WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University men's basketball team is back on its home court for the third time in the last six days, as the Cardinals host Macalester in a 7:30 p.m. Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference contest at the SMU Gym.

The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (2-14 MIAC | 3-18 Overall)
vs. Macalester Scots (1-15 MIAC | 4-17 Overall)

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Last Action:
Michael Burfeind (Lewiston, Minn.) eclipsed 1,000 points for his career, scoring a game-high 24 points, but Concordia used a game-ending 11-4 run to hand SMU a 61-60 conference setback Sunday at the SMU Gym. …Macalester, meanwhile, came out strong against visiting Gustavus, but the Gusties used an 8-1 run early in the second half and pulled away to hand the Scots a 74-49 conference setback Monday at Leonard Center in St. Paul, Minn.

SMU vs. Macalester — Earlier This Year:
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 those 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.

SMU vs. Macalester — A Year Ago:
January 7, 2012: Pat Freeman (Brooklyn Park, Minn.) took center stage against Macalester, equaling his career high with 23 points in leading the Cardinals to their first win of the season, a 62-47 win over the Scots in St. Paul, Minn.
February 4, 2012: Pat Freeman (Brooklyn Park, Minn.) tossed in a game-high 19 points and Michael Burfeind (Lewiston, Minn.) chipped in 18, as the two combined for 37 of the Cardinals' 54 points in their 54-41 win over the Scots at the SMU Gym.

Up Next:
The Cardinals hit the road for the first of back-to-back road games on Saturday, traveling to Arden Hills, Minn., for a 3 p.m. conference matchup with Bethel at Robertson Center. … Macalester, meanwhile, returns home to the Leonard Center in St. Paul, Minn., on Saturday, as the Scots host Carleton in a 3 p.m. MIAC contest.

Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2012-13 Roster | 2012-13 Statistics | 2012-13 Schedule
Wednesday's game against Macalester is the third straight home game for the Cardinals, who close out their season playing two of their final three games on the road. … With his 14th point on Sunday — the second of back-to-back free throws with 2:20 remaining in the first half — Michael Burfeind (Lewiston, Minn.) became the 25th player in program history to reach 1,000 career points. … Burfeind scored 19 of his game-high 24 points against Concordia Sunday in the first half. … Burfeind has now scored in double figures in 37 of his last 43 games and 45 times in his collegiate career. … Among Burfeind's 45 double-figure performances have been 15 games of 20 or more points — including seven this season. … Burfeind owns the team's top four scoring performances this season — netting a season-high 28 points against Bethany Lutheran on Dec. 12, tallying 26 points against Crown (Dec. 18) and Bethel (Jan. 12) and scoring 24 vs. Concordia last Sunday. … Burfeind heads into Wednesday's conference game against Macalester with a team-best 16.8 ppg scoring average. … Burfeind is one of four Cardinals averaging in double figures — Evan Pederson (Onalaska, Wis. / 11.6 ppg), Mark Schumacher (Perham, Minn. / 10.4 ppg) and Will Swiggum (St. Charles, Minn. / 10.0 ppg) are the other three. … Swiggum also scored in double figures vs. Concordia Sunday, finishing with 17 points. …  Swiggum, who has scored in double figures 11 times this season, netted a career-high 24 points against Augsburg on Jan. 19, and followed that up with a 23-point effort against Hamline two days later. The 24- and 23-point games marked the first two times in  his collegiate career that Swiggum has eclipsed the 20-point barrier. … Swiggum's 23 points and Pederson's 22 vs. Hamline on Jan. 21 marked the first time this season the Cardinals have boasted two players with 20 or more points in the same game. …The Cardinals have posted three games this season with four double-figure scorers. … Swiggum owns a team-leading three double-doubles this season. … Swiggum, who has led the team in rebounding in 12 of the Cardinals' 21 games this season, enters Wednesday's game against Macalester with a team-best 146 rebounds (7.0 rpg). … Pederson has dished out 93 assists for the season — the most since the 2001-02 season, when Lance Larson recorded 94 assists. … Pederson has recorded a career-best nine assists twice this season. … Pederson has played all 40 minutes in six games this season. … The Cardinals knocked down a season-high 30 free throws on 36 attempts vs. Hamline on Jan. 21 — including a 24-for-28 effort in the second half. … After averaging 57.8 ppg a year ago, the Cardinals are on a 61.1 ppg clip this season. … SMU's 78 points against Hamline on Jan. 21 equaled its season high — the Cardinals also scored 78 points against North Central on Nov. 17.

Scouting The Macalester Scots:
2012-13 Roster | 2012-13 Statistics | 2012-13 Schedule
After back-to-back home games, the Scots will close out their season playing three of their final four games on the road — beginning Wednesday at Saint Mary's. …
Macalester's 74-49 loss to Macalester was its ninth straight setback. The Scots have not won since slipping past Saint Mary's 70-63 on Jan. 9. … After opening the season with wins in three of their first four games, Macalester has gone 1-16 in its last 17 contests. … Macalester's 49 points against the Gusties Monday marked the third time this season the Scots have been held under 50 points. Macalester netted a season-low 32 points in a 70-32 loss to Bethel on Jan. 19, while being held to 40 points in an 88-40 loss to St. Thomas on Nov. 28. … Justin Wasik and Dylan Kilgour each scored 11 points to pace the Scots against Gustavus Monday. … Sam Marshall and Kilgour enter Wednesday's game at Saint Mary's averaging in double figures, boasting averages of 13.0 ppg and 12.0 ppg, respectively. … Marshall also leads the team with 129 rebounds (6.1 rpg), while Kilgour has a team-best 57 assists and has knocked down 47 of the Scots' 130 3-pointers. … Kilgour is shooting 41 percent from behind the 3-point line (47-for-114) and is one of five players with 10 or more treys. … Macalester has boasted a player with 20 or more points in a game seven times this season — fueled by a season-high 26-point effort from Pierce Peters against Northwestern on Nov. 20. … The Scots are averaging 60.5 ppg and scored a season-high 81 points in an 81-75 win over Occidental on Nov. 23.