April 6, 2011
STANFORD, Calif. - Setsuko Ishiyama Director of Women's Basketball Tara VanDerveer earned her third national coach of the year honor Wednesday, as the Atlanta Tip-Off Club named her the 2011 Naismith Women's College Coach of the Year.
It is the second time that VanDerveer has earned the Naismith honor. She previously collected the award after leading Stanford to its first national title in 1990.
"I am very honored to receive this award from the Atlanta Tip-Off Club," VanDerveer said. "I am very fortunate to get to work with such a talented and dedicated group of coaches and players day in and day out, which is the foundation of our program's success."
The Naismith honor is now the third national coach of the year award that VanDerveer has received this season. She also collected the honors from the WBCA and Associated Press.
VanDerveer also achieved yet another career milestone this past Monday, April 2, when she was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a member of the Hall's Class of 2011.
Another milestone that VanDerveer reached in 2010-11 was becoming just the fifth Division I women's basketball head coach to reach 800 career wins. On Dec. 22, VanDerveer won her 800th career game when the Cardinal defeated San Francisco, 100-45, on The Hilltop. Through the end of the 2010-11 season, she boasts a career record of 826-198 over her 32-year career.
In 2010-11, VanDerveer guided Stanford to the program's fourth consecutive and 10th overall Final Four appearance. For VanDerveer, it is her ninth Final Four team, as she was on sabbatical coaching the U.S. Olympic Team when the Cardinal reached the 1996 Final Four.
The Cardinal finished the season 33-3 overall in 2010-11, recording the fourth consecutive 30-win season for the program. Stanford also went 18-0 in Pac-10 play, capturing the program's 20th Pac-10 regular season title and 11th in a row.
Under VanDerveer's tutelage, junior forward Nnemkadi Ogwumike was named to the State Farm Coaches' All-America Team for the second straight year, while senior guard Jeanette Pohlen was named to the Associated Press All-America First Team and senior forward Kayla Pedersen was an AP All-America honorable mention.
Ogwumike, Pedersen, Pohlen and freshman forward Chiney Ogwumike would all be named to the All-Pac-10 Team, with Pohlen earning Pac-10 Player of the Year honors and Chiney Freshman of the Year.
VanDerveer would go on to capture the John R. Wooden Pac-10 Coach of the Year award for a record 11th time after leading the Cardinal to its conference title, as well as the team's eighth Pac-10 Tournament title.