2020-21 Player Preview: Kaylynne Truong

The Gonzaga Bulldogs are a deep squad, that is just how head coach Lisa Fortier loves to run the game. With the frontcourt largely cemented, one of the big questions heading into this year is how the minutes shake out for the guard.

Kaylynne Truong had a perfectly serviceable freshman season. She established herself as a consistent three-point threat, hitting 43.9 percent of her shots from beyond the arc. With her twin sister Kayleigh largely expected to move into the point guard spot this season, and with Vanderbilt transfer Cierra Walker presumably getting the starting spot at the two-guard, Kaylynne will have to continue to display her three-point shot.

The Bulldogs graduated Katie Campbell and Jessie Loera from the backcourt, two of the top outside shooters on the squad last season. Jill Townsend is an established threat, but space is there for someone else to step up and fill in Campbell’s production. The Wirth twins, who will occupy a majority of the minutes down low, are your standard post players. For the Gonzaga women to succeed on offense, they need outside shooters to help open up some space down low.

She will contend for the backup minutes with senior Louise Forsyth and true freshmen McKayla Williams and Lily Scanlon. Last season, Truong averaged 14.3 minutes per game, seeing a slight uptick after Campbell went down with an injury. She averaged just 1.4 minutes more per game than Forsyth.

Although her free throw percentage left a bit to be desired last season, her 60 percent rate was a small sample size (just 23 total attempts). This coming season, she can work on creating her own shot that is not a three-pointer. Truong shot just 41.5 percent on two-pointers last season. She also needs to work on her ball control this season. Truong’s turnover rate of 24.1 percent was too high for a guard largely playing off the ball.

The women’s program at Gonzaga is heavily established in incremental growth. Truong got a bit more of a taste than she probably expected last season due to Campbell’s injury. This year will mark an important step in her overall growth, as looking forward to next season, the backcourt will be the Truong twins’ ship to run.