ST. BONIFACIUS, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University men's basketball team kicks its season off on the road Monday, traveling to Crown for a 7:30 p.m. nonconference showdown against the Storm



The Matchup:
Saint Mary's University Cardinals (0-0 Overall)
Crown Storm (0-0 Overall)

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Last Action:
Today's game is the season opener for the Cardinals, who completed their exhibition schedule on Saturday, falling to cross-town rival Winona State 84-50 at the Warriors' McCown Gym. … Today's game is also the season-opener for the Storm, who are coming off a 4-21 season a year ago.

Last Meeting — November 29, 2005:
The Cardinals and Storm have not met since the 2005-2006 season, when Michael Batterman scored a game-high 17 points and led four SMU players in double figures, as SMU rolled to an 86-72 nonconference win at the SMU Gym.

Up Next:
The Cardinals open their home schedule on Saturday, hosting Luther in a 7 p.m. nonconference contest at the SMU Gym. Crown, meanwhile, remains at home on Saturday, when the play host to UW-Stout in a 7:30 p.m. nonconference contest.

Saint Mary's Cardinals News and Notes:
Chris Palmer (Faribault, Minn.) and Will Wright (Chicago, Ill.) each scored nine points to pace the Cardinals in their exhibition game against Winona State Saturday. Pat Freeman (Champlin, Minn.), meanwhile, added eight points. … SMU returns All-MIAC First-Teamers Wright and Lukas Holland (La Crosse, Wis.), along with Palmer, an MIAC All-First Year selection. … Wright and Holland became the 25th and 26 members of the SMU 1,000-point Club a year ago. Wright eclipsed 1,000 career points on Dec. 5 against Bethel, while Holland hit 1,000 career points on Feb. 1 against St. Thomas. … Both Holland and Wright scored their 1,000th career points on SMU's home floor. … Wright closed out the season as the team's scoring leader (453 points, 18.1 ppg), and currently ranks eighth in career scoring with 1,354 points. He enters his senior year 190 points behind No. 7 Ken Jansen, and 557 points behind all-time career leader Marvin Tunstall (1,911 points). … Holland, meanwhile, scored 359 points last season and ranks 22nd with 1,080 career points. … Wright scored 10 or more points in all 25 games a year ago and has netted at least 10 points 66 times in his 70 collegiate games. Wright also scored 20 or more points nine times last season. … SMU finished the season boasting three players averaging in double figures — Wright (18.1 ppg), Holland (14.4 ppg) and Palmer (14.4 ppg). … Palmer recorded double-doubles in four of his last five games and finished with 10 or more points and rebounds eight times. Along with his seven double-doubles, Palmer also had five games of 10 or more points and nine rebounds this year. … Wright ranked second in the MIAC in scoring (17.3 ppg in 20 conference games), while Palmer was fourth (15.4 ppg). … Palmer also finished third in free throw percentage (88%) and fifth in rebounding (8.0 rpg), while Wright was fifth in steals (1.44 spg). … As a team, SMU ranked No. 1 in the MIAC in free throw percentage (318-for-414, 77%). … Six of the Cardinals' nine wins came on their home floor. … The Cardinals erupted for a season-high 98 points in their conference win over Hamline on Feb. 10. It was the most points scored by an SMU team since netting 99 in a 105-99 loss to Macalester during the 1994-95 season. It was also the most points in a win since the Cardinals netted 106 in beating Macalester 106-92 during the 1978-79 season | 2009-2010 Overall Statistics

Crown Storm News and Notes:
Luke Herbert, in his first year as the Storm's head coach, inherits a team that won just four of its 25 games a year ago. … Crown does not have a senior and only 11 combined seasons of college basketball experience on the entire roster. … Crown top two returners are Taylor Jones (8.8 ppg) — who led the UMAC in 3-point % last season — and Andrew Harrell (6.5 ppg). … All four of Crown's wins last season came in UMAC play. … Crown's 81-80 win over Northland on Dec. 4 snapped a 27-game losing streak. The Storm went 0-23 during the 2008-09 season and are just 4-44 in the last two seasons. … Six different players led the Storm in scoring a year ago. Graduated senior Mike Landers led way, leading the team in points 10 times | 2009-2010 Overall Statistics