Jeannot Basima – Ivy Hoops Online

Isaac Celiscar averaged 13.2 points and 6.3 rebounds per outing in 2025-26 for Yale as a sophomore forward en route to being named Second-Team All-Ivy. The Wnter Haven, Fla. native transferred to Baylor in the offseason. Ivy Hoops Online recently caught up with the 6-foot-6 swingman.

Ivy Hoops Online: How difficult was it to leave Yale?

Isaac Celiscar: Leaving Yale was an incredibly difficult decision. I would probably rank it as the hardest decision I ever had to make in my life. I valued the people there and the connections I had made over the two years. My relationship with the coaching staff, coach [James] Jones especially, and my teammates meant a lot to me. Those are people I will share a lifetime with!

IHO: What are the differences you have noticed to date in practices at Yale and Baylor?

IC: I can make the slightest mistake [at Baylor] and get called out for it. There’s a lot of similarities.

IHO: Are there differences between coaches Jones and [Scott] Drew?

IC: Honestly, coach Jones and Drew have a lot of similarities. Coach Jones is a little more laid back in coaching style. Other than that, I see a lot of similarities.

IHO: Thoughts on playing Yale this season in Waco in November (Nov. 10)?

IC: I am excited. When I got the news that we were playing them, I immediately let my family know. When I transferred, I didn’t feel like there was bad blood between me and everyone on the team. It was more of a mutual respect between my teammates and coaches there. I’m happy I will get to see them and compete against them again. Of course, I’ll be in different colors, and of course I want to win. Those are my brothers and the love will be there for sure.

IHO: How do you think this Yale team will fare in the Ivy?

IC: I feel they are still in a good place to compete for first place.

IHO: Talk about the composition of this Yale team.

IC: I expect the core of Riley [Fox], Jordan [Brathwaite] and Trevor [Mullin] to have a big year. And the freshmen that were on the bench last year to prove themselves. meaning Courtney [Wallace], Jack [Sullivan], Alvin [Loving] and Daniel [Ogunyemi]. And guys that didn’t really get an opportunity but could play like Jeannot [Basima] when the opportunity presents itself to step up. I feel like they will be a very good team. Coach Jones will make sure they’re good. Coaches [Matt] Kingsley, [Tobe] Carberry and [Brandon] Sherrod all will follow that up. Wishing them nothing but the best!

Ivy League hoopsters are Division I athletes on the court and exceptionally accomplished and eclectic humans off it. Ivy Hoops Online presents a new series, Off the Bench, that takes fans inside their stories that you might not otherwise know from the stands or through your screen.

We begin with Jeannot Basima ’27, a rising Yale men’s basketball senior from Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo, a political science major, and guard for the Bulldogs. As Basima completes his undergraduate studies and prepares for his final season taking the floor at John J. Lee Amphitheater, he is motivated by a personal passion — creating educational opportunities for the children of his home country.

Jeannot Basima is surrounded by the students of Promo Jeune Basket during his camp in Goma, Democratic Republic of the Congo on June 24, 2023. (courtesy of Key Castofas)

Jeannot Basima began his basketball journey as a six-year-old at Promo Jeune Basket (PJB), a local academy near his home in Goma. Near his home country’s border with Rwanda, PJB isn’t just about basketball. It’s a pathway to education, emphasizing the values of discipline, team, hard work and respect. As Basima sees it, he has been the beneficiary of several brotherhoods — his six siblings, PJB, the high schools he attended and the Yale basketball program.

Through a random connection between PJB’s president, Dario Melo, and Daniel Arnaud, a Belgian basketball parent who had travelled through Goma, 13-year-old Basima and one of his teammates found themselves selected for a summer camp in the United States. The camp got them on to the Global Squad AAU team, which led to scholarships to New York Military Academy for eighth grade and the John Carroll School for high school.

Basima had no idea when he left home at age 13 that he would not see his family again for five years.