Stevens Elected to Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame; Falcon Coach Part of Class that Includes Kobe, Garnett & Duncan
WALTHAM, Mass. –Bentley University's Barbara Stevens, the fourth winningest women's basketball coach in NCAA history, has been elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. The announcement was made Saturday on ESPN.
Stevens will be enshrined during ceremonies in Springfield that are currently scheduled for August 28-30.
The 2020 Hall of Fame class, called by some as the "most epic ever", also includes NBA legends Kevin Garnett, Kobe Bryant and Tim Duncan, former NBA player and coach Rudy Tomjanovich, longtime NCAA men's coach Eddie Sutton, Baylor women's basketball coach Kim Mulkey, former WNBA star Tamika Catchings and the late Patrick Baumann, a former Secretary General of FIBA.
"I am so honored, I am so humbled to be included in this unbelievable class of inductees into the Hall of Fame," said Stevens after learning of her election. "This is something that is overwhelming.
"The incredible emotions that I felt after receiving the call from the Hall of Fame Friday afternoon, I can't even put into words."
"Pages could be written about Barbara's accomplishments, but simply stated, it's a great award for a great person," praised Bentley Director of Athletics Bob DeFelice.
A five-time WBCA Division II National Coach of the Year, Stevens recently completed her 34th season at Bentley and her 43rd as a college coach. Before her arrival in Waltham in 1986, the Bridgewater State College graduate spent six years at Clark University and three at Massachusetts.
Stevens owns a career record of 1058-291 with her victory total exceeded by only Pat Summitt, Tara VanDerveer and Geno Auriemma, a trio of coaches previous inducted into the Hall of Fame. She's one of six NCAA women's basketball coaches with at least 1,000 wins with her milestone victory coming January 17, 2018 with a 78-66 win over Adelphi.
Her Bentley record stands at 901-200 and she's one of only four women's basketball coaches who have won at least 900 at one institution (Auriemma, Summitt, VanDerveer).
"I have been a fan of Coach Stevens since I arrived at Bentley 27 years ago," commented Andrew Shepardson, Bentley Vice President for Student Affairs. "I am proud to call her a colleague and a friend. She epitomizes Bentley – a commitment to excellence, a championship spirit and a humility to understand that it is team above all else. To say all of us at Bentley are proud is an understatement. We are thrilled to know that the Bentley name and hers will forever be linked."
A dozen of Stevens' Bentley teams have won at least 30, including the 2013-14 team which capped a remarkable 35-0 season with a come-from-behind 73-65 win over West Texas A&M. The Falcons, down 60-54 with just over three minutes to play, closed with a 19-5 run to give Stevens her first national championship.
Stevens has won at least 20 games in 30 of her 34 Bentley seasons and 19 games three other times. Her Bentley tenure has also included an .818 winning percentage, 31 NCAA tournament berths, 14 NCAA regional championships, ten appearances in the national semifinals, 20 Northeast-10 regular season championships and 17 NE10 tournament titles.
In addition to being honored as the WBCA Division II National Coach of the Year in 1992, 1999, 2001, 2013 and 2014, Stevens has also been recognized as the Northeast-10 Coach of the Year an incredible 16 times.
Stevens was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006, and is also a member of the Bentley, Clark, Bridgewater State and New England Basketball halls of fame.
"All I want to say is thank you to the committee, thank you to my players, thank you to my assistant coaches," said Stevens. "I am tremendously honored, and honestly, I don't even know how to put all my feelings into words."
"The Class of 2020 is undoubtedly one of the most historic of all time and the talent and social influence of these nine honorees is beyond measure," said John L. Doleva, President and CEO of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. "In 2020, the basketball community has suffered the unimaginable loss of iconic figures Commissioner David Stern and Kobe Bryant, as well as the game itself due to COVID-19. We have also banded together like never before in appreciation of the game and those who have made it the uniting force it is today. Today we thank the Class of 2020 for all they have done for the game of basketball and we look forward to celebrating them at Enshrinement in August."
