WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University men's basketball team is back on the court on Saturday, hosting Augsburg in a 3 p.m. Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference game at the SMU Gym.



The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (2-5 MIAC | 2-10 Overall)
vs. Augsburg Auggies (5-2 MIAC | 8-4 Overall)

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Last Action:
The Cardinals rallied from 14 points down in the first half to post a 51-49 come-from-behind MIAC win over Bethel Wednesday evening at the SMU Gym. … Augsburg, meanwhile, picked up a hard-fought, 57-55, win over St. Olaf Wednesday in Northfield, Minn.

SMU vs. Augsburg — A Year Ago:
December 1, 2010: The Cardinals, fresh off back-to-back wins over Crown and Luther to kick off the season, had their sights set on their third straight win, after racing out to a 31-25 halftime advantage against visiting Augsburg. Unfortunately for the Cardinals, the Auggies frustrated them with a number of different defensive looks in the second half — and Augsburg walked out of the SMU Gym with a 63-54 come-from-behind win.
January 19, 2011: SMU boasted four players in double figures — and enjoyed a sizzling 7-for-10 showing from behind the 3-point line in building a 10-point halftime lead, but Augsburg rallied to outscore SMU 37-24 over the final 20 minutes in handing the Cardinals a 68-65 MIAC setback in Minneapolis, Minn.

Up Next:
The Cardinals kick off a busy week on Monday, traveling  to St. Paul, Minn., for a 7:30 p.m. conference contest against Hamline. … Augsburg, meanwhile, is also back in action on Monday, hosting Carleton in a 7:30 p.m. MIAC game at Si Melby Hall in Minneapolis, Minn.

Saint Mary's Cardinals News and Notes:
2011-12 Roster | 2011-12 Statistics | 2011-12 Schedule
After playing nine of their first 11 games on the road, Saturday's game against Augsburg is the second of back-to-back home games for the Cardinals, who play four of their next five games on their home court. … The Cardinals' 51-49 win over Bethel Wednesday was their second straight victory, and first on their home court. … Michael Burfeind (Lewiston, Minn.) scored a game-high 23 points to pace the Cardinals in their win over Bethel Wednesday. … Burfeind's 23-point effort marked the 11th time in SMU's 12 games that he has scored in double figures. It was also the sixth 20-plus point performance of the season for the SMU junior. … Burfeind — who has led the team in scoring in nine of their 12 games and owns the top five individual offensive outputs this season — scored a career-high 38 points against Concordia on Dec. 7. It was the first 30-point effort of Burfeind's career and was the most scored by a Cardinal since Will Wright tossed in 41 against MacMurray (Ill.) on Nov. 22, 2008. … With their 38- and 23-point efforts against Concordia on Dec. 7, Burfeind and Pat Freeman (Brooklyn Park, Minn.) marked the first time SMU has had two players score 20 or more points in the same game this season. … Freeman equaled his career high with 23 points in SMU's 62-47 win over Macalester last Saturday. The Cardinal senior also netted 23 points against Concordia on Dec. 7. … After scoring in double figures just 11 times in his first three seasons with the Cardinals, Freeman has already netted 10 or more points six times in SMU's 12 games this season. … Burfeind, who recorded his first collegiate double-double with 26 points and 12 rebounds against Saint John's on Dec. 5, enters Saturday's game vs. Augsburg as the team leader in scoring (20.1 ppg) and rebounding (5.7 rpg). … Burfeind's 20.1 ppg average ranks him second in the MIAC in scoring. … Freeman is also averaging in double figures at 11.5 ppg, while Evan Pederson (Onalaska, Wis.), who scored a career-best 15 points against Saint John's on Dec. 5, is the team-leader in assists (47 / 4.4 apg) and is third in scoring (7.3 ppg). … The Cardinals enter Saturday's game against Augsburg averaging 60.4 ppg. They scored a season-high 79 points in a 91-79 loss at UW-Oshkosh on Nov. 25, 2011. … In three of SMU's last four games, the winning team scored 62 points. … With their win over Macalester, the Cardinals improved to 7-0 vs. the Scots under coach Todd Landrum.

Augsburg Auggies News and Notes:
2011-12 Roster | 2011-12 Statistics | 2011-12 Schedule
Saturday's game at Saint Mary's is the third straight road game for the Auggies. … With their 57-55 win over St. Olaf on Wednesday, the Auggies have now won three of their last four. … Augsburg is 4-2 at home and 4-2 on the road. … The Auggies have scored 70 or more points in five of their eight wins this season — including a season-high 91 in a 91-55 rout of North Central on Nov. 22. … Andy Grzesiak-Grimm scored 16 points and added 12 rebounds in the Auggies' win over St. Olaf Wednesday. The senior had a double-double in the second half alone —scoring 11 points and adding 10 rebounds over the game's final 20 minutes. … Tyler Schmidt also scored in double figures vs. the Oles, netting 15 points. Twelve of Schmidt's 15 points came in the second half — including six of the Auggies' last seven points. … Schmidt has now scored 15 or more points in five straight games. … Grzesiak-Grimm or Schmidt have led the team in scoring in the Auggies' last seven games. … The Auggies enter Saturday's game at Saint Mary's boasting a trio of players averaging in double figures, led by Grzesiak-Grimm at 14.7 ppg. Schmidt (14.4 ppg) and Cory Poltra (12.2 ppg) are the other two. … Grzesiak-Grimm has also pulled down a team-leading 101 rebounds (8.4 rpg). … As a team, the Auggies are averaging 71.2 ppg, while holding their opponents to just 58.9 ppg. … Augsburg has outscored its opponents 855-707, including 471-378 in the second half.