Legendary Stanford basketball coach retires

• Tara VanDerveer lent her time and energy to a young Dawn Staley behind the scenes years before the South Carolina coach started winning championships or delivering an improbable undefeated season.

The Hall of Fame Stanford coach did the same for her Pac-12 rivals.

And she did it for Kate Paye, who will become VanDerveer's successor now that the 70-year-old women's basketball pioneer is retiring.

Nearly everybody has a story of how VanDerveer went out of her way to do something kind along the way during her decorated, four-decade career.*

She cherished her role in helping the sport any way she could. And now, she is leaving on a high note.

The winningest basketball coach in NCAA history announced her retirement Tuesday night after 38 seasons leading the Stanford women's team and 45 years overall. VanDerveer surpassed Mike Krzyzewski for the wins record in January.

She departs with 1,216 victories at Idaho, Ohio State and Stanford.

“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.”

And as has been the plan for years, top Cardinal assistant Paye is set to take over the program, and Stanford said in a statement that negotiations with Paye have begun. Paye played for VanDerveer from 1991-95 and has coached on her staff for 17 years.

VanDerveer's last day is scheduled for May 8 — the 39th anniversary of her hiring. She plans to continue working for the athletic department in an advisory role.

Her Stanford teams won NCAA titles in 1990, '92 and 2021 and reached the Final Four 14 times.

VanDerveer took a year away from Stanford to guide the undefeated U.S. women's Olympic team to a gold medal at the 1996 Atlanta Games.