In a weird way, you could not have drawn it up any better.

Kamilla Cardoso, ever in control down low with just four games all season out of 20 where she fouled more than twice, picked up two fouls in three minutes to start South Carolina women’s basketball’s crucial SEC tilt against Ole Miss.

To the bench she went, and further the Gamecocks had to press on without their 6-foot-7 presence at center.

They won anyway, blasting the Rebels 85-56 at a sold out Colonial Life Arena to establish a stranglehold on the SEC regular season title race.

And shortly afterwards, Dawn Staley officially confirmed that Cardoso will miss the next two games — including next Sunday’s showdown with UConn — on international duty as the Brazilian National Team plays its final qualifying tournament for a trip to the 2024 Olympics.

“It’s unfortunate that she did pick up those two early fouls,” Dawn Staley said. “But it gave us an opportunity to just get some experience playing without her, because we’ve got two games that we’ll have to play without her.”

South Carolina will get a tune-up against a struggling Missouri squad Thursday night before all eyes turn to UConn. As for Cardoso’s impact, it is nearly immeasurable.

Even 6-foot-7 needs more.

She is South Carolina’s leading scorer and rebounder, numbers she boosted again Sunday with 17 points and four boards despite her lowest minute total of SEC play. In terms of plus/minus, she is one of two Gamecocks to both play in every single game and never have a minus rating, along with Bree Hall. Staley’s team has had 35 runs this season of 10-0 or more, and Cardoso has been on the court for 32 of them.

There is no replacement, but replacing is now a necessity. Not just for the next two games, but in the event of any possible injury moving forward, and certainly for next season and beyond when she likely moves on to the WNBA.

Ashlyn Watkins, Chloe Kitts and Sania Feagin combined for 27 points and 13 rebounds, the bulk via Watkins and her second double-double in as many starts.

“I feel like I’m actually looking to score now,” Watkins said. “Because I used to just get it and pass it or look to pass it, but I feel like now I’m looking to score.”

Even after Cardoso retreated to the bench, foul trouble persisted. Watkins and Feagin both had two fouls with nine minutes left in the first half, forcing Kitts to shoulder the load. At one point she even had to play a defacto center position in a four-guard lineup as Staley desperately tried pulling levers to counteract all the whistles.

Her stat-sheet was far from eye-popping, but she played crucial moments and was on the court during South Carolina’s 8-0 first half-closing run which slammed the door on the feisty visitors.

She did it all in her first game after missing one with an illness, one Staley admitted her sophomore forward still has not fully rebounded from.

“When you’re a starter you get the benefit of the doubt,” Staley said. “Ashlyn has been coming, and I think she can provide that no matter where she is in the lineup, but she makes it really hard. We see her contributors and her elevated play with more minutes, and it’s really encouraging. But we’ll probably just go back with Chloe once she gets fully healthy.”

Cardoso’s two-game absence will allow Staley to start both if she chooses, and it would still leave an opening for Feagin to come off the bench. She scored an efficient 10 points on just three field goal attempts, driving play and getting to the free throw line in a physical game.

“I think Feagin has been preparing weeks prior to this happening now, because she knew Kamilla was going with the national team,” Staley said. “So she started doing extra cardio probably for the past month. And it was on her, it wasn’t something where we said, ‘Go do extra,’ It was on her to be ready. We’ll call her number a lot over the next two days, and hopefully that builds some confidence with her and strengthens our frontcourt.”

Even Sahnya Jah and Sakima Walker, who did not feature prominently Sunday but did get their first action in nearly two weeks Thursday at Auburn, might have to shoulder more of a workload next week.

“With Chloe being out it was her chance to step up and take some of those minutes that were out there,” Staley said of Walker after Thursday’s win. “And I thought she came in and gave us a boost."

One way or another, it will look different. The Gamecocks will play their marquee home game of the regular season without arguably their most crucial player. A richly talented, but also younger frontcourt will assume the weight of responsibility.

If Sunday was the dry run, the quiz before the final exam, it was cause for optimism.

“We’ll feel the void that Kamilla leaves with us,” Staley said. “But I’m sure all the other post players are really preparing.”

Ready or not, here it comes.

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