WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University women's basketball team — ranked No. 21 in both the D3hoops.com and USA TODAY Sports Division III polls — are back on their home court Monday, as the Cardinals host Macalester in a 7:30 p.m. contest at the SMU Gym.

The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (14-1 MIAC | 17-1 Overall) vs. Macalester Scots (2-13 MIAC | 3-15 Overall)

GameDay Live On The Web:
Live Stats * Live Video | GameDay Program

Last Action:
The Cardinals pushed their winning streak to 14 straight Saturday, as SMU boasted four players in double figures — including double-doubles from Courtney Euerle (Litchfield, Minn.) and Miriam Awoniyi (Country Club Hills, Ill.) — en route to a 72-69 MIAC win over Concordia at the SMU Gym. … Macalester got 20 points from Erin Murray, but it was not enough, as Hamline handed the Scots an 82-71 conference setback at Leonard Center in St. Paul, Minn.

SMU vs. Macalester — Earlier This Year:
November 21, 2013: The Cardinals used back-to-back three-point plays — a 3-point bomb by Bridget Pethke (New London, Wis.) and a basket and free throw by Courtney Euerle (Litchfield, Minn.) — in erasing a six-point Macalester advantage and propelling SMU to a 53-44 victory in the teams' conference opener at Leonard Center in St. Paul, Minn.


SMU vs. Macalester — A Year Ago:
January 9, 2013: SMU spotted Macalester the game's first four points, and then put the pedal to the metal and cruised to a 51-40 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference victory at the SMU Gym. Trailing 4-0, the Cardinals went on an 11-minute, 16-0 run to grab a 16-4 lead and left the Scots in their rearview mirror in pushing their conference record to 6-3.
February 6, 2013: It may not have been pretty, and it may have given SMU coach Mandy Pearson a few gray hairs, but the bottom line was, when the final horn sounded, the Cardinals had conference win No. 15. Trailing by as many as 15 points in the second half, the Cardinals used a 24-7 run over the game's final nine minutes to rally for a 55-53 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference victory over the host Scots at Leonard Center.

Up Next:
The Cardinals take to the road on Wednesday, as SMU travels to Northfield, Minn., for a 7:30 p.m. conference tilt against Carleton. … Macalester is also back on the court on Wednesday, as the Scots return home to the Leonard Center for a 7:30 p.m. MIAC game against Gustavus in St. Paul, Minn.

Where They Stand:
The Cardinals, who head into Monday's game against Macalester ranked No. 21 in  both the D3hoops.com and USA TODAY Sports Division III Top 25s, are sitting atop the conference standings seven regular-season MIAC games remaining. At 14-1, SMU is one game up on St. Thomas — who hosts the Cardinals on Saturday — and two games in front of Concordia. With a win over Macalester, the Cardinals would clinch an MIAC tournament berth for the third straight season.

Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2013-14 Roster | 2013-14 Statistics | 2013-14 Schedule
Monday's game against Macalester is the third of three straight home games for the Cardinals. … The Cardinals pushed their winning streak to 14 straight with Saturday's 72-69 win over Concordia — the longest win streak since the Cardinals opened the 1985-86 season 19-0. That 1985-86 squad went on to win Saint Mary's last MIAC regular-season women's basketball title and qualify for the NCAA national tournament, finishing the season 24-3 overall. … SMU's win over Concordia — coupled with its 66-57 win over the Cobbers in their first meeting on Jan. 4 — marked the first since the 1984-85 season that the Cardinals have swept their regular-season series against Concordia. … SMU's first win vs. the Cobbers on Jan. 4 snapped an 18-game losing streak against the Cobbers dating back to a 71-58 win on Feb. 15, 2004. It was also SMU's first win at Concordia's Memorial Auditorium since the Cardinals recorded a 58-46 win on Jan. 20, 2003. … SMU heads into Monday's game against Macalester unbeaten (9-0) on its home court. The Cardinals also improved to 19-1 at home over the past two seasons. … SMU boasted a pair of players who recorded double-doubles Saturday against Concordia ¬— Courtney Euerle (Litchfield, Minn.) boasted 16 points and 10 rebounds, while Miriam Awoniyi (Country Club Hills, Ill.) finished with 10 points and 13 boards. … The double-double was the second straight, third of the year, and seventh of her career for Euerle, while Awoniyi's was the first of her collegiate career. … Euerle has now scored in double figures in five straight games, 13 times this season and 41 times in her collegiate career. … Awoniyi's 13 rebounds vs. CC were a season- and career-high. … Shelby Auseth (Wanamingo, Minn.) and Darcey Rice (Eagan, Minn.) also scored in double figures vs. the Cobbers with 11 and 10 points, respectively. … Bridget Pethke (New London, Wis.) poured in a game-, season- and career-high 32 points against the Oles last Wednesday. … Pethke's 32-point performance — 17 points better than her previous career-high of 15 set against Saint Benedict on Jan. 25 — was SMU's highest single-game performance since before the 1999-2000 season, and was just 10 points shy of the school record 42 points, set by Mary Schultz against St. Olaf during the 1985-86 season, and equaled by Tricia Rasmussen against UW-Oshkosh in 1992-93. … Pethke's 32 points against St. Olaf marked the fourth time this season SMU has had a player score 20 or more points in a game. Auseth netted 28 points against North Central (Ill.) on Dec. 28, while Euerle enjoyed back-to-back career-high 20-point nights against Gustavus (Jan. 18) and Augsburg (Jan. 20). … The Cardinals have had five or more players score in double figures in the same game four times this season — including six double-figure scorers in its 107-29 win over Crown on Nov. 23. … SMU enters Monday's game against Macalester boasting three players averaging in double figures — Euerle (12.4 ppg), Auseth (11.9 ppg) and Pethke (10.9 ppg). … Euerle also leads the team with 141 rebounds (7.8 rpg). … Pethke, who leads the team with 83 assists, equaled her career-best with seven assists vs. Bethel on Jan. 22. It was the third time this season and seventh time in her collegiate career that Pethke has hit the seven-assist mark. … The Cardinals equaled their season-high with nine 3-pointers last Wednesday — with both nine 3-point efforts coming against St. Olaf. … For the second time this season — and third straight time against St. Olaf — SMU netted a season-high nine 3-pointers vs. the Oles last Wednesday. … SMU owns 110 3-pointers this season, led by Rice with 33. … SMU — which has scored 80 or more points four times this season — heads into Monday's showdown with Macalester averaging 73.4 ppg, while limiting its opponents to just 58.2 ppg. … The Cardinals' 85-73 win over CSB on Jan. 25 was SMU's sixth straight victory over the Blazers. … The Cardinals broke a pair of long-standing school records with their 107-29 victory over Crown on Nov. 23. The Cardinals' 107 points were a school record — breaking the previous high of 106 set in a 106-30 win over Carleton on Feb. 19, 1986. SMU's 78-point margin of victory was also a new school record, two points better than the old mark of 76, also set during that Feb. 19, 1986 win over Carleton.

Scouting The Macalester Scots:
2013-14 Roster | 2013-14 Statistics | 2013-14 Schedule
Macalester is in the midst of a five-game stretch in which they play four of five contests on its home court — with Saturday's game against Saint Mary's the only road game. … Saturday's 82-71 loss to Hamline pushed Macalester's losing streak to four straight. … The Scots head into Monday's game vs. Saint Mary's with one win — a 57-55 victory over Gustavus on Jan. 6 — in their last nine games. … Erin Murray tossed in a team-high 20 points against Hamline last Saturday. … Veronika Jakubovie recorded her third double-double of the season vs. the Pipers, finishing with 15 points and 10 rebounds. … Carmen Whitehead came off the bench to net 11 points for Macalester Saturday. … Murray has now led the team in scoring in each of its last three games and 11 times this season. … Murray owns a team-best 12.4 ppg scoring average heading into Monday's game vs. SMU, while also leading the team in assists (48) and steals (36). … Murray has posted the team's top six individual scoring performances, including a season-high 27 points against St. Catherine on Jan. 18. … Jakubovie is the team's rebounding leader with 126 (7.0 rpg). … Macalester, which scored a season-high 80 points against Carleton on Jan. 20, is averaging 50.6 ppg, while the Scots' opponents are scoring at a 64.2 ppg clip. … Of Macalester's three wins this season, one has come at home, one on the road, and one on a neutral court.