Tara Van Derveer - College

College

VanDerveer was determined to play in college. Her first choice was Mount Holyoke, but as one of five children, it wasn't financially possible, so she chose Albany where her father had studied for his doctorate. It wasn't a great team, but she knew the coach, which helped with the decision. The team turned out not be challenging enough. Although naturally a guard, she jumped center, and lead the team in many categories, despite being the freshman on the team. She decided she needed a bigger challenge so she talked some of her friends into attending the AIAW National Championship, where she watched many teams, took notes, and decided where she wanted to go. She chose Indiana where she transferred and spent three happy years, making the Dean's List each of the three years. In her sophomore year, 1973 she helped the team reach the Final Four of the AIAW championship, losing in the semi-finals to Queens College.

At that time, the men's basketball team at Indiana was coached by future Hall of Fame coach Bobby Knight. While Knight was not a direct influence on VanDerveer's choice of school, he may have been had an indirect effect. The Indiana women's coach, Bea Gorton, patterned her style of play and practices after Knight, and it was the observation of the style of play at the AIAW event that persuaded her to choose Indiana. The effect would become more direct. Because Gorton designed her practices based upon what she observed from Knight, VanDerveer started attending Knight's practices to see what she would be doing later that day in practice. VanDerveer carried what she learned from Knight to her practices at Stanford.