday night.
Following their visit to Pacific, the Cardinal will return to Pac 12 play Saturday as they take on USC before a top-15 game against UCLA on Monday.
Material from The Associated Press was used in this report
