Kamilla Cardoso named to 2021 watch list for best center in the country
Photo/Mark Nash
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The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association named Syracuse center Kamilla Cardoso to the watch list for the 2021 Lisa Leslie Award, given to the best center in the nation. The freshman has yet to appear in a game for the Orange.
The No. 1 center in her recruiting class, Cardoso is also the highest-ranked recruit in Syracuse’s program history (No. 5 overall). The 6-foot-7 center grew up in Brazil before moving to the United States for high school. She was a McDonald’s High School All American at Hamilton Heights Christian Academy in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
Cardoso joins Priscilla Williams in Syracuse’s 2020 recruiting class, which ranked No. 4 nationally. The two freshmen will look to improve the Orange’s 16-15 record from last season, the program’s worst finish in over a decade.
Alongside Cardoso, Tiana Mangakahia and Kiara Lewis were both listed on the watch lists for best point guard and best shooting guard, respectively. Syracuse opened its season at No. 23 and was projected to be the third-best team in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
The Orange’s ACC schedule begins on Dec. 10 with the first of three consecutive road games against Miami. SU currently has 20 conference games scheduled, though head coach Quentin Hillsman expects Syracuse to pick up four or five more nonconference games to round out its schedule.
