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Syracuse center Kamilla Cardoso was named Atlantic Coast Conference Freshman of the Week on Monday. Cardoso is the second consecutive Orange player to earn the honor after Priscilla Williams was named the conference’s best freshman last week.

Though the Orange (7-3, 4-3 ACC) went 1-2 this past week, Cardoso averaged 11.7 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks during that span. The 6-foot-7 freshman is just 0.9 rebounds shy of averaging a double-double on the season along with her 14.4 points per game.

“(Cardoso’s) definitely a force in the paint and her ability to close down on penetration is really good,” head coach Quentin Hillsman said Tuesday following SU’s 88-76 win over North Carolina.

In particular, her four blocks and 13 defensive rebounds against the Tar Heels helped the Orange come-from-behind with a 27-9 fourth quarter. Cardoso also was instrumental in SU’s 25-point comeback in an eventual loss against Clemson, denying six shots total.

This marks the first time Syracuse has captured back-to-back freshman of the week honors since Amaya Finklea-Guity and Digna Strautmane on Jan. 22 and Jan. 29, 2018, respectively. Finklea-Guity has not appeared in the past four SU games after starting in the season opener while Strautmane has started every game.

Like Strautmane and Finklea-Guity, both Cardoso and Williams were five-star recruits to Syracuse, with the freshman center being the highest-rated recruit in program history.

Published on January 25, 2021 at 4:48 pm

Contact Tim: tnolan@syr.edu