WINONA, Minn.  — After three straight road games, the Saint Mary's University of Minnesota men's basketball team returns home to the Saint Mary's Gym on Wednesday, as the Cardinals entertain St. Olaf in a 7 p.m. MIAC contest.
 
The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (1-4 MIAC | 2-6 Overall) vs. St. Olaf Oles (4-1 MIAC | 9-1 Overall)
 
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Last Action:
• Saint Mary's: Will Swiggum (St. Charles, Minn.) led five Cardinal players in double figures—scoring a game-high 23 points—as Saint Mary's cruised to an 81-64 nonconference win over Crown Monday in St. Bonifacius, Minn. | Recap
• St. Olaf: Ben Figini had 23 points and Justin Pahl added 21 as St. Olaf cruised to an 85-61 MIAC win over Gustavus Saturday at Skoglund Center in Northfield, Minn. | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. St. Olaf—A Year Ago:
• December 9, 2013: The Cardinals—who surrendered the game's first nine points in a 68-57 conference loss at Saint John's just days earlier—gave up the opening eight points against the Oles and couldn't make up the deficit in falling to St. Olaf 83-53 at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
• January 29, 2014: Wylie Ferron (Waconia, Minn.) scored a team-high 15 points, but Saint Mary's could not cool off St. Olaf from behind the 3-point line, as the Oles drained 11 treys in handing the Cardinals an 81-50 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference setback at Skoglund Center in Northfield, Minn. | Recap
 
Up Next:
•  Saint Mary's: The Cardinals return to Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play—and to their home court—on Saturday, hosting Gustavus in a 3 p.m. contest at the Saint Mary's Gym.
• St. Olaf: The Oles are back in action on Saturday, hosting Hamline in a 3 p.m. conference contest at Skoglund Center in Northfield, Minn.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2014-15 Roster | 2014-15 Schedule | 2014-15 Statistics
After three straight road games, the Cardinals play their next two contests at home—hosting St. Olaf on Wednesday and Gustavus on Saturday. … The Cardinals scored a season-high 81 points in their 81-64 nonconference win over Crown Monday. … Will Swiggum (St. Charles, Minn.) scored a season-high 23 points in the Cardinals win over Crown Monday. It was the Cardinals' highest individual offensive output of the season and was just one point shy of Swiggum's career-high 24-point effort against Augsburg on Jan. 19, 2013. … Swiggum's 23-point effort marked the third time this season a Cardinal has eclipsed the 20-point barrier in a game—Wylie Ferron (Waconia, Minn.) netted 22 points against Viterbo on Dec. 20 and Ronnie Ortiz (Dayton, Ohio) poured in 21 vs. North Park on Dec. 30. … Ferron's 22 points vs. Viterbo and Ortiz's 21 against North Park were career highs. …  Nick Ogren (Stillwater, Minn.) and Jake Rhyner (Apple Valley, Minn.) have also posted career-high scoring performances this season—Ogren netted 15 points against Viterbo on Dec. 20, while Rhyner scored 11 vs. Hamline on Dec. 3. … The Cardinals have now had a 20-point scorer in three of their last four games. … Swiggum led five Cardinal players in double figures vs. the Storm Monday—marking the second straight meeting with Crown that Saint Mary's has boasted five double-figure scorers. Ortiz chipped in 17 points Monday, while Ferron and Bakari Collins (Kenosha, Wis.) each added 12, and Mark Schumacher (Perham, Minn.) finished with 10. … Ferron missed out on his second collegiate double-double by one assist vs. Crown, finishing with a career-high nine helpers. … Ortiz has scored in double figures in six of the team's eight games. … Ortiz heads into Wednesday's conference matchup with St. Olaf averaging a team-high 12.3 ppg, while Swiggum (11.0 ppg) and Ferron (10.1 ppg) are also averaging in double figures. … Mark Schumacher (Perham, Minn.) hauled in a team-best eight rebounds against Concordia last Saturday. … Schumacher has now led or shared the team lead in rebounding in four of the Cardinals' last six games. … Schumacher owns a team-best 45 rebounds (5.6 rpg), two more than Swiggum. … Saint Mary's, which drained 113 3-pointers last season, has netted 51 treys through eight games—including a season-high 10 treys vs. North Park on Dec. 30. … Ogren is shooting 43 percent from behind the arc and leads the team with 13 3-pointers, two more than Ortiz … Saint Mary's, which is averaging 63.8 ppg and has netted 70 or more points in a game four times. … The Cardinals' 70-67 win over Hamline on Dec. 3 snapped their eight-game losing streak vs. the Pipers, dating back to a 98-77 win on Feb. 10, 2010. … The win over Hamline was also the Cardinals' first season-opening victory since beating Crown 78-57 to kick off the 2010-11 season.
 
Scouting The St. Olaf Oles:
2014-15 Roster | 2014-15 Schedule | 2014-15 Statistics
With their impressive 85-61 win in handing Gustavus its first MIAC setback last Saturday, the Oles improved to 4-0 on their home court this season. … Saturday's win over the Gusties was the Oles' fourth straight win. St. Olaf had opened the season with six consecutive victories, before suffering its first—and only—loss, a 67-57 decision at the hands of Bethel. … St. Olaf has scored 85 points in each of its last two games, and has now netted 80 or more points five times in their first 10 games—including a season-best 102-point effort in a 102-70 nonconference triumph over Bethany Lutheran on Nov. 15. … Ben Figini knocked down 8 of 11 field goal attempts en route to a game-high 23 points against Gustavus Saturday. Justin Pahl also eclipsed the 20-point barrier against the Gusties Saturday, tossing in 21 points. … Figini has now scored 20 or more points in each of the Oles' last three games. … The Oles have been led in scoring by Figini or Pahl in each of their first 10 games this season. … Figini owns the team's lone double-double this season, scoring 12 points and adding a season-high 16 rebounds against Saint John's on Dec. 10. … The Oles enter Wednesday's game against Saint Mary's boasting three players who are averaging in double figures—Figini (17.8 ppg), Pahl (16.2 ppg), and Sterlin Nielsen (11.2 ppg). … Figini is also the team's leader in rebounds with 66 (6.6 rpg), while Nielsen owns a team-high 38 assists and shares the team lead in steals (17) with Riley Aeikens. … Seven of the Oles' nine wins have been by double figures. St. Olaf also owns a one-point, 70-69, win over nationally ranked UW-Stevens Point and a three-point, 73-70, victory over Carleton