STANFORD, Calif. -- There have been some very special moments for Stanford women's basketball in Maples Pavilion during Tara VanDerveer's 31 years as the Cardinal's coach. But this was one that -- much as she didn't want it to be -- had her fully in the spotlight.
Stanford defeated Southern California 58-42 Friday for VanDerveer's 1,000th career victory, putting her in the company of just two other basketball coaches at the Division I level: Duke's Mike Krzyzewski and the late Pat Summitt, who spent her career at Tennessee.
The crowd at Maples got to see Stanford get its 20th victory overall this season; VanDerveer now has 32 20-win seasons in her career. The Cardinal are 10-1 in a highly competitive Pac-12. But even though VanDerveer would prefer that everyone was paying more attention to what this year's Cardinal are accomplishing, she understood the historical significance of this night. And so did the fans, who roared their appreciation for Stanford's longtime mentor.
"Our team won't believe this, but I am really speechless. I'm really excited that we won, we're able to celebrate. I'm glad to celebrate with this team," VanDerveer said to the crowd during a postgame celebration on the court. "I'll never forget this.
"I never started coaching to try and win a thousand games. ... When I first came to Stanford, I thought it was the ultimate challenge. I want to compliment all the players on our team for their hard work and dedication on the classroom and on the court. I have more than a 1,000 memories of coaching and being with the team. I thank you all for your tremendous support, your love and your devotion to women's athletics. Thank-you all very much. I'm looking for 1,001 Monday night."
VanDerveer had two stops before finding what would be her perfect home: She coached two seasons in Idaho and then five at Ohio State.
VanDerveer took over at Stanford in 1985, and it was a serendipitous match of a cerebral, details-oriented tactician with a school that draws some of the best and brightest.
The Cardinal missed the NCAA tournament in VanDerveer's first two seasons but have been in the field every year since. VanDerveer herself missed one of them, though, when she coached the U.S. national team in 1995-96.
But even when she was away, the Cardinal were imprinted with VanDerveer's personality: They made the 1996 Final Four without her.
Stanford has won two NCAA titles and advanced to the Final Four 12 times total in VanDerveer's tenure (including the year she was gone). Her 1990 champions were led by superstar guard Jennifer Azzi, one of VanDerveer's former players who was in attendance Friday.
The Cardinal then won the national championship again two years later with what VanDerveer called her "bucket of bolts" team -- one that didn't have any big stars, but knew how to grind out victories.
The Cardinal haven't been able to close a season on a win since 1992 -- they reached the NCAA final in 2008 and 2010 -- but they've consistently been one of the best teams in the country.
Along the way, VanDerveer has been known as one of the most approachable "legends" in coaching. She has been at the helm for 848 of Stanford's 1,024 victories but is known for reaching out to coaches of all ages and experience levels to give them encouragement.
Summitt, who died in June 2016 at the age of 64 from the effects of early-onset dementia, Alzheimer's type, leads all Division I women's coaches with 1,098 victories. VanDerveer, who was born just a year after Summitt, is in second place with 1,000, followed by North Carolina's Sylvia Hatchell (988), Rutgers' C. Vivian Stringer (977), and UConn's Geno Auriemma (976).