Tara solidified her reputation as one of the game’s greats in the 1990’s, winning two national championships, eight Pac-10 crowns and an Olympic gold medal.
Her 1990 squad capped a dream season with an 88-81 win over Auburn in the national final. The Cardinal raced through the tournament, winning its five NCAA games by an average of more than 15 points, and established over 100 school, conference and NCAA postseason records. With just one senior on the roster in 1992 and forced to replace three starters from the previous season, Stanford went 30-3 and won its second national championship in three years with a 78-62 drubbing of Western Kentucky.
In 1995, VanDerveer was selected to coach the USA Basketball Olympic Team for the 1996 Atlanta Games. Taking a year's sabbatical from Stanford, she guided the U.S. squad to 52 straight victories throughout its domestic and international tour, then to the gold medal with eight straight victories in Atlanta. The success of that group paved the way for the establishment of professional women’s basketball in the United States.
