Here's how Harvard women's basketball continues to bring attention to Black History Month

Boston Globe

04-02-2025

'Everyone knows that Harvard has this megaphone,' Turner said. 'And a lot of people are looking at us to be these leaders for the younger generations to come, and I feel like Black History Month is very important and essential in that area. We have to honor those that came before us. But also be an example for what's to come.'
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While the Crimson were huddled between quarters, a special clip played on the video board. Players shared stories of Black women who inspired them.
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Turner offered effusive and unflinching praise for Claudine Gay, who made history two years ago when she became the university's first Black president. Gay's tenure was short, ending after just six months and marred by the controversy and subsequent pressures of a congressional hearing in the wake of unrest on campus as a result of the Hamas attack on Israel.
Gay is now a professor of government and African and African-American Studies at Harvard. She's also one of the women's basketball programs most loyal supporters.
'Faithful fan,' Moore said.
So Turner wasn't surprised that Gay was in the crowd on Saturday.
'She comes to all of them,' Turner said.
Former Harvard president Claudine Gay remains a huge fan of the women's basketball program.
Haiyun Jiang/Photographer: Haiyun Jiang/Bloom
More than anything, Turner was happy that Gay got to see the message. Part of being at Harvard is that, many times, the people who inspire are also the people among you.
'I think that's the beauty of what Harvard is,' Turner said. 'For one, we're known for our connections, our networking. And for two, she made history — and she's a great human being. She's continuing to show up to our games. That is a role model that I aspire to be like. I wasn't just saying that for the cameras. I tell her all the time that I look up to her, and she will always be my president here.
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'That may be controversial, but I truly stand by that and believe that. And that just goes to show that, despite all of the adversity that hit her, she still made a way. And that's something that I hope to take from her and just to show again, these young Black girls, they can do the same thing. We may have to work 10 times harder but it can still get done.'
Turner is a two-time All-Ivy League first-team selection and former rookie of the year who declared for the WNBA Draft in November and is capping her college career by averaging 21.2 points per game as a senior. She's also an African-American studies major who hopes to become a civil rights activist and lawyer.
Her talent may very well allow her to play basketball beyond Harvard, but her vision allows her to see her role beyond the game.
'I just hope to be one of those role models that a lot of young girls that look like us can look up to,' she said.
Moore wants that for all her players.
In three seasons at Harvard, Moore has led the Crimson to 52 wins and a WNIT appearance, and this season they're projected to reach the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2007.
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Moore, the fourth head coach in Crimson women's basketball history and first Black head coach, has also cultivated an environment such as the one Saturday that allows her players to reflect and honor their history.
When the Crimson walked out of the locker room for pregame warm-ups, the entire team was draped in black T-shirts with a message in bold on the front: 'Black History Is American History.'
The Kuumba Singers of Harvard College, an organization founded in 1970 to create a space for Black creativity and spirituality that now stands as the oldest Black organization on campus, performed the national anthem and 'Lift Every Voice and Sing.'
Moore and her coaching staff wore gray monochrome jackets with screen-printed faces of prominent Black historical figures such as Martin Luther King Jr. and Shirley Chisholm.
The Crimson walked off the floor with a 72-60 win, upped their record to 16-3 (5-2 in the Ivy League), and have a week to regroup before hosting Dartmouth Saturday.
But the night was as much about embracing the responsibility that has come with the success as it was about basketball.
'I think, for me, any time that we can really honor us, we're going to jump at the opportunity,' Moore said. 'I think for me being a Black female head coach at Harvard, I want to make sure that we honor those that have come before us and also what we are doing currently — not just myself, but like these guys and what they're doing.
'We have so many wonderful young Black women on our team, and I want them to feel seen and heard and honored. So we're going to always make sure that we do this in February. I think it's really important to me personally, I think our staff and obviously our team, we have a lot of a lot of women that look like us. So we want to make sure that we have days like this.'
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Julian Benbow can be reached at