WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota men's basketball team closes out the home portion of its regular-season schedule on Wednesday, as the Cardinals entertain Hamline in a 7 p.m. Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference showdown at the Saint Mary's Gym.
The Matchup:• Saint Mary's Cardinals (6-12 MIAC | 8-15 Overall) vs. Hamline Pipers (2-16 MIAC | 4-19 Overall)
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Senior Salute Last Action:• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals, fueled by
Bradley Hill (Matteson, Ill.), knocked down seven first-half 3-pointers and raced out to a commanding 42-25 lead at the half. Unfortunately, the Oles had an ace or two up their sleeve over the game's final 20 minutes, raining down nine second-half 3-pointers, igniting a 50-25 second-half burst that led St. Olaf to a 75-67 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference win at the Saint Mary's Gym |
Recap• Hamline: HU's Zach Smith posted his second game of 30 or more points, pouring in a career-high 31, but it was not enough, as the Pipers fell to Gustavus 101-91 in overtime last Saturday in St Peter, Minn. |
RecapSaint Mary's vs. Hamline—Earlier This Year:• January 20, 2016 * St. Paul, Minn.: The Cardinals, clinging to a one-point, 26-25 lead after the game's opening 20 minutes, shot a blistering 62.5 percent from the field in the second half—knocking down 10 of their 16 field goal attempts—in pulling away from the Pipers for a 70-59 conference win at Hutton Arena |
RecapSaint Mary's vs. Hamline—A Year Ago:• December 3, 2014 * Winona, Minn.: The Cardinals kicked off their season in grand fashion, getting double figure scoring from
Ronnie Ortiz,
Will Swiggum (St. Charles, Minn.) and
Jake Rhyner and held off a late second-half Hamline rally to hand the Pipers to a 70-67 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference setback at the Saint Mary's Gym |
Recap• January 28, 2015 * St. Paul, Minn.: Saint Mary's got a career-high 10 points from
Zach Hinrichs, but the Cardinals could not find a way to cool off the hot-handed Pipers, as Hamline shot a blistering 58 percent from the field—including a 69 percent showing in its 49-point second half—as HU handed Saint Mary's an 81-57 setback at Hutton Arena |
Recap Up Next:• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals close out their regular-season schedule on the road on Saturday, heading to Schoenecker Arena in St. Paul, Minn., for a 1 p.m. conference showdown with St. Thomas.
• Hamline: The Pipers conclude regular-season play on Saturday, hosting Bethel in a 1 p.m. MIAC matchup at Hutton Arena in St. Paul, Minn.
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:2015-16 Roster |
2015-16 Statistics |
2015-16 Schedule• Wednesday's game against Hamline is the Cardinals' third straight home contest. … Saint Mary's game vs. the Pipers is also the final collegiate home game for Cardinal seniors
Will Swiggum (St. Charles, Minn.),
Connor Kaiser (Rockland, Wis.), and
Mark Schumacher (Perham, Minn.). … The Cardinals head into their showdown with the Pipers owning eight wins this season—their most victories since the 2010-11 season, when they finished 9-16. … Saint Mary's equaled its season-high with five players scoring in double figures in last Saturday's loss to St. Olaf—led by Kaiser with 16.
Bradley Hill (Matteson, Ill.) chipped in a career-high 14 points, while Swiggum,
Quashingm Smith-Pugh (St. Paul, Minn.), and
Wylie Ferron (Waconia, Minn.) all added 11. Saint Mary's also put five players in double figures in its first meeting against Macalester—an 85-70 win—on Dec. 5. … Ferron hauled in a career-high 13 rebounds against St. Olaf last Saturday for his second double-double of the season. … Swiggum has also recorded two double-doubles this season—giving him 10 for his collegiate career. … 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 has now scored 10 or more points 17 times this season. … 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 this season, and marked the eighth time Saint Mary's has 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 against Saint John's on Feb. 6. The senior heads into his final two collegiate games with 1,027 points. … Swiggum has recorded seven career games of 20 or more points. … The Cardinals boast eight players who have recorded a single-game career-high of 10 or more points this season—Smith-Pugh (24), Kaiser (22),
Aaron Romportl (Stillwater, Minn. / 20), Ferron (22),
Kevin Gleason (Minneapolis, Minn. / 20),
Braden Walbeck (Fall Creek, Wis. / 14), Hill (14), and
Kai Endahl (Mendota Heights, Minn. / 13). … Saint Mary's has had seven different players lead the team in scoring this season. … Smith-Pugh and Kaiser enter Wednesday's conference game against Hamline averaging in double figures at 12.3 ppg and 11.3 ppg, respectively. … Swiggum is the team's rebounding leader with 165 (7.2 rpg), while Ferron has also eclipsed the 100-rebound plateau with 125. … Swiggum—who has recorded 100 or more rebounds in all four of his seasons as a Cardinal—has had 10 or more rebounds in a game four times this season—including a season- and career-best 16-rebound effort against Martin Luther on Nov. 24. … The Cardinals netted a season-high 11 3-pointers against Saint John's on Feb. 6.… Kaiser owns a team-high 32 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 leads the team in assists with 57 and Schumacher is the team-leader in blocks with 17. … Kaiser boasts a team-best 15 steals, two more than Romportl. … 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 has scored 80 or more points five times 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 68.2 ppg. … Saint Mary's held Concordia to 55 points on Feb. 8, marking the third time this season the Cardinals have held a team to less than 60 points. … The Cardinals have put an end to three lengthy MIAC streaks this season. Saint Mary's snapped a nine-game losing streak with last Monday's 56-55 win over Concordia, 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 Hamline Pipers:2015-16 Roster |
2015-16 Statistics |
2015-16 Schedule• Wednesday's game against Saint Mary's is the final road game of the season for the Pipers, who have posted three of their four wins this season away from Hutton Arena. … Last Saturday's 101-91 loss to Gustavus marked the second time in the last three games that Hamline has lost in overtime. HU also dropped an 81-75 decision to Carleton on Feb. 8. … The Pipers head into Wednesday's showdown in the midst of a seven-game losing streak. Hamline is 1-17 in their last 18 contests. … Zach Smith scored a career-high 31 points in the Pipers' loss to Gustavus last Saturday, giving the sophomore 86 points in the team's three games last week. Smith netted a then-career-high 30 points in HU's overtime loss to Carleton on Feb. 8, then added 25 against Concordia last Wednesday. … Smith has now led the Pipers in scoring in four straight games and six of their last seven. … Smith heads into Wednesday's matchup at Saint Mary's boasting a team-leading 14.5 ppg scoring average, while Connor Knutson is also averaging in double figures at 12.2 ppg. … Herbert Tarpeh leads the team in rebounds with 90 (3.9 rpg) and is one of eight Pipers with 50 or more boards this season. … Smith is the team-leader in assists with 85, while Travis VanElsberg owns a team-high 21 steals. … Hamline has knocked down 147 3-pointers this season, led by Quinton Garvis (37) and Knutson (32). … As a team, the Pipers are averaging 71.7 ppg, and have scored 80 or more points three times—including a season-high 91 in last Saturday's 101-91 loss at Gustavus. … The Pipers' 101-91 loss to Gustavus marked the second time this season HU has surrendered 100 or more points in a game. Hamline gave up a season-high 104 points in its 104-66 loss to Carleton on Jan. 16.