On Sunday evening, Stanford women's basketball head coach Tara VanDerveer (1,203-267 overall record across 45 seasons) bumped retired Duke basketball treasure Mike Krzyzewski (1,202-368) to No. 2 on the NCAA's all-time wins list via her eighth-ranked Cardinal's 65-56 home victory over Oregon State.
Following the record-breaking effort in front of Stanford fans, a video tribute to the 70-year-old VanDerveer played on the big screen. It opened with a message from the 76-year-old Coach K:
"Tara, congratulations. What an amazing achievement. And what's even more amazing is the manner in which you achieved so many victories.
"Wow. You've been such a great representative for our great sport. And you know what? 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."
Coach K, still serving as an ambassador to Duke University, should soon fall to No. 3 among men's and women's head coaches, as the 69-year-old UConn women's Hall of Famer and 11-time national champion Geno Auriemma (1,196-159) needs only seven more wins to leapfrog Krzyzewski and reach VanDerveer's current mark.
However, the five-time Duke basketball national champion's record in the men's game is safe for years to come. Kentucky's John Calipari (804-254), a few weeks from his 65th birthday, has the most of any active men's head coaches, followed by Kansas' 61-year-old Bill Self (787-239).
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