WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota women's basketball team returns to Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play on Saturday, as the Cardinals entertain St. Catherine in a 3 p.m. contest at the Saint Mary's Gym.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (3-2 MIAC, 9-3 Overall) vs. St. Catherine Wildcats (3-2 MIAC, 9-3 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video | GameDay Program
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's—January 4, 2017 * Winona, Minn.: It may not have been one of the their prettiest performances of the season, but the end result suited Saint Mary's coach Brent Pollari just fine. After all, a win is a win. Thanks to three players scoring in double figures, a game-high 16 rebounds from Brandi Blattner (Eyota, Minn.), and a tenacious defense, the Cardinals were able to outlast Macalester for a 56-52 conference win at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
• St. Catherine—January 4, 2017 * St. Paul, Minn.: Audra Clark scored 23 points and LaShay Holt chipped in 22, as the Wildcats collected their fourth-straight win, beating Carleton 65-62 at Butler Center | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. St. Catherine—A Year Ago:
• January 6, 2016 * St. Paul, Minn.: Saint Mary's got a career-high 27 points from Brandi Blattner—including 11 of the team's final 17 points—and the Cardinals rallied from a nine-point fourth-quarter deficit en route to a 71-67 victory over the Wildcats at Butler Center | Recap
• February 3, 2016 * Winona, Minn.: The Cardinals—coming off a heart-stopping, 65-59 come-from-behind win over Carleton in their last conference contest—held off a St. Catherine late-game charge en route to a 62-60 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference victory at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals are back in action on Wednesday, heading to Augsburg's Si Melby Hall in Minneapolis, Minn., for a 7 p.m. conference matchup against the Auggies
• St. Catherine: The Wildcats take to the road on Wednesday, traveling across town to Hamline's Hutton Arena in St. Paul, Minn., for a 7 p.m. showdown with the Pipers.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2016-17 Roster | 2016-17 Statistics | 2016-17 Schedule
• The Cardinals' game against St. Catherine is the seventh straight home game for the Cardinals, who own a 51-7 record on their home court over the past five seasons. … With their 56-52 win over Macalester Wednesday, the Cardinals pushed their winning streak to three straight, while also winning for the eighth time in their last 10 contests. … With their win over Macalester on Wednesday, Saint Mary's improved to 9-3 overall. The Cardinals have now won at least eight of their first 12 games in each of their last five seasons. … The Cardinals' 69-56 loss to Bethel on Dec. 7 snapped the Cardinals' season-high five-game winning streak, while Saint Mary's 65-49 win over UW-Eau Claire on Dec. 11 ended Saint Mary's two-game losing streak. … Saint Mary's losses to Bethel and Gustavus on Dec. 7 and Dec. 10 marked the first time this season—and the first time in their last 48 contests—that the Cardinals had lost back-to-back games. … Emma Schaefer (Roseville, Minn.), Brigette Audette (Big Lake, Minn.), and Kirsten Keefe (Chatfield, Minn.) all scored 10 points in the Cardinals' 56-52 win over Macalester on Wednesday, while Alex Huisman (Adrian, Minn.) and Michele Remer (Grand Forks, N.D.) each chipped in nine points. … Brandi Blattner (Eyota, Minn.) recorded a game-high 16 rebounds against the Scots Wednesday—it was the third straight game, and seventh time this season the sophomore has recorded 10 or more rebounds in a game. … Blattner's 16 rebounds were one shy of her season-high 17-rebound effort against Carleton on Nov. 30—and just three shy of her school-record 19-rebound performance against UW-Eau Claire on Dec. 29, 2015. … The Cardinals boast three players who have posted career-high games of 20 or more points this season. Huisman scored a career-best 20 points against Concordia on Dec. 3, while Sam Jones (White Bear Lake, Minn.) netted 21 against the University of Dubuque on 15 and Blattner recorded 28 points against Bethel on Dec. 7. … Blattner's 28-point showing against Bethel on Dec. 7 was the highest individual offensive performance since Shelby Auseth recorded 28 points and Bridget Pethke scored 32 during the 2013-14 season. … Blattner has scored 20 or more points three times this season, having also netted 23 points in the Cardinals' overtime win over Carleton on Nov. 30. … Blattner had her streak of three straight double-doubles snapped against Macalester on Wednesday. The sophomore finished with eight points to go along with her 16 boards. … Blattner owns six double-doubles this season and 15 in her collegiate career. … Blattner has scored 10 or more points in 10 of the team's 12 games. … Blattner and Keefe each recorded double-doubles against Carleton on Nov. 30—Blattner scored 23 points and added 17 rebounds, while Keefe chipped in 10 points and 11 boards. It was Keefe's first collegiate double-double. …  The Cardinals have had six different players lead or share the team lead in scoring through 11 games—Blattner (5 times), Schaefer (4 times), Jones (3 times), Audette, Keefe, and Huisman. … Schaefer dished out a career-high 12 assists against Concordia on Dec. 3—it was the highest single-game effort since Jamie Rattunde dished out 12 against Coe on Nov. 26, 2003. … Blattner heads into the Cardinals' conference showdown with St. Catherine averaging a team-best 14.3 ppg. Jones (12.5 ppg) and Schaefer (10.6 ppg) are also averaging in double figures through 12 games. … Blattner owns a team- and conference-leading 125 rebounds (10.4 rpg). … Jones equaled her career high with eight rebounds against Concordia on Dec. 3—the senior also hauled in eight boards against St. Scholastica on Nov. 26. … The Cardinals, who made 163 3-pointers last season, have drained 67 treys in 10 games this season—including a 10-for-24 showing against the University of Dubuque on Nov. 15. … Schaefer leads the team with 15 3-pointers, one more than Huisman … The Cardinals had 10 players score two or more points in their 66-40 win over Viterbo on Nov. 22. … The Cardinals boasted five players who scored in double figures in their season-opening win over the University of Dubuque on Nov. 15. Saint Mary's also had five players score in double figures once a year ago. … Saint Mary's finished with 59 rebounds against Lawrence on Dec. 30, two shy of its school-record 61-rebound effort against Carleton on Nov. 30. … Saint Mary's is averaging 62.2 ppg—including a season-high 76-point effort in its season-opening 76-64 win over the University of Dubuque. … The Cardinals, who have scored 65 or more points in six of their nine wins this season, have outscored their first 12 opponents 202-158 in the second quarter, 194-170 in the third, and 184-168 in the fourth. The Cardinals have been outscored 168-162 in the game's opening 10 minutes. … Saint Mary's 61-60 win over Carleton on Nov. 30 was Saint Mary's first overtime game of the season—and first since a 79-73 win over Concordia on Feb. 7, 2015. … Saint Mary's has now won its last four overtime games. The last Cardinal loss in OT was against Concordia on Jan. 29, 2012, falling 60-59. … With their 76-64 win over the University of Dubuque on Nov. 15, the Cardinals have now won their season-opener in each of the last four seasons—dating back to a 63-58 loss to Elmhurst to kick off the 2011-12 season. … Saint Mary's—picked to finish third in the MIAC Preseason Coaches' Poll—made its fifth straight MIAC Playoff appearance last season—and the Cardinals have reached at least the semifinals each time. … With their 21-6 overall record last season, the Cardinals have now reached the 20-win plateau in three of the last four seasons.
 
Scouting The St. Catherine Wildcats:
2016-17 Roster | 2016-17 Statistics | 2016-17 Schedule
• Saturday's game against Saint Mary's is the first of back-to-back road games for the Wildcats, who are 5-3 on the road this season. … St. Catherine's 65-62 win over Carleton on Wednesday pushed the Wildcats' winning streak to a season-high four straight. SCU has also won six of its last season—the lone loss an 85-78 setback to Concordia on Dec. 7. … The Wildcats have won their last four games by a combined 10 points—two-point wins over Augsburg (93-91) and UW-River Falls (61-59), and three-point wins over UW-Superior (61-58) and Carleton (65-62). … St. Catherine has not lost back-to-back games all season. … Audra Clark and LaShay Holt accounted for 45 of the team's 65 points against Carleton Wednesday—Clark scored a game-high 23 points, with Holt chipping in 22. … SCU has now had a player score 20 or more points in six of its 12 games. … Clark's 23 points vs. Carleton were one shy of her season high. … Holt also added a game-high 11 rebounds against Carleton for her fifth double-double of the season. … Holt also posted a pair of steals vs. the Knights to become SCU's all-time steals leader with 211. … St. Catherine enters Saturday's game against Saint Mary's boasting four players who are averaging in double figures, led by Holt (15.7 ppg) and Clark (15.7 ppg). Alexis Garcia (11.6 ppg) and Mari Lee (10.5 ppg) are the other two. … Holt is also the team's rebounding leader with 81 (9.0 rpg), while Clark has amassed team-highs in both assists (39) and steals (33). … As a team, the Wildcats are shooting 43 percent from the field (313-for-729), including 72 3-pointers. … Garcia owns a team-best 20 3-pointers, while Lee (17), Holt (13), and Clark (10) have also knocked down 10 or more 3-pointers this season. … The Wildcats are averaging 70.5 ppg, and have scored 80 or more points four times this season—including two games of 90 or more points. SCU netted 93 points in a 93-91 overtime win over Augsburg on Dec. 10, and poured in a season-high 94 points in beating Baruch 94-81 on Nov. 20. … The Wildcats have outscored their opponents 846-783—including 228-190 in the second quarter, 210-190 in the third, and 225-218 in the fourth. SCU has been outscored 176-172 in the game's opening 10 minutes.