Stanford coach Tara VanDerveer has tied the all-time NCAA coaching wins mark set by legendary Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski. Win No. 1202 for VanDerveer came against Oregon, with the No. 8 Cardinal prevailing 88-63 despite losing star senior Cameron Brink in the first quarter. VanDerveer, who took over at Stanford in 1985, can make history and take the record for herself on January 21 against Oregon State. VanDerveer began her coaching career in 1978 at Idaho. She earned her 100th win in 1983 while coaching Ohio State. She hit 1000 wins in 2017.
"It's a tribute to the great teams I've had, the great places I've worked. It's been really exciting because so many people have reached out to me. It's great for women's basketball that there's a lot of attention. I work at a great place, and I have so much support," VanDerveer told the Pac-12 Network after the win. "Sometimes I can take it for granted because I see her every day. But she's really been someone who's changed the game. So it's an honor to play for her. Every day, I learn something from her," junior Kiki Iriafen told ESPN.
Caitlin Clark Continues To Make History
The 2023/24 season is shaping up to be a truly historic season for women's collegiate basketball. Caitlin Clark, a star senior at Iowa, is barreling towards the all-time career scoring record for women's basketball. At the time of writing, Clark sits in fourth in all-time scoring, with 3306 points. That puts her 222 points away from breaking the record set by Washington's Kelsey Plum in 2017. Currently averaging 31 points a game, Clark will beat the record during a road game at Indiana on February 22.
However, will Clark declare for the WNBA, where she is the presumptive No. 1 draft pick? That remains to be seen. "I'm going to know when I need to know. I think it's very similar to my college decision. It's like I'm in the recruiting process again. It's really not something I think about every day or let weigh on me. I'm focused on helping this team be the best they can be. The biggest thing is I'm just going to trust my gut. I'm not going to do a lot of research on what's better. I'm going to trust my gut and go with that," Clark before the season.
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