Tara VanDerveer

Tara VanDerveer
VanDerveer cutting down the nets after the Elite 8 game in the 2011 NCAA Division I tournament
Biographical details
Born (1953-06-26) June 26, 1953 (age 71)
Melrose, Massachusetts, U.S.
Playing career
Basketball
1971–1972Albany
1972–1975Indiana
Position(s)Guard
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1976–1978Ohio State (assistant)
1978–1980Idaho
1980–1985Ohio State
1986–2024Stanford
National team
1995–1996USA
Head coaching record
Overall1,216–271 (.818)
Tournaments0–1 (AIAW Division II)
104–36 (NCAA Division I)
5–1 (Big Ten)
27–2 (Pac-10)
29–6 (Pac-12)
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
Awards
  • 5× National Coach of the Year (1988–1990, 2011, 2020)
  • 11× Pac-10/12 Coach of the Year (1989, 1990, 1995, 1997, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2024)
  • 5× WBCA District/Region Coach of the Year (1988–1990, 2007, 2009)
  • John R. Wooden Legends of Coaching Award (2014)
  • 5× Northern California Women's Intercollegiate Coach of the Year (1988–1990, 1992, 1993)
  • 2× Big Ten Coach of the Year (1984, 1985)
Basketball Hall of Fame
Inducted in 2011 (profile)
Women's Basketball Hall of Fame
Medal record
Women's Basketball
Head Coach for  United States
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 1996 Atlanta Team Competition
Head Coach for  United States
FIBA World Championship for Women
Bronze medal – third place 1994 Sydney Team Competition
Head Coach for  United States
Goodwill Games
Gold medal – first place 1994 St. Petersburg Team Competition
Head Coach for  United States
World University Games
Gold medal – first place 1991 Sheffield Team Competition

Tara Ann VanDerveer (born June 26, 1953)[1] is a retired American basketball coach who was the head women's basketball coach at Stanford University from 1985 until her retirement in 2024. Designated the Setsuko Ishiyama Director of Women's Basketball, VanDerveer led the Stanford Cardinal to three NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Championships: in 1990, 1992 and 2021.[2] She stepped away from the Stanford program for a year to serve as the U.S. national team head coach at the 1996 Olympic Games.[2] VanDerveer is the 1990 Naismith National Coach of the Year and a ten-time Pac-12 Coach of the Year. VanDerveer was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2002.

VanDerveer is one of only nine NCAA Women's Basketball coaches to win over 900 games, and one of ten NCAA Division I coaches – women's or men's – to win 1,000 games. On December 15, 2020, she passed Pat Summitt for most wins in women's college basketball history.[3]

From January 21, 2024 through November 19, 2024, VanDerveer was the winningest head coach in men's or women's college basketball history. On January 21, 2024, she won her 1,203rd game as a head coach, passing Mike Krzyzewski, the retired coach of the Duke men's basketball team.[4][5] VanDerveer retired from coaching at the end of the 2023-2024 academic year with 1,216 career wins as a head coach. On November 20, 2024, Geno Auriemma, coach of the UConn women's basketball team, won his 1,217th game as a head coach, passing VanDerveer.[6]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference Birthdate was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference AOL was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ "Milestone 1,099th win for Stanford's VanDerveer". ESPN.com. December 16, 2020.
  4. ^ Lev, Kevin Dotson, Jacob (January 22, 2024). "Stanford's Tara VanDerveer becomes college basketball's winningest coach ever". CNN.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  5. ^ "Stanford's Tara VanDerveer becomes winningest coach in college basketball, passing Mike Krzyzewski". apnews.com. January 20, 2024. Retrieved January 21, 2024.
  6. ^ Wilco, Daniel. "Women's college basketball coaches with the most wins in DI history". ncaa.com.