COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University men's basketball team hits the road for the third of four straight road games Monday, as the Cardinals head to Saint John's for a 7:30 p.m. MIAC showdown against the Johnnies.




The Teams:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (3-5 MIAC / 8-5 Overall)
Saint John's Johnnies (2-6 MIAC / 6-7 Overall)

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Last Action:
The Cardinals got 22 points from Will Wright (Chicago, Ill.) and a double-double from Chris Palmer (Faribault, Minn.), but Hamline erupted for 50 second-half points in beating the Cardinals 85-66 Saturday in St. Paul, Minn. Saint John's, meanwhile, also gave up a halftime lead in falling to Augsburg 63-55 in Minneapolis, Minn., on Saturday.

A Year Ago:
January 2, 2010: Will Wright (Chicago, Ill.) scored a team-high 17 points to lead three players in double figures, but the Cardinals ould not shut down Saint John's one-two combination of Sam Blank and Aaron Burtzel in falling to the Johnnies 69-62 at the SMU Gym

January 30, 2010: Chris Palmer (Faribault, Minn.) scored 18 points, but SJU scored 19 of the 29 points scored in the game's final 10 minutes to outlast SMU, 66-55 in Collegeville, Minn.

Up Next:
The Cardinals remain on the road on Wednesday, traveling to Augsburg for a 7:30 p.m. conference contest in Minneapolis, Minn. Saint John's, meanwhile, has a bye on Wednesday, and does not return to action until Saturday, when they head to St. Paul, Minn., for a 3 p.m. MIAC showdown against nationally ranked St. Thomas.

Saint Mary's Cardinals News and Notes:
Chris Palmer (Faribault, Minn.) continued to put up stellar numbers this season, as the Cardinal sophomore recorded his fourth straight double-double on Saturday, scoring 19 points and adding 12 rebounds against the Pipers. … In his last four games, Palmer has scored 25, 16, 20 and 19 points, while pulling down 11, 13, 11 and 12 boards. … Saturday's double-double was Palmer's eighth of the season and 16th of his collegiate career. … Palmer enters tonight's game at Saint John's averaging a team- and conference-best 18.5 ppg. … Palmer, who is averaging 9.5 rebounds-per-game, has led the team in rebounding in 11 of its 12 games. … With his 19 points vs. Hamline, Palmer has now scored in double figures in 11 of the team's 13 games — including a career-best 37 points in SMU's win over Bethel on Dec. 6. … Palmer's 37-point effort against Bethel on Dec . 6 was the Cardinals' highest individual offensive output since Will Wright (Chicago, Ill.) scored 41 points vs. MacMurray on Nov. 22, 2008. … Palmer's 13 free throws made vs. the Royals on Dec. 6 were also the most since Lukas Holland (La Crosse, Wis.) drained 14 vs. Hamline on Feb. 11, 2009. … Wright scored a team-leading 22 points against Hamline Saturday and has now scored in double figures in 77 of his 88 collegiate games, including 32 games of 20 or more points. … With his 22 points Saturday, Wright jumped past Ken Jansen into sixth all-time in SMU career scoring. Next up for the Cardinal senior is No. 5 Doug Luebbe with 1,684 career points. … Holland, meanwhile, scored nine points vs. Hamline, giving him 1,227 career points. He is just five points behind Ryan Rankin for No. 12 all-time. … The Cardinals boasted two players with 20 or more points for the first time this season in their Dec. 4 win over Macalester, as Wright scored a game-high 29 points and Holland chipped in 23. Both were season highs. … Wright knocked down four 3-pointers en route to his 22 points vs. Hamline, giving him a team-leading 18 treys on the season. Wright (18), Palmer (14), Holland (11) and Pat Freeman (Champlin, Minn. / 10) have accounted for 53 of the Cardinals' 60 3-pointers this season. … Wright and Palmer are one-two, individually, in the conference in free throw percentage. Wright is 47-for-50 (.940) from the line, while Palmer is 82-for-92 (.891). Palmer is also second in the league in rebounding (124 rebounds, 9.5 rpg). … As a team, the Cardinals lead the MIAC in free throws percentage (.809), knocking down 212 of 262 attempts. … SMU's loss at St. Thomas on Jan. 3 snapped the Cardinals' season-high six-game winning streak. … SMU's 66-59 double-overtime win over Millikin on Dec. 29 was its first 2 OT game since the Cardinals lost to Concordia 63-59 on Jan. 3, 1998 | 2010-2011 Overall Statistics

Saint John's Johnnie News and Notes:
Saturday's loss at Augsburg pushed the Johnnies' losing streak to a season-high five straight. After opening the season 6-2, SJU has dipped to 6-7 heading into tonight's home game vs. Saint Mary's. … The Johnnies' 55 points vs. Augsburg Saturday were the second-fewest scored by SJU this season. Saint John's was limited to 51 points in a 78-51 loss at UW-Stevens Point on Nov. 20. … Saint John's has scored 80 or more points in three of their six wins. … Four of SJU's six wins have come on the road — the Johnnies' are 2-3 on their home court. … Aaron Burtzel scored a game-high 17 points and added 10 rebounds against Augsburg Saturday. It was the senior's fifth double-double of the season. … Burtzel has recorded 10 or more points in 10 of the team's last 11 games, while pulling down 10 or more boards five times in SJU's last seven games. … Burtzel leads a trio of Johnnies who enter tonight's game averaging in double figures. Burtzel is averaging 14.5 ppg, while Sam Blank (12.8 ppg) and Andy Burns (10.9 ppg) are the other two. … Burtzel has also pulled down a team-high 113 rebounds (8.3 rpg) | 2010-2011 Overall Statistics