Stanford's Tara VanDerveer, winningest coach in NCAA basketball history, announces retirement

The winningest coach in college basketball history is calling it a career.

Stanford women's basketball head coach Tara VanDerveer is retiring, she announced Tuesday.

"Basketball is the greatest group project there is and I am so incredibly thankful for every person who has supported me and our teams throughout my coaching career," VanDerveer said in a statement. "I've been spoiled to coach the best and brightest at one of the world's foremost institutions for nearly four decades."

VanDerveer started her 45-year coaching career at Idaho in 1978. After five seasons at Ohio State, she arrived at Stanford in 1985 and coached the team for 38 seasons. With 1,216 victories, she's the leader in all-time wins for an NCAA college basketball coach. Connecticut head coach Geno Auriemma is three wins behind her at 1,213.

VanDerveer took Stanford to 14 Final Fours and three national championships, the last coming in 2021. Stanford also won 26 Pac-12 regular-season titles and 15 Pac-12 tournament championships and has 35 NCAA Tournament appearances.

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Even with all of her success in the college ranks, VanDerveer is also known for her success coaching the U.S women's national team. She took the head coaching job in 1995, and as a result of preparing for the 1996 Summer Olympics, she took one season off from Stanford to focus on the national team. That team — with players like Lisa Leslie, Katrina McClain and Sheryl Swoopes — is regarded as one of the greatest national teams in women's basketball history. The U.S. was 52-0 in exhibition games and had a perfect 8-0 record at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics to win gold.

She was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2011.

"Coupled with my time at Ohio State and Idaho, and as head coach of the United States National Team, it has been an unforgettable ride," she said. "The joy for me was in the journey of each season, seeing a group of young women work hard for each other and form an unbreakable bond. Winning was a byproduct. I've loved the game of basketball since I was a little girl, and it has given me so much throughout my life. I hope I've been able to give at least a little bit back."

Stanford said Kate Paye, who played under VanDerveer from 1991-95 and has been on her coaching staff for the past 17 seasons, is in negotiations to succeed the legendary coach.

A press conference for VanDerveer is planned for Wednesday afternoon, the school said, adding she will continue to be involved with the university and its athletic department in an advisory capacity.