ARDEN HILLS, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University men's basketball returns to the court on Wednesday, traveling to Bethel for a 7:30 p.m. conference game against the Royals.





The Teams:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (3-8 MIAC / 8-8 Overall)
Bethel Royals (2-9 MIAC / 5-11 Overall)

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Last Action:
SMU battled visiting Gustavus tooth-and-nail Saturday, but each time the Cardinals threatened, the Gusties would answer, as GAC held off SMU 67-59 in an MIAC game at the SMU Gym. … Bethel, meanwhile, got off to a quick, first-half start and never looked back in beating Macalester 69-59 in St. Paul, Minn., Saturday.

Earlier This Year:
December 6, 2010: Chris Palmer (Faribault, Minn.) enjoyed his best night as a Cardinal, as the sophomore went for a career-high 37 points to go along with 11 rebounds in leading SMU to a 79-64 MIAC win over Bethel at the SMU Gym.

A Year Ago:
December 5, 2009: Will Wright (Chicago, Ill.) scored 16 points — eclipsing the 1,000 career point mark in the process — to lead the Cardinals to a 76-61 win over the Royals at the SMU Gym.

January 23, 2010: The Cardinals boasted three players in double figures — led by Chris Palmer's (Faribault, Minn.) with 19 — but it was not enough, as Bethel held off a late SMU charge to post the 82-79 conference win in Arden Hills, Minn.

Up Next:
The Cardinals return home on Saturday, hosting Macalester in a 3 p.m. conference game at the SMU Gym. … Bethel, meanwhile, is back on the road on Saturday, traveling to St. Paul, Minn., for a 3 p.m. game against St. Thomas.

Saint Mary's Cardinals News and Notes:
Wednesday's game against Bethel is the Cardinals' fifth road game in their last six contests. Since traveling to La Crosse, Wis., for a road game against Viterbo, SMU has played nine of its last 11 games on the road. … Will Wright (Chicago, Ill.) and Chris Palmer (Faribault, Minn.) each scored 14 points to pace the Cardinals vs. Gustavus Saturday. Lukas Holland (La Crosse, Wis.), meanwhile, chipped in 10 points. It was the second straight game in which Wright and Palmer shared the team's scoring lead — both netted 18 points to fuel four players in double figures in last Wednesday's 68-55 loss at Augsburg. … Palmer enters Wednesday's game at Bethel boasting five double-doubles in his last seven games. … With his 14 points vs. Gustavus, Palmer has now scored in double figures in 10 straight games and 13 times in the team's 15 games this season — including a career-best 37 points in SMU's win over Bethel on Dec. 6. … Palmer's 37-point effort against Bethel was the Cardinals' highest individual offensive output since Wright scored 41 points vs. MacMurray on Nov. 22, 2008. … Palmer, who has collected nine double-doubles this season — and 17 in his collegiate career — enters Wednesday's game at Bethel averaging a team- and conference-best 18.5 ppg. … Palmer, who is averaging 9.4 rebounds-per-game, has led the team in rebounding in 14 of its 15 games. … With his 14 points vs. Gustavus, Wright has now scored in double figures in 80 of his 91 collegiate games, including 32 games of 20 or more points. … Wright enters Wednesday's game against Bethel with 1,620 career points. He currently ranks sixth all time and trails No. 5 Doug Luebbe by 64 points. … Holland, meanwhile, boasts 1,257 career points and is just three points behind of George Hoder for 11th all-time. … The Cardinals boasted two players with 20 or more points in their Dec. 4 win over Macalester, as Wright scored a game-high 29 points and Holland chipped in 23. Both were season highs. … The Cardinals enter today's game at Bethel with three players averaging in double figures — Palmer (18.5 ppg), Wright (16.6 ppg) and Holland (11.1 ppg). … Wright leads the team with 21 3-pointers. Palmer (17), Holland (16) and Pat Freeman (Champlin, Minn. / 16) have also netted 10 or more treys this season. … Wright and Palmer are one-two, individually, in the conference in free throw percentage. Wright is 57-for-63 (.905) from the line, while Palmer is 103-for-115 (.898). Along with his league-leading 18.5 ppg scoring average, Palmer is also second in the league in rebounding (150 rebounds, 9.4 rpg), while Wright is fourth in scoring (16.6 ppg). … Wright and Holland hold down the league's top two spots in minutes played at 35.06 and 35.00, respectively. … As a team, the Cardinals lead the MIAC and all of NCAA Division III in free throw percentage (.799), knocking down 258 of 323 attempts. … SMU also leads the MIAC in offensive rebounds (184, 11.50 orpg) … 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

Bethel Royals News and Notes:
With their 69-59 win over Macalester Saturday, the Royals snapped their two-game losing streak. It was just Bethel's second win in its last seven games. … The Royals have scored 80 or more points in four of their five wins — including a season-high 93 points in a 93-58 win over Crown on Nov. 23. … Three of Bethel's five wins have come at home. The Royals are 2-6 on the road this season. … Taylor Hall scored a team-high 18 points and led four players in double figures against Macalester Saturday. Christian Skinner (15 points), Daniel Baah (13) and J.D. Robinson (11) were the other three. … Hall's 18-point effort vs. Macalester Saturday marked the second straight game and ninth time this season that he has led the team in scoring. … Skinner missed out on his second double-double of the season by one rebound against Macalester. … Bethel enters tonight's game vs. Saint Mary's with three players averaging in double figures — Hall (16.8 ppg), Baah (12.5 ppg) and Greg Meyer (11.7 ppg). … Bethel missed playing in the MIAC tournament for the first time in 12 years after going 7-13 in conference play a year ago | 2010-2011 Overall Statistics