ST. JOSEPH, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota women's basketball team hits the road on Wednesday, as the Cardinals head to Saint Benedict for a 7 p.m. Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference game at Claire Lynch Gym.
 
The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (9-5 MIAC | 15-6 Overall) at Saint Benedict Blazers (7-7 MIAC | 10-11 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
Live Stats * Live Video
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's: Octavia Brown (Broadview, Ill.) poured in a career-high 22 points—nine more than her previous career best—in leading Saint Mary's to a 79-73 overtime conference win over Concordia Saturday at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
• Saint Benedict: The Blazers hung around and looked ready to take control much of the game, but the Royals went on a late run to pull away for a 73-59 conference win over CSB Saturday in Arden Hills, Minn. | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. Saint Benedict—Earlier This Year:
• January 14, 2015: Thanks to a balanced offense that saw four Cardinals score in double figures, Saint Mary's pushed its winning streak to seven straight, rallying from a two-point halftime deficit to beat Saint Benedict 63-59 at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. Saint Benedict—A Year Ago:
• December 7, 2013: The Cardinals appeared to have things comfortably in control, outscoring the Blazers 36-19 in the game's opening 20 minutes. But the Blazers turned the tables after the halftime intermission, erupting for 45 second-half points. Fortunately for the Cardinals, 45 points was not enough, as SMU used a half-ending 5-1 run to seal a 67-64 victory at the SMU Gym | Recap
• January 25, 2014: Thanks to a balanced offensive attack that saw five Saint Mary's players score in double figures—led by Courtney Euerle (Litchfield, Minn.) with 18 —the Cardinals broke away from a five-point halftime advantage by outscoring the Blazers 48-41 over the final 20 minutes, as Saint Mary's won its 12th straight with an 85-73 conference victory at Claire Lynch Hall in St. Joseph, Minn. | Recap
 
Up Next:
•  Saint Mary's: The Cardinals hit the road on Saturday, traveling to St. Peter, Minn., for a 1 p.m. conference game against Gustavus at Gus Young Court.
• Saint Benedict: The Blazers heads to Northfield, Minn., on Saturday, traveling to Carleton for a 1 p.m. MIAC matchup with the Knights.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2014-15 Roster | 2014-15 Schedule | 2014-15 Statistics
Wednesday's game against Saint Benedict is the first of back-to-back road games for the Cardinals, who then play their final two games of the regular season at home. … With their 79-73 win over Concordia on Saturday, the Cardinals improved to 7-1 on their home court this season. Saint Mary's is 32-3 at the Saint Mary's Gym over the past three seasons. … The Cardinals' 79-73 win over Concordia Saturday snapped their two-game losing streak. … Saturday's game was also the Cardinals' first overtime game of the season. Saint Mary's last OT game was a 69-62 victory over Gustavus on Feb. 15. … The Cardinals are now 3-0 in their last three overtime games—Saint Mary's last OT loss was a 60-59 setback vs. Concordia on Jan. 29. … The Cardinals boasted three players who recorded single-game career-highs vs. Concordia Saturday—led by Octavia Brown (Broadview, Ill.) with 22. Sam Jones (White Bear Lake, Minn.) chipped in a career-best 16 and Alexa Huisman (Adrian, Minn.) added 12. … The Cardinals have eight players who have recorded single-game career-highs of 10 points or more this season—Molly O'Toole (Plymouth, Minn. / 23), Brown (22), Micaela Meredith (Bloomington, Minn. / 17), Jones (16), Emma Schaefer (Falcon Heights, Minn. / 15), Natalie Larson (North Branch, Minn. / 14), Huisman (12), and Kayla Lardy (Fairmont, Minn. / 11). … O'Toole has scored 10 or more points in 14 of the team's 20 games—including a season- and career-high 23 points twice. The freshman netted 23 against Hamline on Dec. 3, and equaled that feat in the second meeting against the Pipers on Jan. 28. … O'Toole has eclipsed the 20-point barrier three times this season, while Shelby Auseth (Wanamingo, Minn.) has achieved that feat twice and Brown once. Along with her two 23-point efforts against Hamline, O'Toole recorded 21 points vs. UW-Stout on Nov. 21, and Auseth netted 24 points against UM-Morris on Nov. 16 and 22 points against St. Olaf on Jan. 7. … Auseth was a perfect 12-for-12 from the free throw line en route to her 22-point effort vs. St. Olaf on Jan. 7. …  Saint Mary's had six players score in double figures in its win over St. Catherine on Jan. 21. The Cardinals have now put four or more players in double figures six times this season. … Bridget Pethke (New London, Wis.) recorded her first collegiate double-double against Hamline on Dec. 3, scoring 15 points and adding a career-best 11 rebounds. The junior guard also dished out a career high eight assists. … Pethke's 11-rebound performance vs. Hamline was the second time this season a Cardinal player has recorded 10 or more rebounds in a game—Lardy hauled in a career-best 10 boards against Crown on Nov. 22. … O'Toole and Auseth head into Wednesday's conference showdown at Saint Benedict as the team's scoring leaders, averaging 11.9 ppg and 10.8 ppg, respectively. … O'Toole owns a team-leading 113 rebounds (5.4 rpg), nine more than Auseth. … As a team, the Cardinals drained a season-high 26 free throws in their OT win over Concordia on Saturday. … Saint Mary's knocked down a season-high 12 3-pointers against North Park on Dec. 30. The Cardinals' 12 treys are the most since draining 12 3s against Carleton on Jan. 4, 2010. … As a team, the Cardinals have made 126 3-pointers this season, and have six players with 10 or more treys—Schaefer (29), Schoenthaler (24), Auseth (20), Meredith (19), O'Toole (14), and Pethke (10). … The Cardinals have outscored their first 21 opponents 674-561 in the game's opening 20 minutes. … The Cardinals have held 14 of their 21 opponents to 30 points or less in the first half. … Saint Mary's is averaging 65.4 ppg, while the Cardinals' opponents are scoring at a 61.0 ppg clip. … Saint Mary's has scored a season-high 80 points twice this season—beating Hamline 80-72 on Dec. 5 and St. Catherine 80-70 on Jan. 21. … The Cardinals have put together winning streaks of eight and six games to account for 14 of their 15 wins. … Saint Mary's season-opening eight-game winning streak was its longest such streak since opening the 1985-86 season by rattling off 19 straight wins. … The Cardinals made their first NCAA national tournament appearance since the 1985-86 season a year ago, falling to UW-Oshkosh 71-61 in the regional semifinal.
 
Scouting The Saint Benedict Blazers:
2014-15 Roster | 2014-15 Schedule | 2014-15 Statistics
Saturday's loss to Bethel was the Blazers' second straight setback. … Saint Benedict's 58-53 overtime loss to St. Olaf last Wednesday snapped their two-game winning streak. … CSB's loss to St. Olaf was also the Blazers' first overtime game of the season. … Saint Benedict has not lost more than two games in a row this season. On the flip side, the Blazers have put together a three-game and two, two-game winning streaks. … Mattie Lueck led a trio of Blazers in double figures against Bethel on Saturday, scoring 15 points. Annie Dittberner and Elena Koch chipped in 13 and 10 points, respectively. … Lueck has now led the team in scoring 15 times this season—including each of their last five contests. … Lueck, who leads the team with a 14.8 ppg scoring average, as netted 20 or more points five times this season—including her season-high 29-point effort against Concordia on Jan. 28. … Lueck is shooting a team-best 48 percent from the field (115-for-240), while also owning the team lead in rebounds (140, 7.0 rpg), assists (53), steals (30) and blocked shots (48). … Saint Benedict has drained 99 3-pointers this season, led by Dittberner and Abby Miller with 30 each. … Saint Benedict, which is averaging 60.5 ppg, has scored 75 or more points twice this season—including a season-high 85 points in an 85-68 win over Hamline on Jan. 7. … Seven of CSB's 10 wins have come by 10 points or less. … Saturday's 73-59 loss marked the sixth time this season the Blazers have been beaten by 10 or more points.