ST. PETER, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota men's basketball team got double-figure scoring from both Quashingm Smith-Pugh (St. Paul, Minn.) and Connor Kaiser (Rockland, Wis.), but it was not enough, as the Cardinals dropped their Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference opener Wednesday evening, falling to Gustavus 69-57.
 
Gustavus had the hot hand early, scoring eight of the game's first 10 points to grab an 8-2 advantage. The Cardinals—thanks to some sizzling shooting from behind the 3-point line—kept the Gusties in their sights, clawing to within five, 24-19 on a Braden Walbeck (Fall Creek, Wis.) 3-pointer with just over eight minutes remaining in the opening half.
 
That, however, would be as close as the Cardinals would get, as Gustavus outscored Saint Mary's 14-11 over those final eight minutes to take an eight-point, 38-30 lead into halftime.
 
The two teams traded baskets to open the second half, but 7-1 GAC run gave Gustavus a 47-33 cushion with 16 minutes to play, and the Cardinals—no matter who hard they tried—could close the gap.
 
Smith-Pugh scored a team-high 15 points—equaling his career high with his 6-for-9 showing from the field—including one 3-pointer—and a 2-for-2 effort from the free throw line. Kaiser, meanwhile, tossed in 13 points, hitting 5 of 13 field goals and going 2-for-2 from the line.
 
As a team, Saint Mary's shot 48 percent from the fields —23-for-56—and drained six three points, including a 4-for-7 showing in the game's opening 20 minutes.
 
Jacob Herd and Brody Ziegler each scored 13 points and Riley Sharbono added 10 for the Gusties (1-0 MIAC, 3-1 overall).
 
After five straight road games, the Cardinals (0-1 MIAC, 2-2 overall) finally return home on Saturday, hosting Macalester in a 1 p.m. conference contest at the Saint Mary's Gym.