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South Carolina center Kamilla Cardoso’s family lives in her native Brazil.
According to Greenville Online, the South Carolina women’s basketball center has lived apart from her family for eight years while she achieves basketball success in college.
Cardoso’s family recently reunited with her, the site says. Cardoso and South Carolina squared off against Iowa and star Caitlin Clark on April 7. According to ESPN, Cardoso’s family had never seen her play college basketball until senior day in March 2024.
The 6 foot 7 inch tall Cardoso was born in Montes Claros, Brazil, Fox News reported.
Here’s what you need to know about Kamilla Cardoso’s family:
Kamilla Cardoso’s Mother & Sister Recently Joined Her for a Basketball Game
Greenville Online reported that Cardoso was reunited with her mother and sister when they attended the South Carolina game against Tennessee.
According to Greenville Online, Cardoso has lived in the U.S. since she was 15, when she attended Hamilton Heights Christian Academy in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Fox News reported that Cardoso went to the middle school to “hone her basketball skills” but felt homesick and faced a “language barrier.” Still, she ended up with a college scholarship to Syracuse, Fox News reported.
In 2020, Cardoso spoke about that transition to the Times Free Press.
“I gave up time with my family in Brazil to come here and try and reach the highest level possible,” said Cardoso, to the publication. “This has been home for me now. I want to play in the WNBA one day, and this has been such a good fit for me.”
Dawn Staley, the South Carolina coach, surprised Cardoso with her family’s presence.
“This is an incredible moment for all of us, for someone who has made incredible sacrifices for her family for the past eight years…the past eight years, just for this game, just for the game that she loves,” Staley said to GreenvilleOnline. “We got a chance to do something pretty special. Kamilla, let’s bring the people who also made that sacrifice for the past eight years. To be away from your family as long as you’ve been away from your family, we wanted to make this day special.”
The South Carolina Coach Thanked a Congressman for making the Reunion Happen Between Kamilla Cardoso & Her Family
On March 2, Staley thanked U.S. Representative James Clyburn for helping bring Cardoso’s family to the United States.
“Thank you @RepJamesClyburn for leading the charge to make this happen. We can’t make these moments happen without the work of all the people of our SC community! #love,” she wrote on X.
According to ESPN, Cardoso’s mother is named Janete Soares, and her older sister is named Jessica Silva.
South Carolina senior Te-Hina Paopao told ESPN that it was an “amazing moment for us, for her to experience that,” Paopao said. “It was very heartwarming to see that.”
According to ESPN, Cardoso had returned to Brazil “several times during her career for family time,” but hasn’t lived with her family for eight years.
“To play in front of your family with all of us, I know she wanted to win and play extremely well,” the coach said to ESPN. “And I thought she did that.”
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