NORTHFIELD, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota men's basketball team returns to Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play on Saturday, as the Cardinals head to St. Olaf's Skoglund Center for a 1 p.m. showdown with the Oles.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (2-3 MIAC | 4-5 Overall) at St. Olaf Oles (3-2 MIAC | 6-5 Overall)
 
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Last Action:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals had the upper hand through the game's opening 20 minutes against Saint John's last Saturday—leading by eight at the break—but the Johnnies used a 25-2 run early in the second half to pull away in handing Saint Mary's an 81-68 MIAC setback in Collegeville, Minn. | Recap
• St. Olaf: Despite a 27-point effort by Riley Aeikens, the Oles could not keep pace with Bethel Wednesday, falling to the Royals 76-66 at Skoglund Center in Northfield, Minn. | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. St. Olaf—A Year Ago:
• January 7, 2015 * Winona, Minn.: The Cardinals picked the wrong time to struggle from the field, as St. Olaf took advantage of Saint Mary's icy shooting touch to pull away for an 81-50 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference victory at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
• February 9, 2015 * Northfield, Minn.: 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 at Skoglund Center | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals play their third straight road game on Monday, traveling to Bethel's Robertson Center in Arden Hills, Minn., for a 7 p.m. conference contest against the Royals.
• St. Olaf: The Oles head to Gustavus' Gus Young Court in St. Peter, Minn., on Monday, squaring off against the Gusties in a 7 p.m. MIAC showdown.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2015-16 Roster | 2015-16 Statistics | 2015-16 Schedule
• Saturday's game against St. Olaf is the second of three straight road contests for the Cardinals, who do not return to the Saint Mary's Gym until Jan. 13, when they entertain Concordia. … Connor Kaiser (Rockland, Wis.) tossed in a team-high 20 points in the Cardinals' loss to Saint John's last Saturday, while Aaron Romportl (Stillwater, Minn.) chipped in 10 points. … Kaiser scored a career high-tying 22 points against Martin Luther on Nov. 24. Kaiser's 22-point showing vs. the Knights on Nov. 24 marked the second time in as many meetings with Martin Luther that the Cardinal senior has scored a career-best 22 points. … Kaiser has now recorded three of the team's four 20-point performances this season—Kevin Gleason (Minneapolis, Minn.) scored a game- and career-high 20 points against Augsburg on Dec. 9 to account for the other. … The Cardinals have had four different players lead them in scoring through nine games. … Kaiser and Quashingm Smith-Pugh (St. Paul, Minn.) head into Saturday's conference game against St. Olaf averaging in double figures at 14.4 ppg and 11.2 ppg, respectively. … Will Swiggum (St. Paul, Minn.)—the team's rebounding leader with 72 (8.0 rpg)—scored 10 points and hauled in a career-high 16 rebounds against Martin Luther on Nov. 24 for his first double-double of the season and ninth of his collegiate career. … Swiggum has had 10 or more rebounds three times this season—including a season-best 16-rebound effort against Martin Luther on Nov. 24. … All 11 of Swiggum's rebounds against Simpson on Dec. 19 came on the defensive end. … Swiggum owns six games of 20 or more points in his collegiate career. … The Cardinals equaled their season high with 10 3-pointers against Saint John's last Saturday. Saint Mary's also drained 10 treys against Augsburg on Dec. 9. … Kaiser—who finished with a season-high five 3-pointers against Saint John's last Saturday—has netted a team-leading 18 3-pointers, six more than Gleason. … Smith-Pugh leads the team in assists with 22 and Mark Schumacher (Perham, Minn.) is the team-leader in blocks with 10. … Saint Mary's drained a season-high 22 free throws against Macalester on Dec. 5. … Saint Mary's Dec. 16 loss to Carleton snapped the Cardinals' two-game winning streak. It was also Saint Mary's first loss on its home court this season, dropping the Cardinals to 3-1 at the Saint Mary's Gym. … Saint Mary's 68-65 victory over Augsburg on Dec. 9 was its fourth of the season—equaling the win total from a year ago. … Saint Mary's has scored 80 or more points in three of its four wins this season—including a season-high 85-point effort in its 85-70 win over Macalester on Dec. 5. … The Cardinals' 85 points vs. the Scots marked the highest offensive output since Saint Mary's tossed in 87 in an 87-80 victory over Macalester on Dec. 4, 2010. … Saint Mary's is averaging 69.9 ppg. … Saint Mary's boasted a season-high five players in double figures against Macalester on Dec. 5. … The Cardinals snapped an 11-game losing streak against the Auggies with their Dec. 9 68-65 victory.
 
Scouting The St. Olaf Oles:
2015-16 Roster | 2015-16 Statistics | 2015-16 Schedule
• Saturday's game against Saint Mary's is the second of back-to-back home contests for the Oles, who are 3-2 at Skoglund Center this season. … St. Olaf's last three games—and eight of its first 11—have been decided by 10 points or less. … Three of the Oles' five losses have been by four or fewer points. … Riley Aeikens scored 27 points in the Oles' loss to Bethel Wednesday. He was the only St. Olaf player to score 10 or more points vs. the Royals. … Aeikens' 27-point showing against Bethel was one point shy of his season-best 28-point performance against UW-River Falls on Nov. 28. … Ben Figini has eclipsed the 20-point barrier a team-high five times, while Justin Pahl has scored 20 or more points twice.  Figini, the team's scoring leader at 17.0 ppg, was held to nine points against Bethel on Wednesday, snapping his streak of 10 straight games scoring in double figures. … Aeikens, who is averaging 15.9 ppg, has scored in double figures in all but one contest this season, while Pahl (15.3 ppg) has scored 10 or more points in eight of the team's 11 games. … St. Olaf has drained 56 3-pointers this season, led by Pahl with 27 and Aeikens with 17. … Aeikens has hauled in a team-best 70 rebounds (6.4 rpg), six more than Figini (64, 5.8 rpg). … The Oles boast five players with 10 or more assists, led by Pahl (30) and Aeikens (28), while Aeikens also boasts a team-leading 20 steals. … The Oles, who are averaging 69.9 ppg, have outscored their opponents 769-720—including 420-356 after halftime. … St. Olaf has scored 60 or more points in 10 of its 11 games this season—the lone exception, a 54-43 win over Carleton on Jan. 2. … The Oles have played one overtime game this season, beating Concordia 73-70 on Dec. 9.