The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Women’s Basketball signs Shaylee Gonzales
07.12.2022 | Women's Basketball
Two-time West Coast Conference Player of the Year and second-team All-American guard joins the Longhorns for the 2022-23 season.
AUSTIN, Texas — Shaylee Gonzales has signed an Athletic Scholarship Agreement (ASA) to play basketball next season at The University of Texas, head coach Vic Schaefer announced Tuesday. Gonzales, who spent the previous four years at Brigham Young University but still has two years of eligibility remaining, will join the Longhorns for the upcoming 2022-23 season.
Gonzales (5-10), a guard from Gilbert, Ariz., played in 88 career games (61 starts) and recorded 1,555 points (17.7 ppg), 495 rebounds (5.6 rpg), 358 assists (4.1 apg) and 192 steals (2.2 spg) in 2,957 minutes (33.6 mpg) during her three playing seasons at BYU. Gonzales sat out the 2019-20 season with a medical redshirt. A three-time All-West Coast Conference (WCC) first-team selection and three-time WCC Championship All-Tournament Team choice, her 1,555 points ranked No. 10 on BYU's all-time scoring list.
During her redshirt junior season in 2021-22, Gonzales was tabbed a second-team All-American (The Athletic) and honorable mention All-American (Associated Press) and earned WCC Player of the Year honors. She paced BYU to a 26-4 overall record and the WCC regular-season title (15-1 mark) before falling in the NCAA Tournament First Round. The Cougars were ranked in The AP top 25 for 16 consecutive weeks, nearly doubling the previous school record of nine weeks. BYU climbed to as high as No. 15 in the rankings and was No. 20 in the final AP poll, equaling the school's best final ranking set in 1980.
One of five finalists for the Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year Award, Gonzales averaged a team-best 18.3 points, 5.9 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 2.3 steals per game last season. She ranked second in assists and third in scoring in the WCC and was a three-time WCC Player of the Week honoree and Naismith Trophy Midseason Team selection. Gonzales reached double figures in scoring in 28 of her 30 games and topped the 20-point mark 13 times, including a career-high 35 points against St. Mary's (Feb. 12). She converted 49.5-percent from the floor (209-422) and 83.3-percent from the free throw line (110-132).
As a redshirt sophomore in 2020-21, Gonzales was named WCC Co-Player of the Year while leading the team in scoring (17.8 ppg), assists (3.6 apg) and steals (2.4 spg). She ranked second in the WCC in scoring, fourth in steals and sixth in assists and was a two-time WCC Player of the Week and College Sports Madness High-Major National Player of the Week. Gonzales reached double figures in 23 of her 25 games played, including a season-high 30 points in the season opener against LSU. BYU registered a 19-6 record (13-3 WCC) and advanced to the NCAA Tournament Second Round.
During her freshman campaign in 2018-19, Gonzales led the team in scoring (17.0 ppg) and assists (4.1 apg) and ranked second in rebounding (5.6 rpg). The WCC Newcomer of the Year ranked second among freshmen nationally in scoring average and set a BYU freshman record for scoring average. She played in all 33 games (26 starts) and reached double figures in scoring 31 times and topped the 20-point mark nine times. Gonzales ranked second in the WCC in minutes, third in scoring, sixth in steals and eighth in assists.
A four-year letterwinner at Mesquite High School (Gilbert, Ariz.), Gonzales was the first player in school history to reach the 2,000-career point mark and posted 40 career double-doubles and seven triple-doubles. As a senior, she averaged 21.0 points, 7.7 rebounds, 5.4 assists, 5.0 steals and 1.3 blocks per game and was the top-ranked player in the state by the Arizona Republic. Gonzales was named the Arizona Girls Basketball Gatorade Player of the Year in her junior season (2017).
