By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
 
ST. PETER, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota men's basketball team kicks off Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play on Wednesday, as the Cardinals travel to Gustavus' Gus Young Court for a 7 p.m. showdown against the Gusties.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (0-0 MIAC, 1-2 Overall) at Gustavus Gusties (0-0 MIAC, 2-2 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's—November 25, 2017 * River Forest, Ill.: The Cardinals put five players in double figures, but it was not enough, as Concordia-Chicago built leads as big as 20 points in the first half and held off a furious Saint Mary's second-half rally in dealing SMU an 86-76 nonconference setback | Recap
• Gustavus—November 25, 2017 * Pella, Iowa: The Gusties used two double-digit scoring runs in the first half and shot a perfect 17-for-17 from the free throw line to defeat Central 78-64 | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. Gustavus—A Year Ago:
• 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
• January 28, 2017 * St. Peter, Minn.:  The first time Saint Mary's faced Gustavus this season, the Cardinals put an end to a 12-game losing streak against the Gusties, pulling out a thrilling 75-73 victory at the Saint Mary's Gym. The end to a losing streak once again awaited the victor when the two teams met again at GAC's Gus Young Court. Unfortunately for the Cardinals, this time around it was the Gusties who would end their losing ways, snapping a season-high six-game losing streak with a 68-65 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference victory | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals are back in action on Saturday, traveling to Augsburg's Si Melby Hall in Minneapolis, Minn., for a 1 p.m. conference showdown with the Auggies.
• Gustavus: The Gusties return home to Gus Young Court in St. Peter, Minn., on Saturday, hosting St. Olaf in a 1 p.m. MIAC matchup.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2017-18 Roster | 2017-18 Statistics | 2017-18 Schedule
• Wednesday's conference-opener against Gustavus is the third of four straight road games for the Cardinals, who have collected five of their last seven wins on their home court. … The Cardinals put a season-high five players in double figures in last Saturday's 86-76 loss to Concordia-Chicago, led by James Cullen (Western Springs, Ill.), Kareem Anthony-Bello (Chicago, Ill.), and Nate Urell (Fountain City, Wis.) with 14 points each. Bradley Hill (Matteson, Ill.) and Jakob Bailey (Cameron, Wis.) chipped in 12 and 11 points, respectively. … The 14-point efforts from Anthony-Bello and Urell, as well as the 11-point showing from Bailey against Concordia-Chicago were all career highs. … Saint Mary's has now had seven players record single-game career highs of 10 or more points this season. Along with Anthony-Bello, Urell, and Bailey, Cullen scored a career-best 24 points and Sawyer Rosner (Phelps, Wis.) added 12 against Martin Luther on Nov. 15, while David Lindstrand (Lakeville, Minn.) poured in a career-high 13 points and Kristjan Meitz (Waukesha, Wis.) delivered 10 against Luther on Nov. 18. … The Cardinals boasted nine players who recorded single-game career highs of 10 points or more last season. … Along with his 14 points, Anthony-Bello also hauled in a career-best 11 rebounds en route to his first collegiate double-double—and the Cardinals' first double-double of the season. … 
Saint Mary's enters Wednesday's conference-opener against Gustavus boasting three players averaging in double figures—Cullen (13.3 ppg), Lindstrand (10.7 ppg), and Anthony-Bello (10.7 ppg). … Anthony-Bello is the team's rebounding leader with 23 (7.7 rpg). … Lindstrand boasts a team-high eight assists, while Anthony-Bello is the team-leader with five steals, one more than both Lindstrand and Hill. … The Cardinals, who drained 186 3-pointers—just three 3-pointers shy of the school record of 189 set during the 1995-96 season—has drained six or more treys in all three of their games this season, sandwiching seven 3-pointers against both Martin Luther on Nov. 15 and Concordia-Chicago last Saturday, around a six-3-pointer effort against Luther on Nov. 18. … With their 89-75 win over Martin Luther on Nov. 15, the Cardinals have now opened their season with a win in each of their last four seasons—including back-to-back years with season-opening victories over the Knights. … The Cardinals' 89 points vs. Martin Luther on Nov. 15 marked their highest offensive performance of the season, and the most points scored since erupting for 106 points in a 111-106 loss to Augsburg on Jan. 11. The 106 points were just four shy of the school-record 110 points, set against UM-Duluth during the 1952-53 season. … The Cardinals scored 80 or more points four times last season.
 
Scouting The Gustavus Gusties:
2017-18 Roster | 2017-18 Statistics | 2017-18 Schedule
• Wednesday's game against Saint Mary's is just the second home game of the season for the Gusties, who have opened the year playing three of their first four games away from Gus Young Court. … Riley Sharbono scored a season-high 23 points in the Gusties' win over Central0Iowa last Saturday. Sharbono was one of three GAC players with 10 or more points vs. the Dutch—Kelsey Thomas and Vannis Smith each chipped in 13. … Sharbono has now led or shared the team lead in three of Gustavus' first four games. … Sharbono's 23-point effort vs. Central last Saturday marked the second time a Gustie has scored 23 points this season—Thomas equaled that feat against Blackburn on Nov. 18. … Gustavus enters Wednesday's conference-opener against Saint Mary's boasting three players—Sharbono (15.5 ppg), Thomas (14.5 ppg), and Smith (11.5 ppg)—averaging in double figures. … Thomas is also the team's rebounding leader with 33 (8.3 rpg) and tops the team in assists with 15. … Sharbono and Thomas share the team lead with seven 3-pointers, two more than Zach Bloemker. … As a team, the Gusties are shooting 43 percent from the field (97-for-228)—including 27 3-pointers—while going 49-for-64 from the free throw line. … Gustavus was a perfect 17-for-17 from the free throw line against Central last Saturday. … The Gusties are averaging 67.5 ppg, while their opponents are scoring at a 66.5 ppg clip. … Gustavus have scored 78 or more points in
 both of its wins this season—beating Blackburn 85-73 and Central 78-64. On the flip side, the Gusties have been held under 70 points in both losses—falling to Illinois Institute of Technology (70-66) and to Buena Vista (59-41). … Gustavus has played one overtime game this season, falling to Illinois Institute of Technology 70-66 in its season-opener on Nov. 17.