Stanford Basketball

Tiger Woods congratulated Stanford after the Cardinal beat Arizona 54-53 in the title game of the 2021 NCAA women's basketball tournament.

Woods knows a thing or two about championships. Before the golfer won 15 major professional titles, he was the individual national champion while representing Stanford at the 1996 NCAA Division I men's championship. He also won three straight U.S. Amateur titles, the last two of which came when he was enrolled at the school.

The 45-year-old is recuperating from a single-car crash in February that left him with comminuted open fractures to his tibia and fibula.

If Woods was following along with the action at home, then he watched an instant classic. The Cardinal prevailed after Arizona star Aari McDonald missed a jumper at the buzzer, securing the program's third national championship.

Stanford head coach Tara VanDerveer picked up the 1,099th victory of her career Tuesday, moving her ahead of Pat Summitt to become the all-time winningest coach in NCAA women's basketball.

The Cardinal beat Pacific 104-61 in Stockton, California, to help VanDerveer achieve history. 

She had tied Summitt with Stanford's 83-38 victory over California on Sunday.

"We were great friends," VanDerveer told reporters of her relationship with the legendary Tennessee coach, who died in 2016. "I learned a lot from coaching against Pat. I coached a lot of Pat's players internationally. ... I learned how much her players loved playing for her. As a coach, I think that's all of our goals: To be like Pat is to be a coach where your players really love playing for you."

The 67-year-old got her start at Idaho ahead of the 1978-79 season and moved on to Ohio State after two years. The Buckeyes went 28-3 and reached the Elite Eight during the 1984-85 season, after which she took the Stanford job.

She has remained with the Cardinal ever since, with her only break coming when she took charge of the United States national team ahead of the 1996 Summer Olympics. Team USA captured gold, cruising past Brazil in the final.

A testament to the foundation VanDerveer had laid, Stanford still made the Final Four in 1995-96 while she was away from the team.

To say the Cardinal have been a women's basketball powerhouse would be an understatement. Their two national titles undersell how consistent they've been under VanDerveer's watch. Stanford hasn't missed the NCAA tournament since 1987, advancing to the Final Four on 13 occasions.

The program isn't slowing down, which can occasionally happen as coaches spend more than three decades in the same place. Sometimes things grow stale as an older coach fails to connect with younger players in the same way, or they struggle to keep up with how the game changes.

Stanford sits No. 1 in the Associated Press' Top 25 poll. A 2019 recruiting class that featured Haley Jones, Ashten Prechtel, Fran Belibi and Hannah Jump is starting to deliver significant returns. 

The Cardinal also landed Cameron Brink, the No. 3 player in HoopGurlz's 2020 rankings while signing Brooke Demetre (No. 11) and Okikiola Iriafen (No. 19) for 2021.

Geno Auriemma is hot on VanDerveer's heels with 1,092 wins and may eventually overtake her for the all-time record. But VanDerveer looks set to enjoy the record for a little while, with Stanford poised to maintain its place among the women's college basketball elite.

Highly touted small forward Harrison Ingram announced his commitment to Stanford on Friday:

Ingram is fourth at his position and 11th overall nationally in 247Sports' composite rankings for 2021. The Dallas native is also the best recruit in the state of Texas.

On Aug. 1, he had narrowed his finalists to six schools: Harvard, Howard, Michigan, North Carolina, Purdue and Stanford.

247Sports' Brian Snow compared Ingram to former UCLA star and Memphis Grizzlies forward Kyle Anderson:

"On the court he is kind of a point forward who uses savvy, skill and intelligence to dominate games. Ingram can play on the ball or off of it, knows how to create space for himself by changing speeds, and is one of the better passers in the class. Also, despite not being a fantastic athlete, Ingram is a very solid rebounder, and competes on the defensive end. His elite IQ and skill make him one of the best prospects in the class, and someone who will exceed his physical tools as a player and producer."

Ingram helped guide St. Mark's to a Southwest Preparatory boys' basketball championship in February, dropping 14 points in an 85-57 victory over Houston Christian.

His profile rose significantly last summer when he and Team YGC36 toppled reigning champion Compton Magic Elite in the Adidas Gauntlet Finale. Team YGC36 was also crowned the 16U division champs after defeating the Atlanta Celtics.

While Ingram was bound to have plenty of prominent coaches knocking on his door, on-court reputation wasn't going to be his sole consideration during the recruitment process.

Snow noted he has a 4.0 GPA, and The Undefeated's William C. Rhoden profiled the Ingram family for a piece in December 2017 that laid out how Ingram's father, Tyrous, was concerned with more than just basketball.

Will Ingram, Harrison's older brother, plays basketball at Middlebury College, a Division III school in Vermont.

"Will went Division III," Tyrous said. "He is doing well academically and looking at a summer internship. He will go on to work on Wall Street, will get an MBA and make a lot of money, hopefully."

Tyrous expressed reservations about Harrison playing for a Division I power because his academic career might take a back seat.

Ingram's potential is impossible to ignore, though. While an NBA career is almost never a guarantee for a player just hitting the college level, it's certainly a feasible goal for Ingram down the line.

Ingram and his family can cross that bridge when it comes. In the immediate future, he's likely to assume a starring role for the Cardinal in 2021-22.

The Mike Montgomery era feels like a lifetime ago.

Stanford made 10 straight NCAA tournament appearances before Montgomery moved on to coach the Golden State Warriors in 2004. Since then, the Cardinal have made just four trips to the Big Dance.

Stanford head coach Jerod Haase might have things trending in the right direction. The Cardinal won 20 games in 2019-20 and assembled the Pac-12's third-best recruiting class in 2020, per 247Sports.

The school's academic record likely played a role in Ingram's decision, but his commitment is a strong endorsement of Haase as well.

Ziaire Williams, one of the most prized prospects in the 2020 recruiting class, announced Sunday he's decided to play college basketball at Stanford.  

Williams is a 5-star prospect and the No. 5 overall player in the 2020 class, according to 247Sports' composite rankings. He's also listed as the best small forward and the third-rated recruit coming out of the state of California.

The Sierra Canyon High School (California) standout told David Yapkowitz of Mars Reel he tries to model his playing style after two-time NBA Finals MVP Kevin Durant.

"I'm a big fan of KD. We have the same body structure, that's who a lot of people compare me to," Williams said in January. "I study his game a little bit and see the different ways I can score on the court."

At 6'7" and just 175 pounds, Williams must continue to build strength, particularly in his upper body, in order to dominate like Durant and other top wing players. KD has illustrated it's possible to reach the pinnacle of the sport with a lanky frame, but there are still limitations, especially as he heads toward the NBA level.

Otherwise, all the tools are there for him to become a stud. He's developed a well-rounded game at the offensive end, while his quickness and athleticism should make him an impact defender, as well.

He possesses all the hallmarks of a one-and-done collegiate player, and working with a college training staff should accelerate the process of adding more power.

Williams is a game-changing addition to the 2020 class for head coach Jerod Haase and the Cardinal. The fact that they were able to secure a top in-state recruit is always a great sign.

Not only will he make an instant impact as a freshman for Stanford, likely emerging as one of the team's top scorers by season's end, but his decision could help sway other recruits, too. And landing him over other Pac-12 rivals, like Arizona, USC and UCLA, will only make Sunday's news sweeter.