Doug Oliver has been named head women’s basketball coach at UC Irvine after serving as an assistant coach with the team last season.

Oliver, who has nearly 40 years of coaching experience, signed a five-year contract to guide the Anteaters. Prior to working with the women’s program last year, he served two seasons as an assistant with the Anteater men’s program. He also served one year in an external relations position with UCI Intercollegiate Athletics.

Oliver’s experience includes 14 years as the top assistant with the Stanford men’s program. Oliver had two stints with the Cardinal, the first from 1986-98 as a member of Mike Montgomery’s staff when the Cardinal became an annual national contender, including 1997-98, when Stanford advanced to the Final Four and finished with a 30-5 record.

Oliver then served as head men’s coach at Idaho State from 1998-2006 before returning to Stanford as Trent Johnson’s lead assistant from 2006-08. The Cardinal reached the Sweet 16 in 2007-08 and ended the season with a 28-8 overall record.

While on the staff at Stanford, Oliver contributed to a total of 281 victories, including 147 wins in Pac-10 games. During that span, the Cardinal qualified for the postseason 12 times, reaching the NCAA Tournament eight times and qualifying for the NIT on four occasions, highlighted by the 1991 championship.

Oliver also previously was an assistant at Utah, Boise State, and West Valley College.