Stanford coach Tara VanDerveer passed the late Pat Summitt’s record for all-time wins by a women’s basketball coach following the Cardinal’s victory over Pacific on Tuesday.
No. 1 Stanford topped Pacific 104-61, extending its undefeated streak this season to 5-0. The Cardinals outshot the Tigers 50.6% to 39% in field goals and made 78.9% of their three-pointers.
VanDerveer, 67, now has 1,099 career wins. On the men’s basketball side, only Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski (1,159) has more Division I wins.
After top-ranked Stanford defeated rival California on Sunday night, VanDerveer tied Summitt with her 1,098th career win.
The legendary coaches’ admiration and respect for each other showed over the years during the home-and-home series they planned when their schedules allowed.
“We were great friends. I learned a lot from coaching against Pat,” VanDerveer said after Sunday’s game. “I think the thing I learned the most was just how much her players loved playing for her. As a coach, I think that’s all of our goals. To be like Pat is to be a coach where your players love playing for you.”
VanDerveer has established herself as one of the top coaches in women’s basketball throughout her storied career. She is in her 35th season as head coach at Stanford and has led the program to two NCAA championships (1990, 1992), 12 NCAA Final Four appearances and 22 Pac-12 regular-season titles. In February 2017, VanDerveer became the second women’s basketball coach to notch career 1,000 wins.
