WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University men's basketball team kicks off the 2014 portion of its schedule on Thursday, as the Cardinals host Macalester in a 7 p.m. Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference game at the SMU Gym.

The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (0-3 MIAC | 1-7 Overall) vs. Macalester Scots (1-2 MIAC | 2-6 Overall)

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Last Action:
The Cardinals got 15 points from Evan Pederson (Onalaska, Wis.) and a double-double by Will Swiggum (St. Charles, Minn.), but it was not enough, as Bethany Lutheran used a game-ending 10-2 run to hand SMU a 60-51 nonconference setback on Dec. 11. … Macalester struggled to find its first-half shooting touch, hitting on just 27 percent of its field goals in the opening half, in falling to North Central 70-59 in a nonconference game at Leonard Center on Dec. 17.

SMU vs. Macalester — A Year Ago:
January 9, 2013: SMU put together one of its best second halves of the season, rallying from an 11-point halftime deficit to pull even with Macalester, 48-48, with just over eight minutes remaining in regulation in the teams' Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference game. Unfortunately for the Cardinals, the Scots proved to be near-perfect from the free throw line over the game's final eight minutes, knocking down 11 of 13 attempts from the charity stripe in handing SMU a 70-63 conference setback at Leonard Center in St. Paul, Minn.
February 6, 2013: Brian Thomas (Bellwood, Ill.), starting in place of injured guard Evan Pederson (Onalaska, Wis.), scored the game's first basket with a driving layup on the Cardinals' first possession, and the senior guard never took his foot off the gas. Thomas scored a career-high 14 points — including 10 during a pivotal 12-2 SMU run that fueled the Cardinals to a 58-46 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference victory over the Scots at the SMU Gym.

Up Next:
The Cardinals hit the road on Saturday, traveling to Moorhead, Minn., for a 3 p.m. Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference contest against Concordia. … Macalester is also back in action on Saturday, as the Scots head across town to Hamline for a 3 p.m. conference matchup with the Pipers at Hutton Arena.

Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2013-14 Roster | 2013-14 Statistics | 2013-14 Schedule
The Cardinals' Dec. 11 game against Bethany Lutheran was their final nonconference game of the season. … Thursday's MIAC showdown with Macalester is the third straight home game for the Cardinals. … Evan Pederson (Onalaska, Wis.) scored a team-high 15 points against Bethany Lutheran on Dec. 11, marking the second time in SMU's last three games that the junior has led the team in scoring. Pederson netted a season-high 21 points Saint John's on Dec. 7. … Pederson tossed in a game- and season-high 21 points for the Cardinals against Saint John's on Dec. 7. … Pederson's 21-point effort vs. Saint John's marked the first time this season an SMU player has eclipsed the 20-point barrier and was just two points shy of his career best — a 23-point showing against North Central on Nov. 17, 2012. … Will Swiggum (St. Charles, Minn.) chipped in 12 points and added 14 rebounds for his second double-double of the season and fifth of his collegiate career. … Swiggum has now scored in double figures in seven of SMU's eight games and 20 times as a Cardinal. … Swiggum's 14 rebounds — all coming on the defensive end — equaled a career-high. … The Cardinals have now recorded three double-doubles this season. Swiggum has two (15 points, 10 rebounds vs. Pacific Lutheran on Nov. 30; 12 points, 14 rebounds vs. Bethany Lutheran on Dec. 11), while Wylie Ferron (Waconia, Minn.) has the other (14 points, 11 rebounds vs. Crown on Nov. 23). … Swiggum enters Thursday's game against Macalester owning a team-best 12.6 ppg scoring average, while also leading the team with 69 rebounds (8.6 rpg). … Swiggum ranks third in the MIAC in rebounding. … Pederson, who leads the team with 40 assists, equaled his career-high with nine assists vs. Crown on Nov. 23. It was the third time in his career — and second time in two meetings with Crown — the junior has recorded nine assists. … As a team, the Cardinals have knocked down 31 3-pointers, led by Trent Vix (Rushford, Minn. / 10) and Swiggum (6). … The Cardinals' 86-81 OT win over Crown on Nov. 23 was not only their first win of the season, but also the first win as a collegiate head coach for SMU's Jamison Rusthoven. … SMU's game against Crown was the first overtime contest since Dec. 29, 2010, when the Cardinals outlasted Millikin 66-59 in double-OT. … SMU's 86 points against the Storm on Nov. 23 were the most since netting 87 points in an 87-80 win over Macalester on Dec. 4, 2010.

Scouting The Macalester Scots:
2013-14 Roster | 2013-14 Statistics | 2013-14 Schedule
Thursday's game at Saint Mary's is the first road game for the Scots since Nov. 24, when Macalester dropped a 104-82 decision to Lakeland. Since then, Macalester has played five straight home contests. … Macalester's 70-59 loss to North Central on Dec. 17 pushed the Scots' losing streak to a season-high three straight. … The Scot have now surrendered 70 or more points in all eight games this season — including a season-high 104 in a 104-82 loss to Lakeland on Nov. 24. … On the flip side, Macalester netted a season-high 92 points in a 92-89 triple-overtime win over Lake Forest on Nov. 23. … After scoring 70 or more points in four of its first five games, Macalester has been held under 60 in all three games of their current three-game slide. … Dylan Kilgour has led the team in scoring in six of its first eight games — including a career-high 40 points in the Scots' triple-OT win over Lake Forest on Nov. 23. … Kilgour's 40-point effort against the Foresters was 17 points better than his previous career best, and the most by a Macalester player since before the 2000 season. … Kilgour heads into Thursday's game against Saint Mary's boasting a team-best 17.8 ppg scoring average. He is one of three Scots averaging in double figures — Kareen Ismail (12.6 ppg) and Griffin Glatt (11.1 ppg) are the other two. … Macalester has knocked down 76 3-pointers through eight games, led by Kilgour (28), Kyle Bernhard (14), Glatt (12) and Sager Moritzky (12). … Glatt and Ismail are the team's rebounding leaders, averaging 7.0 rpg and 6.0 rpg, respectively. … Moritzky has dished out a team-leading 50 assists. … Macalester has been outscored 649-562, including 297-239 in the first half. … The Scots have led at halftime just once this season, holding a 29-26 edge over Bethel at the break in a 70-57 loss on Dec. 7.