Game Summary

WINONA, Minn. — After six weeks of preparation, the Saint Mary's University men's basketball team was chomping at the bit in anticipation for Friday's season-opener against UW-La Crosse.

The Cardinals couldn't wait to take the floor — and it showed.

For a half.

SMU raced out to a commanding 12-point, 42-30 halftime advantage — thanks in part to a blistering 55 percent shooting performance that included 6 of 8 3-pointers.

Unfortunately, as good as the Cardinals were in the first half, they were equally as bad in the second half, managing just 21 points on 7 of 19 shooting (36 percent) as UW-La Crosse rallied from that 12-point deficit to beat the Cardinals 66-63.

Lance Larson (Lakeville, Minn.) led the Cardinals' offensive attack, scoring 22 points. Nick Michaels (Dyer, Ind.) and Ryan Wilt (Naperville, Ill.) were also in double figures for SMU, scoring 12 and 10 points, respectively.

Casey Taggatz tallied a game-high 25 points for the Eagles (1-0 overall), while Rocky Bouldin chipped in 10 points.