WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University men's basketball team kicks off 2013 on Wednesday, as the Cardinals host Gustavus in a 7:30 p.m. Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference game at the SMU Gym.



The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (0-3 MIAC | 1-7 Overall)
vs. Gustavus Gusties (1-3 MIAC | 4-5 Overall)

GameDay Live On The Web:
Live Stats/Video | Video Preview | GameDay Program

Last Action:
The Cardinals headed into the semester break on a high note, getting a game-high 28 points from Michael Burfeind (Lewiston, Minn.) en route to a 59-55 nonconference win over Bethany Lutheran on Dec. 12. … Gustavus, meanwhile, is coming off back-to-back wins at the UW-Eau Claire Tournament last weekend in Eau Claire, Wis.. The Gusties beat UW-Superior 71-60 on Friday, then knocked off host UW-Eau Claire 61-47 on Saturday.

SMU vs. Gustavus — A Year Ago:
January 4, 2012: SMU got 15 points from Michael Burfeind (Lewiston, Minn.) and 10 from Tom Gores (Rochester, Minn.), but Gustavus used an 11-2 run to open the second half to pull away from the Cardinals in handing SMU a 62-45 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference setback in St. Peter, Minn.
February 8, 2012: Michael Burfeind (Lewiston, Minn.) scored a team-high 15 points, but the rest of the Cardinals couldn't seem to find their shooting touch, as Gustavus raced out to a 38-19 halftime advantage and never looked back in handing the SMU a 64-44 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference setback at the SMU Gym.

Up Next:
The Cardinals hit the road on Saturday, traveling to Northfield, Minn., for a 3 p.m. conference game against Carleton. … Gustavus, meanwhile, returns home to entertain Hamline in a 3 p.m. MIAC game at Gus Young Court in St. Peter, Minn.

Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2012-13 Roster | 2012-13 Statistics | 2012-13 Schedule
SMU's 59-55 win over Bethany Lutheran on Dec. 12 marked the second straight game decided by four points or less. The Cardinals dropped a heartbreaking 72-69 nonconference decision vs. Crown on Dec. 8. … For the third game in a row, Michael Burfeind eclipsed the 20-point barrier in SMU's win over Bethany Lutheran. Burfeind, who netted 24 points against No. 5 St. Thomas and 26 against Crown, tossed in a game- and season-high 28 points vs. the Vikings — including knocking down 10 of the team's first 12 points. … Burfeind, who has led the Cardinals in scoring in each of the last four games — and in all five games he's played this year — has now scored in double figures 37 times in his collegiate career. … Burfeind's 28-point effort vs. Bethany Lutheran on Dec. 12 was his 12th game of 20 or more points. … Brian Thomas (Bellwood, Ill.) came off the bench to score a career-high 11 points. … Evan Pederson (Onalaska, Wis.), who missed his first collegiate double-double by one assist when he scored 16 points and added nine assists vs. Crown on Dec. 8, equaled his career-best with nine assists against Bethany Lutheran on Dec. 12. … Pederson, who recorded 80 assists a year ago — the most since Brensley Haywood dished out 81 assists during the 2006-2007 season — enters Wednesday's game against Gustavus boasting a team-best 43 assists through eight games. … Will Swiggum (St. Charles, Minn.) had a team-leading eight rebounds in SMU's win over Bethany Lutheran on Dec. 12. It was the fourth time this season the freshman has led the team in scoring, and gives him a team-best 53 boards (6.6 rpg). … Burfeind heads into Wednesday's conference game against Gustavus owning a 22.0 ppg scoring average — first on the team and second in the MIAC. … With his 28 points vs. Bethany Lutheran, Burfeind moved to within 182 points of becoming the 25th Cardinal to reach the 1,000 career point milestone. … Pederson and Mark Schumacher (Perham, Minn.) join Burfeind to give SMU a trio of players averaging in double figures. Pederson comes into Wednesday's game vs. Gustavus averaging 11.6 ppg, while Schumacher is scoring at an 11.2 ppg clip. … Swiggum and Schumacher have each recorded their first collegiate double-double this season. Swiggum recorded 11 points and 10 rebounds against St. Olaf on Nov. 30, while Schumacher posted a 12-point, 11-rebound effort against North Central (Minn.) on Nov. 17. … Schumacher scored a career-high 19 points against St. Olaf on Nov. 30, while Pederson tossed in a career-best 23 points against North Central on Nov. 17. … Pederson who has played every minute in three of the Cardinals' eight games this season, is averaging 34.0 minutes-per-game. … After averaging 57.8 ppg a year ago, the Cardinals are on a 63.8 ppg clip in their first eight games this season. … SMU's 69-point effort against Crown on Dec. 8 was the second-highest offensive output of the season for the Cardinals. It was also the most points scored on their home court since the Cardinals scored 76 points in a 76-63 win over Macalester on Jan. 29, 2011.

Scouting The Gustavus Gusties:
2012-13 Roster | 2012-13 Statistics | 2012-13 Schedule
The Gusties enter Wednesday's MIAC game at Saint Mary's riding their first two-game winning streak of the season. … Prior to their sweep at the UW-Eau Claire Invitational, GAC had dropped five of its last six games. … Jim Hill and Ben Biewen were the Gusties' leading scorers in their wins over UW-Superior and UW-Eau Claire. Hill netted 21 points vs. the Yellowjackets last Friday, while Biewen tallied 16 points against the Blugolds on Saturday. … Hill's 21-point effort was the second time this season he has netted a season-best 21 points. … Biewen and Hill alternated leading the team in scoring in each of the Gusties' first nine games. … Hill owns Gustavus' only double-double of the season, scoring 15 points and adding 13 rebound against Buena Vista on Dec. 8. … Hill and Biewen enter Wednesday's game at Saint Mary's averaging in double figures at 16.4 ppg and 16.2 ppg, respectively. … Hill also boasts a team-best 48 rebounds (5.3 rpg), while Biewen is the team's assist leader with 27. … Four of Gustavus' five losses have come by four points or less, with the fifth being an eight-point loss vs. Augsburg on Nov. 28. … Three of GAC's four wins have come on the road. The Gusties are just 1-4 on their home court this season.