Step aside, Coach K. College basketball has a new winningest coach.
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When the Stanford women's basketball team defeated Oregon State 65-56 on Sunday, Stanford's Tara VanDerveer earned the 1,203rd win of her legendary head coaching career — passing Duke legend Mike Krzyzewski for the most wins in NCAA basketball history.
VanDerveer has been a head coach in the NCAA since she was 24 years old and earned the first victory of her career on Dec. 1, 1978, when she was coaching for the University of Idaho. Now, more than 45 years later, she has more wins than any other coach in the history of college basketball.
Coach K clearly isn't too torn up about VanDerveer taking his record. He was among the many legends who were included in a congratulatory post that the Pac-12 Conference posted on X after Stanford won on Sunday and VanDerveer secured the record.
Some special messages from around the Stanford and sports communities for Coach Tara 🥹 @StanfordWBB x #Pac12WBB pic.twitter.com/Q39cvZEanb
— Pac-12 Conference (@pac12) January 22, 2024
"Tara, congratulations," Coach K said in the video. "What an amazing achievement. And what's even more amazing, is the manner in which you achieved so many victories. You've been such a great representative for our great sport, and you have helped Stanford immensely in the way that you have coached and handled yourself, and the way your teams have played and displayed sportsmanship throughout. So congratulations. Really happy for you."
Moments after reaching her remarkable milestone, VanDerveer addressed the home crowd at Stanford's Maples Pavilion: "To have everyone back, and to see everyone, is incredibly meaningful to me. And I thank you all from the bottom of my heart."
Tara VanDerveer tells the crowd: “I don’t want for anything. What I have is right here.” pic.twitter.com/K3IgEFijRa
— Janie McCauley (@JanieMcCAP) January 22, 2024
During her postgame media availability, VanDerveer — who has been Stanford's head coach since 1985 — continued with that same heartfelt sentiment: "I want to bring attention to the beauty of women's basketball, and the wonderfulness of these players that work so hard. And I'm so jealous because I never got to do what they get to do, but I'm able to watch a little girl's dream play out through them."
"I'm so jealous because I never got to do what they get to do... but I'm able to watch a little girls dream play out through them."
1,203 wins for Coach Tara VanDerveer, with "the best seat in the house." pic.twitter.com/gaNFF5VnIz
— Pac-12 Network (@Pac12Network) January 22, 2024
Across her legendary career, VanDerveer has won three national championships with Stanford (in 1990, 1992 and 2021), won an Olympic gold medal for coaching Team USA women's basketball at the 1996 Olympic Games, is a five-time National Coach of the Year, is a 17-time Pac-12 Coach of the Year, and is now the winningest coach in NCAA history.
VanDerveer, now 70 years old, doesn't seem intent on retiring anytime soon. And why should she? Her Stanford squad is 18-2 this season — ranked No. 6 in the country — and could very well win another national title.
Therefore, it appears that VanDerveer will be adding to her NCAA record for some time to come.
