March Madness

Ohio State's Celeste Taylor embracing Latina identity on college basketball's biggest stage

“It's inspiring for myself to see other Latinas in the basketball community and in the basketball world,” she said.

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Celeste Taylor will be representing more than just Ohio State when she takes the floor for March Madness next week.

The Buckeyes guard is one of the few Latina players in women’s college basketball. While a national title is the ultimate goal, Taylor is embracing the greater impact she can offer those who want to follow in her footsteps.

“Being one of those few people that are in it trying to go out into the community and showcase that I am a Latina, I have been playing basketball and I have had some success and just showing that it can be done, I think that can be very helpful,” Taylor said on NBC Sports’ “Big Ten Country” podcast.

Growing up as part of a sports family, Taylor’s relatives played soccer, volleyball and softball. Her dad played basketball, and it became the sport that ultimately stuck for her.

“Just being around it, just being around sports, being around the competitive spirit of playing in sports I think is actually really cool,” she said. “And it has helped me decide where I want to go. My parents never forced me into one specific sport. They kind of let me try everything.”

Taylor’s mom and maternal grandparents are Colombian, and her paternal grandparents are Puerto Rican. She grew up in Valley Stream, New York, and has earned three gold medals while wearing red, white and blue.

She started for Team USA at the 2017 FIBA Under-16 Women's Americas Championship and was also part of championship-winning U.S. squads at the 2018 FIBA Under-17 Women's Basketball World Cup and  2019 FIBA Under-19 Women's Basketball World Cup. Those games featured matchups against Latin countries like Colombia and Argentina, and she says they opened her eyes to how basketball is viewed in those parts of the world.

“I think that a lot of times, basketball is not a popular sport out there,” she said. “So it's kind of hard to keep drawing people in, but I don't think personally that basketball tries to exclude Latinas. I just don't think they're surrounded by that when they're younger or it's not something that they see all the time.”

Taylor’s collegiate journey has taken her across the U.S., as well. She spent her first two NCAA seasons with the Texas Longhorns and made an Elite Eight appearance as a sophomore. Her next stop brought her to Cameron Indoor Stadium, where she continued to take off as a two-way player under Kara Lawson at Duke. Taylor was named the 2022-23 ACC Defensive Player of the Year and was a finalist for last season’s Naismith Women’s Defensive Player of the Year.

This spring, Taylor is wrapping up her fifth collegiate season at her third school with a real chance to make noise in the national tournament. The Buckeyes went 25-5 in the regular season and earned the Big Ten regular season crown over Caitlin Clark and Iowa. Taylor is among 10 Naismith Women’s Defensive Player of the Year semifinalists and will have the opportunity to help send Ohio State to its first Women’s Final Four in 31 years.

As Taylor and the Buckeyes enter March Madness, her grandparents will be watching from afar. Taylor says they travel back to Colombia to avoid U.S. winters, and while they might not understand everything happening on the court, their support has helped her put things into perspective.

“My grandma will call me and be like, ‘Oh, you look so pretty.’ And I'm like, ‘Grandma, why are you telling me I look pretty on the basketball court? Like, that's just not what I'm looking for,’” Taylor said. “But no, just to know that my grandpa and my grandma are watching and how proud they are of me, they don't know exactly what's going on, but they know I'm getting an education, which was important to them, and they know I'm having fun, so they just make sure I stay safe.”

With her collegiate journey winding down, Taylor is looking forward to setting an example for the next generation of Latina basketball stars.

“For me, it's inspiring for myself to see other Latinas in the basketball community and in the basketball world,” she said. “Then just going out there and continuing to be who I am, show the type of player and the person that I am, I think it definitely shows that I can be an inspiration to the younger girls.”

Check out the full "Big Ten Country" interview with Taylor on YouTube.

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