ST. PETER, 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 Gustavus' Gus Young Court for a 3 p.m. showdown with the Gusties.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (3-9 MIAC, 5-11 Overall) at Gustavus Gusties (3-9 MIAC, 3-14 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's—January 25, 2017 * Northfield, Minn.: Saint Mary's ran into an offensive buzz-saw, as Carleton shot a blistering 60 percent from the field in handing the Cardinals an 86-55 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference setback at West Gym | Recap
• Gustavus—January 25, 2017 * Moorhead, Minn.: Concordia outscored the Gusties 44-33 over the game's final 20 minutes in handing Gustavus a 75-63 conference setback at Memorial Auditorium | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. Gustavus—Earlier This Year:
• December 10, 2016 * Winona, Minn.: On an afternoon when Wylie Ferron (Waconia, Minn.) set a career-high for points in a game, and equaled his career high in rebounds, it was only fitting that the Saint Mary's senior would be at the free throw line—with the game tied in the final seconds. And as he had done all day, Ferron came through in the clutch, knocking down those two free throws with six seconds remaining, lifting the Cardinals to a 75-73 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference win over Gustavus—and snapping Saint Mary's 12-game losing streak against the Gusties, dating back to a 78-75 win on Jan. 27, 2010 | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. Gustavus—A Year Ago:
• December 2, 2015 * St. Peter, Minn.: Saint Mary's got double-figure scoring from both Quashingm Smith-Pugh (St. Paul, Minn.) and Connor Kaiser (Rockland, Wis.), but it was not enough, as the Cardinals dropped their Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference opener, falling to Gustavus 69-57 at Gus Young Court | Recap
• January 25, 2016 * Winona, Minn.: From the very first basket, Saint Mary's had to play catch-up in its Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference game against Gustavus. And no matter how hard they tried, the Cardinals just could not seize the lead away from the Gusties, as Gustavus had just enough down the stretch to hand Saint Mary's a 71-62 conference setback at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals return home to the Saint Mary's Gym on Monday, hosting Macalester in a 7 p.m. MIAC matchup.
• Gustavus: The Gusties hit the road on Monday, traveling to Augsburg's Si Melby Hall in Minneapolis, Minn., for a 7 p.m. conference showdown with the Auggies.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2016-17 Roster | 2016-17 Statistics | 2016-17 Schedule
• Saturday's game at Gustavus is the third straight road contest for the Cardinals, who have picked up a pair of wins in nine road games this season. … Aaron Romportl (Stillwater, Minn.)—who scored a team- and career-high 22 points in the Cardinals' loss at Concordia last Saturday—led the team in scoring against Carleton on Wednesday, netting 15 points. Quashingm Smith-Pugh also finished in double figures vs. the Knights, chipping in 11 points. … Wylie Ferron (Waconia, Minn.) owns a team-high three games of 20 or more points this season. The senior scored 22 points against Gustavus in the teams' first meeting on Dec. 10, equaled that 22-point effort against St. Thomas on Jan. 18, and netted a career-high 24 points against Augsburg on Jan. 11. … Ferron has scored in double figures in six of the last eight games—and in 12 of the Cardinals' 16 games this season. … Smith-Pugh scored a career-high 30 points in the Cardinals' 111-106 overtime loss to Augsburg on Jan. 11. … Smith-Pugh's 30-point effort was the highest single-game performance since Will Wright poured in 30—also against Augsburg—on Feb. 19, 2010. … The Cardinals have boasted five players scoring in double figures twice this season—achieving the feat in a 74-67 win over Carleton on Nov. 30 and in an 89-86 loss to Hamline on Jan. 2. … Ferron picked up his fourth double-double of the season, and fifth of his career, with 14 points and 11 rebounds against Macalester on Jan. 4. … Ferron hauled in career-high 13 rebounds in the Cardinals' 75-73 win over Gustavus on Dec. 10. … Smith-Pugh also had a double-double against the Gusties on Dec. 10, scoring 17 points and adding 10 rebounds. It was his fourth double-double this season—and fifth as a Cardinal. … James Cullen (Western Springs, Ill.) scored a career-high 22 points in the Cardinals' 85-66 loss to Carnegie Mellon on Dec. 28. The 22-point effort was 13 points better than his previous career high. … In his first game in a Cardinal uniform, Cole Kruger (Hayfield, Minn.) scored a team- and game-high 17 points against Martin Luther on Nov. 15. … Eli Cave (St. Paul, Minn.) scored a career-high 15 points against Macalester on Jan. 4, while Liam Gorman's (Orland Park, Ill.) 10 points against Saint John's on Jan. 14 were a career-best. … The Cardinals enter their conference game at Gustavus boasting three players averaging in double figures—Ferron (13.5 ppg), Smith-Pugh (11.9 ppg), and Romportl (10.8 ppg). … Ferron and Smith-Pugh are also the team's rebounding leaders with 114 (7.1 rpg) and 108 (6.8 rpg) rebounds, respectively. … Kruger leads the team in assists with 41, three more than Smith-Pugh. They are two of five Cardinals with 20 or more assists—Kevin Gleason (Minneapolis, Minn. / 27), Romportl (27), and Ferron (26) are the others. … Ferron is the team's steals leader with 16, two more than Smith-Pugh and three in front of Kruger and Romportl. … Saint Mary's shot a season-best 51 percent (32-for-63) from the field against Hamline on Jan. 2. … The Cardinals, who are shooting 43 percent from the field (418-for-974) through 16 games, have knocked down 134 3-pointers—including 10 or more six times. … The Cardinals equaled their season high with 13 3-pointers against Saint John's on Jan. 14—it was the second time this season Saint Mary's has hit 13 treys in a game, and the most since raining in 13 against Bethel on Jan. 19, 2008. … Romportl leads the way with 36 3-pointers—including four in each of his last two games. … Saint Mary's has gotten at least one 3-pointer from all 15 players this season. … As a team, the Cardinals are averaging 74.3 ppg, while their opponents are scoring at a 81.6 ppg clip. … The Cardinals erupted for 106 points in their 111-106 loss to Augsburg last Wednesday. The 106 points were just four shy of the school-record 110 points, set against UM-Duluth during the 1952-53 season. … The Cardinals have scored 80 or more points four times this season. … Saint Mary's game against Augsburg was the first overtime contest of the season for the Cardinals—and the first since beating Crown 86-81 on Nov. 23, 2013. … Saint Mary's last two wins have both been by two points—75-73 over Gustavus on Dec. 10, and 76-74 over Macalester on Jan. 4. … The Cardinals' 79-71 loss to St. Olaf on Jan. 16 marked the third straight meeting between the two teams that was decided by eight points or less. … With their 75-73 win over Gustavus on Dec. 10, the Cardinals put an end to a 12-game slide against the Gusties that dated back to a 78-75 win on Jan. 27, 2010. … 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.
 
Scouting The Gustavus Gusties:
2016-17 Roster | 2016-17 Statistics | 2016-17 Schedule
• Saturday's game against Saint Mary's is the second home game in the last three contests for the Gusties, who are 2-5 at Gus Young Court this season. … Wednesday's 75-63 loss at Concordia pushed the Gusties' losing streak to six straight. Gustavus has now lost six in a row twice this season. … Peter Kruize came off the bench to score a team-high 12 points against Concordia Wednesday, while Benjamin Lies also finished in double figures with 10 points. … The Gusties head into Saturday's game against Saint Mary's boasting a pair of players averaging in double figures—Riley Sharbono (15.6 ppg) and Kruize (13.8 ppg). … Gustavus has had a player score 26 or more points five times this season—including a 30-point effort from Kruize against Bethel on Jan. 11, and a season-high 32-point performances from Sharbono vs. Macalester on Jan. 21. … Jason Paul is the team's rebounding leader with 80 (4.7 rpg), with Alec Koster second with 70 (4.1 rpg). … The Gusties boast six players with 20 or more assists, led by Koster with 65. … Koster is also the team-leader in steals with 24, while Lies owns a team-high five blocked shots. … As a team, the Gusties are shooting 46 percent from the field (452-for-991) and have knocked down 89 3-pointers. … Sharbono has netted a team-best 40 3-pointers, with Charlie Kramer (11) and Spencer Tollefson (10) also owning 10 or more treys. … Gustavus has scored 80 or more points four times this season—and have gone just 2-2 in those four contests. … GAC netted 91 points in a 95-91 double-overtime loss to Macalester on Jan. 21, and tallied a season-best 92 points in beating Concordia 92-75 in the teams' first meeting on Nov. 30.