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Marianne Stanley

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Marianne Stanley
Personal information
Born (1954-04-29) April 29, 1954 (age 72)
Yeadon, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Career information
High schoolArchbishop Prendergast
(Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania)
CollegeImmaculata (1972–1976)
PositionHead coach
Coaching career1977–present
Career history
Coaching
1977–1987Old Dominion
1987–1989Penn
1989–1993USC
1995–1996Stanford
1996–2000California
2000Los Angeles Sparks (assistant)
2001Washington Mystics (assistant)
2002–2003Washington Mystics
2004–2006New York Liberty (assistant)
2006–2008Rutgers (assistant)
2008–2009Los Angeles Sparks (assistant)
2010–2019Washington Mystics (assistant)
2020–2022Indiana Fever
Career highlights
Basketball Hall of Fame
Women's Basketball Hall of Fame

Marianne Crawford Stanley (born April 29, 1954) is an American basketball coach. She previously served as the head coach of the Washington Mystics and Indiana Fever of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA).[1]

Early life and collegiate career

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Born in Yeadon, Pennsylvania, Stanley played high school basketball at Archbishop Prendergast High School in Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania.[2]: 193–194  She was inducted into the Prendergast Hall of Fame in 2014.

After transferring from West Chester State College (now West Chester University),[2]: 195  Stanley played collegiate basketball at Immaculata College.[3] The women's basketball team played in six straight AIAW basketball tournament final fours from 1972 to 1977, five straight finals from 1972 to 1976. They won three consecutive national championships from 1972 to 1974. Among her teammates were future prominent women's coaches Theresa Grentz and Rene Portland. The team was featured for its 1970s accomplishments on a SportsCenter special[3] on March 23, 2008.

On January 26, 1975, she played in the first nationally televised women's intercollegiate basketball game. Facing Maryland at Cole Field House, Immaculata won 80–48.

On February 22, 1975, she played in the first women's basketball game played in Madison Square Garden. Immaculata beat Queens College, 65–61.

The story of the basketball team was adapted into a movie, The Mighty Macs,[4] which was released in 2011. The 1972–1974 teams were announced on April 7, 2014, as part of the 2014 induction class of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, and were formally inducted as a team on August 8, 2014.[5] In 2022, Stanley and Theresa Grentz were inducted into the Naismith Hall for their subsequent accomplishments as college coaches.[6]

Coaching career

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Stanley began her coaching career as an assistant at Immaculata under her former coach Cathy Rush. Stanley's first head coaching position was at Old Dominion University for the Lady Monarchs in 1977–78. In her first season, they won the NWIT tournament. The Lady Monarchs went on to win the AIAW women's basketball tournament in 1979 and 1980. She took the 1984–85 team to the NCAA championship, finishing 31–3 overall and 6–0 in conference play.[7]

Stanley left the position in 1987, taking the head coach position at Penn to be closer to family.[8] She led the Quakers to a 11–41 record in two seasons.

She took the head coaching job at USC in 1989, coaching for four seasons and leading the Trojans to three NCAA Tournament berths, including an Elite Eight appearance in 1992. Her contract was not renewed after she had asked to be paid a salary comparable to George Raveling, then the head coach of the USC men's basketball team. She sued the university on the basis of sex discrimination, but her suit was dismissed.[9]

After her exit at USC, she took a job as promotions director of the women's basketball program at Stanford.[10] While head coach Tara VanDerveer left to coach the USA women's basketball team for a year, Stanley shared the interim co-head coaching job along with assistant Amy Tucker. Stanley and Tucker led the Cardinal to a 29–3 record, including unbeaten 18–0 conference mark. The Cardinal reached the Final Four, their fifth in seven seasons.

Following the season, Stanley was named the head coach at California. She resigned in 2000, after four seasons and a 35–75 record.[11] While there, she was sued by a former assistant, who alleged Stanley gave her a choice between having an abortion and quitting her position, and also leaving her at a hotel during a recruiting trip. The university settled with the assistant for $115,000.[12]

Stanley entered the WNBA as an assistant with the Los Angeles Sparks in 2000. She joined the Mystics in 2001, and was named head coach of the team in 2002. That year Stanley earned WNBA Coach of the Year honors, guiding the Mystics to the Eastern Conference finals.[13] She was also inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame the same year.

Stanley resigned as head coach of the Mystics in January 2004,[14] and joined the New York Liberty as an assistant coach later that year.[15] She returned to the college coaching ranks in the fall of 2006 as an assistant to C. Vivian Stringer at Rutgers University. They guided the Scarlet Knights to the NCAA finals in 2007.[16]

She re-entered the WNBA in 2008, leaving to join head coach Michael Cooper's staff with the Los Angeles Sparks as an assistant from 2008 through 2009, and rejoined the Mystics as an assistant coach in 2010, where she remained for ten seasons.[14]

On November 27, 2019, Stanley was introduced as the head coach of the Indiana Fever. Stanley coached parts of three seasons with the team, amassing an 14–49 record before she was fired on May 25, 2022.[17]

Coaching Record

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College

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Record table
Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason
Old Dominion Monarchs (Independent) (1977–1982)
1977–78 Old Dominion 30–4 NWIT Champions
1978–79 Old Dominion 35–1 AIAW Champions
1979–80 Old Dominion 37–1 AIAW Champions
1980–81 Old Dominion 28–7 AIAW 3rd Place
1981–82 Old Dominion 22–6 NCAA Sweet Sixteen
Old Dominion Monarchs (Sun Belt Conference) (1982–1987)
1982–83 Old Dominion 29–6 1st NCAA Final Four
1983–84 Old Dominion 24–5 1st NCAA Elite Eight
1984–85 Old Dominion 31–3 6–0 1st NCAA Champions
1985–86 Old Dominion 15–13 5–1 2nd
1986–87 Old Dominion 18–13 5–1 2nd NCAA Sweet Sixteen
Old Dominion: 269–59 (.820) 16–2 (.889)
Penn Quakers (Ivy League) (1987–1989)
1987–88 Penn 6–20 5–9 T–5th
1988–89 Penn 5–21 3–11 7th
Penn: 11–41 (.212) 8–20 (.286)
USC Trojans (Pac-10 Conference) (1989–1993)
1989–90 USC 8–19 6–12 7th
1990–91 USC 18–12 11–7 3rd NCAA Second Round
1991–92 USC 23–8 14–4 2nd NCAA Elite Eight
1992–93 USC 22–7 14–4 2nd NCAA Sweet Sixteen
USC: 71–46 (.607) 45–27 (.625)
Stanford Cardinal (Pac-10 Conference) (1995–1996)
1995–96 Stanford 29–3 18–0 1st NCAA Final Four
Stanford: 29–3 (.906) 18–0 (1.000)
California Golden Bears (Pac-10 Conference) (1996–2000)
1996–97 California 6–21 2–16 10th
1997–98 California 6–21 2–16 T–9th
1998–99 California 12–15 6–12 T–6th
1999–2000 California 11–17 6–12 8th
California: 35–75 (.318) 16–56 (.222)
Total: 415–224 (.649)

      National champion         Postseason invitational champion  
      Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
      Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion
      Conference tournament champion

WNBA

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Legend
Regular season G Games coached W Games won L Games lost W–L % Win–loss %
Playoffs PG Playoff games PW Playoff wins PL Playoff losses PW–L % Playoff win–loss %
Team Year G W L W–L% Finish PG PW PL PW–L% Result
WAS 2002 32 17 15 .531 3rd in East 5 3 2 .600 Lost in Conference finals
WAS 2003 34 9 25 .265 7th in East - - - - Missed Playoffs
IND 2020 22 6 16 .273 5th in East - - - - Missed Playoffs
IND 2021 32 6 26 .188 6th in East - - - - Missed Playoffs
IND 2022 9 2 7 .222 (fired) - - - - –
Career 129 40 89 .310 5 3 2 .600

References

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  1. ^ "Indiana Fever Announce Marianne Stanley As New Head Coach". WNBA.com - Official Site of the WNBA. Retrieved November 30, 2019.
  2. ^ a b Hawkes, Nena Ray and Seggar, John F. (2000). Celebrating Women Coaches: A Biographical Dictionary. Greenwood, CT: Greenwood Press. pp. 193–200. ISBN 0313309124.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  3. ^ a b Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "ESPN Mighty Macs". YouTube. September 19, 2009.
  4. ^ Promotions, Milk Money. "The Mighty Macs - About The Movie". themightymacs.com. Retrieved October 3, 2017.
  5. ^ "The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame - Hall of Famers". Archived from the original on August 10, 2014. Retrieved September 11, 2015.
  6. ^ Jensen, Mike (September 9, 2022). "Theresa Grentz and Marianne Stanley: From Delco to Immaculata to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame". Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  7. ^ Coach Bio Archived 2012-10-21 at the Wayback Machine
  8. ^ "Minium: ODU Will Honor Marianne Stanley's Three National Championship Women's Basketball Teams On Saturday". Old Dominion Athletics. Retrieved June 16, 2026.
  9. ^ Almond, Elliott (May 6, 1995). "Stanley Becomes Stanford Co-Coach". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 14, 2026.
  10. ^ Peterson, Anne M. (November 10, 1996). "Marianne Stanley Is Again Running Her Own Show". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 15, 2026.
  11. ^ Hopp, Jessica; Sandoval, Greg (September 16, 2002). "Mystics Coach Was Cited in Pregnancy Suit". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved June 16, 2026.
  12. ^ Scully, Jessica M. (September 19, 2002). "Accord in Abortion Lawsuit Disclosed". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 16, 2026.
  13. ^ "Marianne Stanley". Old Dominion University. Archived from the original on December 15, 2019. Retrieved June 5, 2021.
  14. ^ a b "Marianne Stanley leaves Mystics coaching staff for top job with Indiana Fever". The Washington Post. November 26, 2019. Archived from the original on March 25, 2025. Retrieved June 16, 2026.
  15. ^ "New York Liberty 2004 Season". liberty.wnba.com. Retrieved June 16, 2026.
  16. ^ Finley, Bill (March 29, 2007). "Rutgers Assistant Has Experience and History of Success". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved June 16, 2026.
  17. ^ VanTryon, Matthew. "Indiana Fever fires head coach Marianne Stanley, continuing tumultuous era for franchise". The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved May 26, 2022.
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