Stanford Women's Basketball

For three decades the most reliable sellout on the Stanford campus in winter was not football or men's basketball. It was the women's team at Maples Pavilion. The program won three national titles, reached 15 Final Fours and gave its longtime coach the record for the most wins in college basketball history. It now plays in a new conference with a new coach, but a winter night at Maples is still one of the best sports outings near Palo Alto.

This page focuses on the team: its history, the ACC years and the 2026 to 2027 season. For the arena itself, including seating and bag rules, see our Maples Pavilion guide.

Three titles and a record

Stanford's women first played varsity basketball in the 1970s and reached the AIAW tournament from 1978 to 1980. The modern program began when Tara VanDerveer arrived in 1985. Within five seasons Stanford was national champion.

The NCAA titles came in 1990, 1992 and 2021. Stanford Athletics also counts 15 Final Four appearances, 22 Elite Eight trips and 37 NCAA tournament appearances. In the Pac-10 and Pac-12 the team won 27 regular season titles and 15 conference tournament titles, according to the school's history page.

VanDerveer retired on April 9, 2024, after 38 seasons at Stanford, as the winningest coach in college basketball history. A week later, on April 16, Stanford named Kate Paye as her successor. Paye played at Stanford in the 1990s, earned her undergraduate degree there in 1995 and spent many years as an assistant and associate head coach on VanDerveer's staff.

Life in the ACC

Paye's first season coincided with the move to the Atlantic Coast Conference. It has been an adjustment. Stanford finished 16 and 15 in 2024 to 2025, going 8 and 10 in ACC play. It missed the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1987. The team went to the new WBIT instead. In 2025 to 2026 it improved to 21 and 14, again 8 and 10 in the ACC. It lost in overtime to Miami in the first round of the ACC tournament, then won two WBIT home games before losing at BYU in the quarterfinals on March 26, 2026.

The travel is the biggest change. A Thursday and Sunday pair of road games on the East Coast means long flights. The schedule now mixes West Coast evening tipoffs with morning starts back east. For fans at home that means more early weekend games on television and fewer late nights.

The conference brings new names to Maples. The 2026 to 2027 home slate includes Miami, NC State, Syracuse, North Carolina, Georgia Tech, Florida State, Pittsburgh and Boston College. Cal, a rival for more than a century, is now a conference opponent too.

The 2026 to 2027 season

Stanford opened with two exhibitions at Maples in October, beating Pacific and losing to UC Santa Barbara. The regular season starts on Monday, November 2, against Arizona at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Highlights from the schedule on gostanford.com:

The road schedule includes trips to Duke's Cameron Indoor Stadium, Louisville and Notre Dame, so many January games tip off in the morning or early afternoon Pacific time. Times can still change for television.

Tickets and prices

Buy through Stanford Athletics at tickets.gostanford.com. Each game on the schedule links to its own ticket page. Season tickets and group tickets are sold there too.

• Prices. In late October 2026 the ticket site listed starting prices of $6 for early season games against Saint Mary's, UC Davis, Gonzaga and Cal Poly. Most ACC games started at $10, while Arizona State and North Carolina started at $15. Better seats cost more.
• Who needs a ticket. Every fan older than 24 months. Stanford students get in free to regular season games with a valid Stanford ID.
• Mobile tickets go in your phone wallet. Screenshots are not accepted.
• Ticket office. Gate 2 of Stanford Stadium, weekdays 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., or call 800-STANFORD.

Game day at Maples

Doors open before tipoff and lines can build for ACC games and the Cal game. A few things to know from Stanford's women's basketball Gameday Central page:

1. Bags. The clear bag policy applies. Clear bags up to 12 by 6 by 12 inches and small clutches are allowed.
2. Drinks. Beer and wine are sold inside Maples. Bring ID and you get a wristband after age checks.
3. Seats. The lower bowl has padded seats with backs. Upper rows are backless, so a cushion with no zippers or pockets helps on a long afternoon.
4. Kids. Weekend afternoon tipoffs suit families. Children under two do not need a ticket if they sit on a guardian's lap. Our guide to visiting Stanford with kids has more ideas for the day.

Parking and transit

Stanford Athletics sends fans to Parking Structure 7, across Campus Drive from Maples. The Maples Lot beside the arena is reserved for season ticket members at qualifying donor levels. Other choices are the Sunken Lot, reached from Nelson Road off Galvez Street, or the Track House Lot at Galvez Street and Nelson Road. Visitor parking rules are enforced on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. unless signs say otherwise, with hourly payment through ParkMobile. Our Stanford parking and transit guide has the details.

By train, the Palo Alto Caltrain station is about a mile away, a 20 to 25 minute walk through the athletics area. The free Marguerite shuttle runs its main lines on weekdays only. For a 7 p.m. tipoff, check the last train home before you go.

Where to eat nearby

There is no full restaurant inside the athletics district. Maples concessions on the main concourse cover snacks and drinks. For a real meal, Town & Country Village is the closest cluster, across El Camino Real at Embarcadero Road, with Gott's Roadside, Howie's Artisan Pizza, Asian Box and Telefèric Barcelona among the choices. Downtown Palo Alto is about a mile away along Palm Drive.

On campus, Tresidder Union and The Axe and Palm in Old Union serve food to visitors, though hours follow the academic calendar. Our guides to eating near Stanford and dining on campus list hours and options. Men's basketball shares the building, so see our men's basketball page if you want to make a double weekend of it.

Frequently asked questions