NEW ULM, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota men's basketball team kicks off its 2016-17 season on Tuesday, as the Cardinals head to Martin Luther for a 7 p.m. nonconference game against the Knights.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (0-0 Overall) at Martin Luther Knights (0-0 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video
 
Last Action:
• Tuesday's game is the season opener for both the Cardinals and the Knights.
 
Saint Mary's vs. Martin Luther—A Year Ago:
• November 24, 2015 * New Ulm, Minn.: Connor Kaiser (Rockland, Wis.) recorded his second straight career night against the Knights—equaling his output of a year ago by scoring a game-high 22 points—while Will Swiggum (St. Charles, Minn.) notched double-double No. 9 in a Cardinal uniform with 10 points and a career-best 16 rebounds in leading Saint Mary's to an 80-60 nonconference victory | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals head across town next Monday, traveling to NCAA Division II Winona State for a 7 p.m. exhibition game against the Warriors.
• Martin Luther: The Knights are right back on their home court in New Ulm, Minn., on Thursday, entertaining Concordia (Wis.) in a 7 p.m. nonconference game.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2016-17 Roster | 2016-17 Statistics | 2016-17 Schedule
• The Cardinals closed out the season with nine wins a year ago—the most since the 2010-11 campaign, when Saint Mary's finished 9-16. The Cardinals' seven conference wins, meanwhile, are the most since going 7-13 in 2009-10. … Will Swiggum (St. Charles, Minn.), Quashingm Smith-Pugh (St. Paul, Minn.), and Wylie Ferron (Waconia, Minn.) were all honorable-mention All-MIAC selections a year ago. … Smith-Pugh and Connor Kaiser (Rockland, Wis.) both closed out the season averaging in double figures at 11.9 ppg and 11.0 ppg, respectively. … Swiggum was the team's rebounding leader with 175 (7.0 rpg), while Ferron also eclipsed the 100-rebound plateau with 140. … Swiggum, who recorded 100 or more rebounds in all four of his seasons as a Cardinal, had 10 or more rebounds in a game four times last season—including a season- and career-best 16-rebound effort against Martin Luther on Nov. 24. … Ferron and Swiggum shared the team lead with two double-doubles each last season. … Ferron hauled in a career-high 13 rebounds against St. Olaf on Feb. 13 en route to double-double No. 2. … Swiggum closed out his collegiate career with 10 double-doubles. … Smith-Pugh recorded his first collegiate double-double against Macalester on Jan. 23, scoring 16 points and adding a career-high 12 rebounds. … Smith-Pugh scored 10 or more points 17 times a year ago. … Smith-Pugh scored a career-high 24 points to lead four players in double figures against Saint John's on Feb. 6. … Smith-Pugh's 24 points were the most by a Cardinal last season, and marked the eighth time Saint Mary's had a player score 20 or more points in a game. … Swiggum became the 26^th player in program history to eclipse the 1,000 career-point mark, finishing his four years in a Cardinal uniform with 1,037 points. … The Cardinals boasted eight players who recorded single-game career-highs of 10 or more points last season—Smith-Pugh (24), Kaiser (22), Aaron Romportl (Stillwater, Minn. / 20), Ferron (22), Kevin Gleason (Minneapolis, Minn. / 20), Braden Walbeck (Fall Creek, Wis. / 14), Bradley Hill (Matteson, Ill. / 14), and Kai Endahl (Mendota Heights, Minn. / 13). … Saint Mary's had seven different players lead the team in scoring last season. … The Cardinals netted a season-high 11 3-pointers against Saint John's on Feb. 6.… Kaiser owned a team-high 35 3-pointers—including a season-high five in the team's first meeting against Saint John's on Jan. 2. In meeting No. 2 vs. the Johnnies, Kaiser drained four treys. … Smith-Pugh led the team in assists with 62 and Mark Schumacher (Perham, Minn.) was the team-leader in blocks with 21. … Saint Mary's boasted seven players with 10 or more steals, led by Kaiser with 15. … Saint Mary's equaled its season high with 24 made free throws against Hamline on Jan. 20. The Cardinals also drained 24 free throws against St. Olaf on Jan. 9. … Saint Mary's put a season-high five players in double figures in a game twice last season—vs. St. Olaf on Feb. 13 and against Macalester on Dec. 5. … Saint Mary's scored 80 or more points five times a year ago—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. … The Cardinals put an end to three lengthy MIAC streaks last season. Saint Mary's snapped a nine-game losing streak with its 56-55 win over Concordia on Feb. 8, while ending a six-game drought against Carleton with their 57-52 win on Jan. 30, and ending an 11-game losing streak against Augsburg with their 68-65 victory on Dec. 9.
 
Scouting The Martin Luther Knights:
2016-17 Roster | 2016-17 Statistics | 2016-17 Schedule
• The Knights are coming off a 1-24 campaign a year ago, including a 1-15 mark in UMAC play. … Tuesday's game against Saint Mary's is the first of three games against Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference opponents—the Knights will also face Bethel and Macalester in nonconference play this season. … Martin Luther opens the season with three straight home games and will play five of its first six contests on their home court. … Martin Luther heads into Tuesday's matchup against Saint Mary's having dropped its last 15 contests, dating back to a 72-70 win over Northland on Dec. 2, 2015. … Martin Luther begins the 2016-17 campaign without the services of graduated senior Todd Brassow, a First-Team All-UMAC selection a year ago, after leading the league in scoring with a 22.8 ppg average. … Brassow was one of three Knight regulars to average in doubles figures last season—T.J. Babinec (15.8 ppg) and Michael Paulsen (11.4 ppg) were the other two. … Martin Luther boasted a player scoring 30 or more points in a game three times. Brassow did it twice—scoring a season-high 45 points against Crown on Jan. 15 and adding a 34-point effort against North Central on Jan. 9—while Babinec added a 34-point showing against UM-Morris on Jan. 16. … Brassow's 45-point performance against Crown was a single-game program record. … Brassow also led the Knights in rebounding (109, 4.4 rpg), while Babinec owned the team lead in both assists (44) and steals (40). … Martin Luther drained 170 3-point field goals last season, led by Babinec with 73. … Babinec shot 38 percent (73-for-192) from behind the arc. … Martin Luther netted 80 or more points twice—both against Crown. The Knights tallied 82 points in a 90-82 loss to the Storm on Feb. 20, while scoring a season-high 113 points in a 117-113 loss to Crown on Jan. 15.