Barbara Stevens' list of accomplishments from her basketball coaching days is staggering.
In 43 years of leading teams in Divisions I, II and III, Stevens amassed 1,058 victories, was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball and Women's Basketball Halls of Fame and had the court at Bentley, where she coached 34 years, named for her.
Stevens, who led Bentley to the 2014 NCAA Division II championship, retired after the 2019-20 season, which was halted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Reflecting on her life's work in coaching, she said the part of it she misses the most is practice.
That shouldn't come as a surprise because paying attention to details each day is what led to her success. She is in the company of Tara VanDerveer, Geno Auriemma, Pat Summitt, C. Vivian Stringer and Sylvia Hatchell as the only NCAA women's basketball coaches to reach the 1,000-win plateau.
"I miss the interaction with the players," Stevens said. "That's where you see the growth individually, and then the team starts to grow. The daily teaching is what gets them ready for competition."
Her interest in coaching was born while watching her high school coach, Rita Castagna. Stevens recalled the leadership, spirit and energy with which Castagna approached her occupation.
To Stevens, it seemed like Castagna had the best job in the world.
After graduating from high school in 1972 and starting college at Bridgewater State that fall, Stevens set out to make her goal come true.
While she was focused on playing basketball, softball and tennis in college, the coaching part of athletics became more interesting to her.
"While I was in college, I would go to basketball coaching clinics and listen to Bobby Knight, Denny Crum and other big-name coaches at that time," Stevens said. "I would come back and put my notes down on my college coach's desk to show her all the things I learned about the drills they ran. My fascination with coaching grew from there."
Title IX
While she was completing her undergraduate degree in health and physical education, the new Title IX legislation that passed in June 1972 was a topic of conversation. Most of the discussion centered on what the future would hold for women's athletics.
"The fact that the legislation passed didn't mean there was this instant adoption by colleges and schools," Stevens said. "There was a long process of actually being able to reap the benefits of Title IX.
"There were men in the U.S. Senate who fought to get Title IX rescinded or changed. There was such a fight for equality then, and it's still going on."
In her youth, Stevens knew things weren't equal when it came to boys and girls sports. The boys always had the choice of when they would practice or play games. But at the time, it wasn't questioned.
She remembers having to tape her own ankles before practices and games in college.
Stevens recalled how she had to wear a tunic, a sleeveless garment that went down to her knees, when competing in sports. It wasn't until her senior year at Bridgewater State that her team wore shorts and traditional basketball jerseys.
"It was freeing, and I remember thinking this is what it's like to actually play a sport where you feel like you can move your arms and legs," Stevens said.
In her collegiate playing days, Stevens noticed that the women's coaches at Bridgewater State were all professors, which meant they were part-time coaches.
While this stood out to her, Stevens' goal remained becoming a teacher and coach at the high school level. After graduating, however, she received an offer to be a part-time assistant basketball coach at Division III Clark (Massachusetts).
After one season, the head coaching position opened, and then-Women's Athletics Director Pat Hassett was resolute that she wanted a woman to coach the women's basketball team. After the interview process, Stevens accepted the offer at the age of 23.
"I got selected, and it was trial by fire," said Stevens, who led Clark for six seasons. "One thing I will always remember about Pat was her being adamant that her teams would get as much funding and be treated as equal as possible."
Stevens averaged more than 20 wins a season and led Clark to the Division III national semifinals in 1982 and 1983. She received a call from Massachusetts and decided to make the move to Division I, despite being happy at Clark.
Basketball in the Atlantic 10 Conference brought a rebuilding challenge.
Conference and nonconference games saw her teams facing Penn State, Rutgers, West Virginia and Temple. In three years at Massachusetts, Stevens found the going tough, but she was determined to build the program.
A home with the Falcons
In the summer of 1986, Stevens received a call that changed her life. Bentley was looking for a women's basketball coach. After some contemplation, Stevens made the choice to take the job on the Waltham, Massachusetts, campus she would call home for the next 34 years.
Barbara Stevens holds the 2014 NCAA Division II national championship trophy. (Photo courtesy of Bentley)
"I was concerned professionally because it was a move that would take me from Division I coaching," Stevens said. "I wasn't sure that was the trajectory I wanted to be on for my career. It was the move I needed to make. Needless to say, it was the best decision I ever made."
Stevens led the Falcons to 901 victories as coach, including an undefeated 35-0 season in 2014. She has numerous memories from all the players and teams she coached, but the run to the national title stands out.
One year before celebrating the NCAA title, Bentley lost at the buzzer at home in regional play. From that bitter moment, Stevens said her players dedicated themselves to erasing that memory.
"We had seven seniors that year, and they absolutely dominated the mindset of that team in a good way," Stevens said. "Their attitude, focus and drive were there each day. It was one of those teams where I just needed to give them a little direction, and off they went."
In January 2019, Bentley officially named the court after Stevens.
All the accolades are hard for her to comprehend at times, especially the call she received to tell her she was voted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
Stevens' Class of 2020 included NBA legends Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett; former Baylor and current LSU women's coach Kim Mulkey; former Houston Rockets coach Rudy Tomjanovich; and WNBA great Tamika Catchings.
"I'm waiting for someone to call me to say it was a mistake," said Stevens, who won more than 78% of her games in 43 years of coaching. "I'm grateful for the career I had and the people I coached, the assistants I worked with, and the administrators and support staff that I was around through the years."
In retirement, Stevens likes attending Bentley games, and she has rediscovered her love for drawing. She tries to set aside at least two hours each day to draw. She also can't wait for the New England weather to warm up so she can hit the golf courses in the area.
She is enjoying the time to catch up with her former players, as well. For Stevens, the bonds she has with the student-athletes are the best remaining parts of her fulfilling career.
Last month, Stevens and some of her former players from the teams she coached at Clark attended the UConn-South Carolina nationally televised women's basketball game.
"When I got hired at Clark, the seniors were just two years younger than me," Stevens said. "We are friends to this day. The relationships are what I'm most thankful for. My former players involve me in the important times of their lives, whether it's weddings, birth announcements and all kinds of things that are important to them. I cherish those relationships."
