Sylvia Hatchell, who led the UNC women’s basketball program to the 1994 NCAA championship and won more than 1,000 career games, will be honored with a bench in the Championship Coaches Legacy Garden at the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. The unveiling of the bench is scheduled for Saturday at 2 p.m. Former Tar Heels Charlotte Smith and Ivory Latta, who both have their numbers retired by the women’s basketball program, will present the bench to Hatchell.

Hatchell is only the fourth female coach with a bench in the garden, joining Tennessee’s Pat Summitt, Rutgers’ C. Vivian Stringer and Texas’ Jody Conradt. Hatchell will also become the third UNC head coach with a bench, joining Dean Smith and Roy Williams. Carolina is the only school with three coaches honored in such a manner.

Hatchell was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2013. She retired in 2019 after coaching in Chapel Hill for more than 30 years. Her 751 career wins in ACC play are the most all-time in women’s basketball. Hatchell coached the Tar Heels to three Final Fours and nine ACC championships, and also won the 1988 Olympic gold medal as an assistant coach on the USA women’s basketball team. Hatchell won ACC Coach of the Year and National Coach of the Year three times each.

 

Featured image via UNC

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