WINONA, Minn.  — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota men's basketball team returns to its home court on Wednesday, hosting Saint John's in a 7 p.m. Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference matchup at the Saint Mary's Gym.
 
The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (1-15 MIAC | 4-17 Overall) vs. Saint John's (9-6 MIAC | 11-9 Overall)
 
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Last Action:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals entered Skoglund Center in Northfield, Minn., looking for a little more Monday magic—only to have St. Olaf spoil the trick. The Cardinals—coming off back-to-back wins over Martin Luther and Illinois Institute of Technology on the previous two Mondays—could not pull a third Monday victory out of their hat, as the 15th-ranked Oles built a commanding 36-21 halftime advantage in handing Saint Mary's a 68-40 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference setback | Recap
• Saint John's: Hamline closed its conference game against the Johnnies on a 19-2 run, dissolving an eight-point SJU lead and handing Saint John's a 74-65 setback Monday at Hutton Arena in St. Paul, Minn. | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. Saint John's—Earlier This Year:
• January 14, 2015: Will Swiggum (St. Charles, Minn.) carried the hot hand for Saint Mary's, as the Cardinal junior poured in a team-high 22 points—one point shy of his season high. Unfortunately, Swiggum's individual effort was not enough to carry the Cardinals, as Saint John's—sparked by a 26-7 second-half run—pulled way to hand Saint Mary's a 93-74 setback at Sexton Arena | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. Saint John's—A Year Ago:
• December 7, 2013: The Cardinals could not rebound from a slow start on Saturday, as the Cardinals found themselves staring at a 9-0 hole before the game was three minutes old. And no matter how hard the Cardinals tried to climb out of that game-opening hole, every time they neared the top, Saint John's would knock them back down a rung or two, as the Johnnies handed Saint Mary's a 68-57 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference setback at Sexton Arena in Collegeville, Minn. | Recap
• January 25, 2014: Evan Pederson scored 13 points in the first half in leading the Cardinals to a three-point, 34-31, halftime advantage. Unfortunately for Pederson—and the Cardinals — the second half was not nearly as memorable, as SJU held the hot-shooting Pederson to just six points, while outscoring Saint Mary's 50-26 en route to an 81-60 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference victory at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
 
Up Next:
•  Saint Mary's: The Cardinals head to St. Peter, Minn., on Saturday, as Saint Mary's squares off against Gustavus in a 3 p.m. conference matchup at Gus Young Court.
• Saint John's:  The Johnnies head back home to Sexton Arena in Collegeville, Minn., on Saturday, as SJU entertains Carleton in a 3 p.m. MIAC game.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2014-15 Roster | 2014-15 Schedule | 2014-15 Statistics
The Cardinals close out the regular season by sandwiching home games against Saint John's (Wednesday) and Macalester (Feb. 21) around road contests at Gustavus (Saturday) and Carleton (Feb. 18). … The Cardinals' loss to St. Olaf Monday snapped their two-game Monday winning streak—Saint Mary's beat Illinois Institute of Technology 57-45 last Monday, while dropping Martin Luther 83-73 the Monday prior. … Mark Schumacher (Perham, Minn.) scored a team-high 14 points to pace the Cardinals against nationally ranked St. Olaf Monday, while Will Swiggum (St. Charles, Minn.) equaled his season high with 11 rebounds. … Schumacher has now led the team in scoring three of his last four games—including a career-high 20-point effort against Illinois Institute of Technology on Feb. 2. … Schumacher is one of six Saint Mary's players who have recorded career-high games of 10 or more points this season—Wylie Ferron (Waconia, Minn. / 22), Connor Kaiser (Rockland, Wis. / 22), Jake Rhyner (Apple Valley, Minn. / 14) and Zach Hinrichs (Lake City, Minn.) are the others. … Swiggum equaled his career high with 24 points against Martin Luther on Jan. 26, while Kaiser chipped in his career-best 22 points. … The efforts by Swiggum and Kaiser marked the first time this season Saint Mary's has boasted two players scoring 20 or more points in the same game. The last time the Cardinals had two 20-point scorers came on Jan. 21, 2013, when Swiggum netted 23 points and Evan Pederson added 22. …  Swiggum's 24-point effort vs. Martin Luther marked the third time this season he has eclipsed the 20-point barrier—the junior netted 22 points vs. Saint John's on Jan. 14 and 23 against Crown on Jan. 5. … Swiggum now owns six games of 20 or more points in his three years as a Cardinal. … Saint Mary's has five players who have scored 20 or more points this season. Joining Swiggum, Kaiser and Schumacher are: Ferron, who netted 22 points against Viterbo on Dec. 20; and Ortiz, who poured in 21 vs. North Park on Dec. 30. …  Swiggum notched his first double-double of the season—and eighth of his collegiate career—with 13 points and 11 rebounds against Macalester on Jan. 17. … Ferron missed out on his second collegiate double-double by one assist vs. Crown on Jan. 5, finishing with a career-high nine helpers. … Swiggum's 11 boards vs. St. Olaf Monday and Macalester on Jan. 17 were not only a season high, but also just three shy of his collegiate best. … The Cardinals' 83 points in their 83-73 win over Martin Luther on Jan. 26 were a season high—two more than the 81 they scored in their 81-64 nonconference win over Crown on Jan. 5. … Saint Mary's, which is averaging 59.9 ppg, has netted 70 or more points in a game six times. … Swiggum led five Cardinal players in double figures vs. Crown on Jan. 5—marking the second straight meeting with the Storm that Saint Mary's has boasted five double-figure scorers. … Swiggum enters Wednesday's conference showdown vs. Saint John's averaging a team-leading 10.4 ppg. … Swiggum also owns a team-best 129 rebounds (6.1 rpg). … Saint Mary's has netted 117 3-pointers this season—including a season-high 10 vs. North Park on Dec. 30. … Ogren—who notched a career-high four 3-pointers against Carleton on Jan. 19—has tossed in a team-best 28 3-pointers and is one of six Cardinals with 10 or more treys this season.
 
Scouting The Saint John's Johnnies:
2014-15 Roster | 2014-15 Schedule | 2014-15 Statistics
Wednesday's game against Saint Mary's is the second of back-to-back road games for the Johnnies. SJU will have played seven of its final 10 games away from the Johnnies' Sexton Arena. … After opening the season with just three wins in their first eight games, the Johnnies are 8-4 in their last 12. … Mitchell Kuck scored a team-high 21 points in the Johnnies' loss to Hamline Monday. Mitchell was one of three SJU players to score in double figures vs. the Pipers—Alex Schmitt (17) and Joe Risinger (14) were the other two. … Kuck has now led SJU in scoring nine times this season—including a season-high 31-point showing against UM-Morris on Nov. 20. … Schmitt, who has led the team in scoring seven times, has also eclipsed the 30-point barrier this season, netting a season-high 33 against St. Thomas on Dec. 6. … Saint John's enters Wednesday's game against Saint Mary's boasting three players who are averaging in double figures—Schmitt (17.0 ppg), Kuck (15.6 ppg) and Risinger (10.9 ppg). … Blake Maslonkowski owns a team-leading 138 rebounds (6.9 rpg), while Kuck's 64 assists and 30 steals are also team highs. … As a team, the Johnnies are averaging 73.2 ppg, and have scored 80 or more points four times—including a season-best 93 points in their first meeting against Saint Mary's on Jan. 14. … SJU has poured in 144 3-pointers this season—led by Kuck (40), Patrick Strom (37) and Schmitt (36)—and the Johnnies are shooting 41 percent from behind the 3-point line through 20 games. … Saint John's holds a 705-632 scoring edge in the game's opening 20 minutes, but the Johnnies have been outscored 780-760 after the halftime break. … The Johnnies have played one overtime game this season, beating Hamline 82-73 in their first meeting of the season on Jan. 7. … Eight of SJU's 10 wins have come on their home court. The Johnnies are 8-2 at Sexton Arena, but just 3-7 on the road.