2023–24 Gonzaga Bulldogs women's basketball team

The 2023–24 Gonzaga Bulldogs women's basketball team represented Gonzaga University in the 2023–24 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Bulldogs (also informally referred to as the "Zags"), were members of the West Coast Conference. The Bulldogs, led by tenth year head coach Lisa Fortier, played their home games at the McCarthey Athletic Center on the university campus in Spokane, Washington.

2023–24 Gonzaga Bulldogs women's basketball
WCC regular season champions
NCAA tournament, Sweet Sixteen
ConferenceWest Coast Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 13
APNo. 14
Record32–4 (16–0 WCC)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaMcCarthey Athletic Center
Seasons
2023–24 West Coast Conference women's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 14 Gonzaga 16 0   1.000 32 4   .889
Santa Clara 12 4   .750 25 9   .735
Portland 10 6   .625 21 13   .618
San Francisco 10 6   .625 14 16   .467
Pacific 8 8   .500 18 15   .545
Saint Mary's 6 10   .375 13 18   .419
Loyola Marymount 5 11   .313 11 19   .367
San Diego 4 12   .250 9 22   .290
Pepperdine 1 15   .063 5 25   .167
2024 WCC tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll

Previous season

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The Bulldogs finished the season at 28–5 and 17–1 in WCC play to win the WCC regular season championship. They advanced to the WCC women's tournament championship game where they lost to Portland. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA Women's Tournament as a 9th seed in Seattle region 4 where they lost in the first round to Ole Miss.[1]

Offseason

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Departures

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Due to COVID-19 disruptions throughout NCAA sports in 2020–21, the NCAA announced that the 2020–21 season would not count against the athletic eligibility of any individual involved in an NCAA winter sport, including women's basketball. This meant that all seniors in 2020–21 had the option to return for 2021–22.

Name Number Pos. Height Year Hometown Reason left
Giana Riley 2 G 5'8" Freshman Manteca, CA Resume back to Gonzaga Bulldogs WSOC[2]
McKayla Williams 24 G 6'1" Junior Los Angeles, CA Transferred to California[3]

Recruiting

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There was no recruiting class of 2023.

Roster

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2023–24 Gonzaga Bulldogs women's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Year Previous school Hometown
F 0 Esther Little 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) RS Jr Ipswich Basketball Academy Ipswich, England
F 1 Destiny Burton 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) Sr Mansfield Timberview
Panola College
Wichita, KS
F 3 Payton Muma 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) RS So Highlands Ranch Highlands Ranch, CO
G 4 Claire O'Connor 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) Fr Lakeside Bellevue, WA
G 5 Maud Huijbens 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) Jr N/A
Syracuse
Hilversum, Netherlands
F 10 Calli Stokes 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) RS So Redondo Redondo Beach, CA
G 11 Kayleigh Truong 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) GS Jersey Village Houston, TX
F 12 Eliza Hollingsworth 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) RS Sr St Leonard's College Melbourne, Australia
F 13 Naya Ojukwu 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) RS Fr Mountain View Meridian, ID
G 14 Kaylynne Truong 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) GS Jersey Village Houston, TX
F 15 Yvonne Ejim 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) Sr Edge School Calgary, AB
G 22 Brynna Maxwell 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) GS Gig Harbor
Utah
Gig Harbor, WA
F 31 Ella Hopkins 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) Fr Lourdes Rochester, MN
G 35 Bree Salenbien 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) RS So Lenawee Christian Adrian, MI
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

Schedule and results

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[4]

Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
November 2, 2023*
6:00 p.m.
Warner Pacific W 95–32 
                  McCarthey Athletic Center 
Spokane, WA
Non-conference regular season
November 6, 2023*
6:00 p.m., SWX/ESPN+
at Montana W 83–70  1–0
 19  Kayly. Truong   9  Hollingsworth   6  Kayly. Truong  Dahlberg Arena (2,603)
Missoula, MT
November 9, 2023*
7:00 p.m.
at No. 24 Washington State L 72–77 OT 1–1
 22  Kayly. Truong   7  Hollingsworth   6  Kayly. Truong  Beasley Coliseum (1,587)
Pullman, WA
November 12, 2023*
2:00 p.m., SWX/ESPN+
Toledo W 91–70  2–1
 22  Ejim   11  Hollingsworth   4  Tied  McCarthey Athletic Center (4,843)
Spokane, WA
November 15, 2023*
6:00 p.m., ESPN+
North Florida W 83–55  3–1
 21  Kayle. Truong   8  Ejim   8  Kayly. Truong  McCarthey Athletic Center (4,845)
Spokane, WA
November 18, 2023*
2:00 p.m., ESPN+
Wyoming W 80–64  4–1
 18  Kayle. Truong   10  Ejim   8  Kayly. Truong  McCarthey Athletic Center (5,059)
Spokane, WA
November 24, 2023*
11:15 a.m., ESPN+
vs. Liberty
Betty Chancellor Classic
W 102–59  5–1
 25  Kayle. Truong   8  Ejim   8  Kayly. Truong  Merrell Center (215)
Katy, TX
November 25, 2023*
11:15 a.m., ESPN+
vs. Alabama
Betty Chancellor Classic
W 68–58  6–1
 23  Ejim   8  Tied   7  Kayle. Truong  Merrell Center (530)
Katy, TX
November 26, 2023*
10:45 a.m., ESPN+
vs. No. 20 Louisville
Betty Chancellor Classic
L 70–81  6–2
 23  Ejim   7  Ejim   7  Kayle. Truong  Merrell Center 
Katy, TX
November 29, 2023*
6:00 p.m., SWX/ESPN+
at Eastern Washington W 82–80  7–2
 23  Ejim   14  Hollingsworth   8  Kayly. Truong  Reese Court (1,378)
Cheney, WA
December 3, 2023*
1:00 p.m., SWX/ESPN+
No. 3 Stanford W 96–78  8–2
 27  Ejim   12  Ejim   7  Kayle. Truong  McCarthey Athletic Center (6,000)
Spokane, WA
December 7, 2023*
7:00 p.m., P12N
No. 23 at California W 78–70 OT 9–2
 21  Ejim   9  Tied   12  Kayly. Truong  Haas Pavilion (1,109)
Berkeley, CA
December 9, 2023*
12:00 p.m., ESPN+
No. 23 at Rice W 80–72  10–2
 21  Hollingsworth   10  Ejim   5  Kayle. Truong  Tudor Fieldhouse (1,367)
Houston, TX
December 17, 2023*
2:00 p.m., SWX/ESPN+
No. 21 South Dakota State W 83–58  11–2
 17  Hollingsworth   12  Hollingsworth   6  Kayle. Truong  McCarthey Athletic Center (5,120)
Spokane, WA
December 20, 2023*
1:30 p.m., P12N
No. 20 vs. Arizona
Jerry Colangelo Classic
W 81–69  12–2
 27  Ejim   11  Hollingsworth   6  Kayly. Truong  Footprint Center 
Phoenix, AZ
December 22, 2023*
1:00 p.m., SWX/ESPN+
No. 20 New Mexico W 67–56  13–2
 22  Ejim   6  Huijbens   7  Kayly. Truong  McCarthey Athletic Center (5,241)
Spokane, WA
WCC regular season
January 4, 2024
6:00 p.m., ESPN+
No. 18 at Portland W 74–53  14–2
(1–0)
 21  Maxwell   11  Hollingsworth   4  Maxwell  Chiles Center (1,503)
Portland, OR
January 11, 2024
6:00 p.m., SWX/ESPN+
No. 16 Santa Clara W 87–49  15–2
(2–0)
 19  Ejim   7  Hollingsworth   4  Tied  McCarthey Athletic Center (5,155)
Spokane, WA
January 13, 2024
2:00 p.m., SWX/ESPN+
No. 16 San Diego W 85–67  16–2
(3–0)
 25  Ejim   10  Ejim   7  Kayle. Truong  McCarthey Athletic Center (5,303)
Spokane, WA
January 18, 2024
7:00 p.m., ESPN+
No. 17 at Loyola Marymount W 72–48  17–2
(4–0)
 24  Ejim   12  Ejim   10  Kayly. Truong  Gersten Pavilion (356)
Los Angeles, CA
January 20, 2024
2:00 p.m., SWX/ESPN+
No. 17 Saint Mary's W 89–60  18–2
(5–0)
 25  Kayly. Truong   9  Hollingsworth   6  Kayly. Truong  McCarthey Athletic Center (5,439)
Spokane, WA
January 25, 2024
4:00 p.m., ESPN+
No. 17 at Santa Clara W 82–45  19–2
(6–0)
 19  Ejim   13  Ejim   6  Kayle. Truong  Leavey Center (337)
Santa Clara, CA
January 27, 2024
2:00 p.m., ESPN+
No. 17 at San Francisco W 73–54  20–2
(7–0)
 21  Ejim   13  Ejim   6  Kayly. Truong  War Memorial Gymnasium 
San Francisco, CA
February 1, 2024
6:00 p.m., ESPN+
No. 19 at San Diego W 80–52  21–2
(8–0)
 19  Maxwell   8  Tied   12  Kayly. Truong  Jenny Craig Pavilion (334)
San Diego, CA
February 3, 2024
2:00 p.m., SWX/ESPN+
No. 19 Pacific W 104–39  22–2
(9–0)
 21  Ejim   11  Ejim   9  Kayly. Truong  McCarthey Athletic Center (5,633)
Spokane, WA
February 8, 2024
6:00 p.m., SWX/ESPN+
No. 19 Pepperdine W 83–46  23–2
(10–0)
 19  Kayly. Truong   8  Hollingsworth   3  Tied  McCarthey Athletic Center (4,921)
Spokane, WA
February 10, 2024
2:00 p.m., ESPN+
No. 19 Loyola Marymount W 71–47  24–2
(11–0)
 13  Kayly. Truong   7  Stokes   8  Kayly. Truong  McCarthey Athletic Center (5,442)
Spokane, WA
February 15, 2024
4:30 p.m., ESPN+
No. 17 at Saint Mary's W 96–68  25–2
(12–0)
 20  Tied   10  Ejim   4  Tied  University Credit Union Pavilion (441)
Moraga, CA
February 17, 2024
2:00 p.m., ESPN+
No. 17 at Pacific W 91–78  26–2
(13–0)
 28  Ejim   9  Tied   10  Kayle. Truong  Alex G. Spanos Center (1,183)
Stockton, CA
February 22, 2024
6:00 p.m., SWX/ESPN+
No. 16 San Francisco W 74–48  27–2
(14–0)
 20  Ejim   6  Tied   5  Tied  McCarthey Athletic Center (5,415)
Spokane, WA
February 24, 2024
2:00 p.m., ESPN+
No. 16 at Pepperdine W 75–41  28–2
(15–0)
 18  Maxwell   11  Ejim   6  Kayly. Truong  Firestone Fieldhouse (103)
Malibu, CA
February 28, 2024
8:00 p.m., ESPNU
No. 16 Portland W 90–40  29–2
(16–0)
 19  Maxwell   10  Hollingsworth   6  Kayly. Truong  McCarthey Athletic Center (6,000)
Spokane, WA
WCC women's tournament
March 11, 2024
12:00 p.m., ESPN+
(1) No. 14 vs. (5) Pacific
Semifinals
W 72–61  30–2
 20  Hollingsworth   13  Ejim   7  Kayly. Truong  Orleans Arena 
Paradise, NV
March 12, 2024
1:00 p.m., ESPNU
(1) No. 14 vs. (3) Portland
Championship
L 66–67  30–3
 17  Ejim   11  Tied   5  Kayle. Truong  Orleans Arena (2,594)
Paradise, NV
NCAA Women's Tournament
March 23, 2024*
4:30 p.m., ESPN2
(4 P4) No. 16 (13 P4) UC Irvine
First round
W 75–56  31–3
 25  Ejim   14  Ejim   5  Tied  McCarthey Athletic Center (6,000)
Spokane, WA
March 25, 2024*
7:30 p.m., ESPN2
(4 P4) No. 16 (5 P4) No. 21 Utah
Second round
W 77–66  32–3
 21  Kayle. Truong   13  Ejim   5  Tied  McCarthey Athletic Center (6,000)
Spokane, WA
March 29, 2024*
7:00 p.m., ESPN
(4 P4) No. 16 vs. (1 P4) No. 4 Texas
Sweet Sixteen
L 47–69  32–4
 14  Ejim   5  Tied   4  Kayly. Truong  Moda Center (10,104)
Portland, OR
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
P4=Portland 4.
All times are in Pacific Time Zone.

Rankings

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Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes
Week
PollPre12345678910111213141516171819Final
APRVRV2321202018161717191917161615141614
CoachesRVRVRVRV2321202019171717171616151313121313

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Ole Miss women's basketball crushes Gonzaga, sets up March Madness clash with Stanford". The Clarion-Ledger. Retrieved 2024-02-09.
  2. ^ "Gonzaga Women's Soccer Forward Giana Riley Stepped Up To Help WBB Team Last Season". NonStop Local KHQ. Retrieved 9 February 2024.
  3. ^ Curtis, Jake. "Cal Women's Basketball: Bears Add Gonzaga Transfer McKayla Williams". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 9 February 2024.
  4. ^ "2023–24 Women's Basketball Schedule - Gonzaga University Official Athletic Site - Women's Basketball". Gozags.com.