WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota men's basketball team returns to Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play on Saturday, as the Cardinals host St. Olaf in a 3 p.m. matchup at the Saint Mary's Gym.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (4-11 MIAC, 6-13 Overall) vs. St. Olaf Oles (6-8 MIAC, 8-11 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video | GameDay Program
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's—February 1, 2017 * Winona, Minn.: The Cardinals, coming off a heartbreaking 78-76 loss to Macalester on Monday—in which the Scots scored the game's final six points, including the game-winner with 0.7 seconds remaining—were clinging to a one-point, 69-68 advantage with 24.2 seconds left in regulation against Hamline. Saint Mary's was a perfect 8-for-8 from the free throw line over those final 24.2 seconds in holding off Hamline 75-70 in a Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference showdown at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
• St. Olaf—February 1, 2017 * Northfield, Minn.: The Oles put together a 25-5 second-half run, but it was not enough, as SJU—behind Tyler Weiss' 21 points—held off St. Olaf 78-71 at Skoglund Center | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. St. Olaf—Earlier This Year:
• January 16, 2017 * Northfield, Minn.: When Saint Mary's and St. Olaf squared off a year ago, both matchups went down to the wire—with each game decided by eight points or less. And when the two teams met for the first time this season at Skoglund Center, the end result was no different. Unfortunately for the Cardinals, for the third straight meeting, it was the Oles who escaped with the nail-biting victory, as St. Olaf used a 16-7 run over the game's final 4:30 to deal Saint Mary's a 79-71 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference setback | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. St. Olaf—A Year Ago:
• January 9, 2016 * Northfield, Minn.: St. Olaf entered its Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference game against Saint Mary's "owning" the game's final 20 minutes. Through 11 games, the Oles had outscored their opponents by 49 points, 769-720, after the halftime break. Against Saint Mary's, however, it was the Cardinals who owned the game's final 20 minutes, outscoring St. Olaf 41-34—including a 14-point second-half showing by Wylie Ferron (Waconia, Minn.). Unfortunately for the Cardinals, that Herculean second-half effort was not quite enough to erase a 12-point halftime deficit, as St. Olaf dealt Saint Mary's a heartbreaking 85-80 setback at Skoglund Center | Recap
• February 13, 2016 * Winona, Minn.: The Cardinals, fueled by Bradley Hill (Matteson, Ill.) knocked down seven first-half 3-pointers and raced out to a commanding 42-25 lead over St. Olaf at the break. 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
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals play their fourth straight home game on Wednesday, hosting Bethel in a 7 p.m. MIAC contest at the Saint Mary's Gym.
• St. Olaf: The Oles are back on the road on Wednesday, traveling to Gustavus' Gus Young Court in St. Peter, Minn., for a 7 p.m. conference showdown against the Gusties.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2016-17 Roster | 2016-17 Statistics | 2016-17 Schedule
• Saturday's game against St. Olaf is the third straight home game for the Cardinals, who have picked up four of their six wins on their home court—including Wednesday's thrilling 75-70 win over Hamline. … With Wednesday's five-point win over Hamline, Saint Mary's last three wins have been decided by a combined nine points. Along with the 75-70 win over the Pipers, the Cardinals beat Gustavus 75-73 on Dec. 10, and Macalester 76-74 on Jan. 4. … Quashingm Smith-Pugh and Wylie Ferron (Waconia, Minn.) each scored 13 points against Hamline Wednesday, while Aaron Romportl (Stillwater, Minn.) chipped in 12. … Smith-Pugh posted his second straight 10-rebound game en route to his fifth double-double of the season—and sixth of his two-year Cardinal career. … 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. … Ferron equaled his career high with 24 points against Macalester Monday. The senior also scored 24 points against Augsburg on Jan. 11. … Eighteen of Ferron's career-best 24 points vs. the Scots Monday came in the first half. … Ferron now owns a team-high four games of 20 or more points. Along with his 24-point efforts against Macalester and Augsburg, the senior also scored 22 points against Gustavus in the teams' first meeting on Dec. 10, and equaled that 22-point effort against St. Thomas on Jan. 18. … Ferron has scored in double figures in nine of the last 11 games—and in 15 of the Cardinals' 19 games this season. … Ferron picked up his fourth double-double of the season, and fifth of his career, with 14 points and 11 rebounds against Macalester in the teams' first meeting on Jan. 4. … Ferron hauled in career-high 13 rebounds in the Cardinals' 75-73 win over Gustavus on Dec. 10. … 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. … Cave 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 have posted 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. … The Cardinals enter their conference game against St. Olaf boasting three players averaging in double figures—Ferron (13.8 ppg), Smith-Pugh (11.7 ppg), and Romportl (11.2 ppg). … Ferron and Smith-Pugh are also the team's rebounding leaders with 133 (7.0 rpg) and 131 (6.9 rpg) rebounds, respectively. … Smith-Pugh leads the team in assists with 52, 11 in front of Kruger. They are two of five Cardinals with 20 or more assists— Romportl (35), Ferron (29), and Kevin Gleason (Minneapolis, Minn. / 27) are the others. … Ferron is the team's steals leader with 16, one more than Romportl and Smith-Pugh. … 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 44 percent from the field (492-for-1128) through 19 games, have knocked down 153 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 44 3-pointers. … Saint Mary's has gotten at least one 3-pointer from all 15 players this season. … As a team, the Cardinals are averaging 73.4 ppg, while their opponents are scoring at an 80.1 ppg clip. … The Cardinals erupted for 106 points in their 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 have scored 80 or more points four times this season. … Saint Mary's game against Augsburg on Jan. 11 was its first overtime contest of the season—and the first since beating Crown 86-81 on Nov. 23, 2013. … The Cardinals' 78-76 loss to Macalester on Jan. 30 marked the second straight meeting between the two teams that was decided by two points. Saint Mary's beat the Scots 76-74 in their first meeting 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 St. Olaf Oles:
2016-17 Roster | 2016-17 Statistics | 2016-17 Schedule
• Saturday's game against Saint Mary's is the first of three straight road games for the Oles, who are 3-8 away from Skoglund Center this season. … Wednesday's loss to Saint John's was the Oles second straight. After putting together a season-high four-game winning streak, the Oles are just 1-4 in their last four contests. … St. Olaf's last seven games have all been decided by eight points or less. … The Oles put four players in double figures against Saint John's Wednesday, led by Austin Korba with 15 points. Robert Tobroxen chipped in 14 points, with Austin Majeskie and Matthew Stroud adding 13 and 10 points, respectively. … With his 15 points vs. Saint John's, Korba has now led the team in scoring in each of the Oles' last three games. … St. Olaf heads into Saturday's game at Saint Mary's boasting four players who are averaging in double figures—Tobroxen (12.4 ppg), Majeskie (11.6 ppg), Nate Albers (10.7 ppg), and Korba (10.1 ppg). … Tobroxen and Majeskie have each eclipsed the 100-rebound plateau, with Torboxen owning a team-high 137 boards (7.2 rpg) and Majeskie close behind with 120 (6.3 rpg). … St. Olaf has six players with 20 or more assists, including three—Ben Scheffley (51), Tobroxen (47), and Majeskie (43)—with 40 or more. … Tobroxen has also collected a team-leading 19 steals and 17 blocks. … The Oles have knocked down 122 3-pointes this season—including 10 against Saint John's Wednesday. … Albers and Korba share the team lead with 28 treys each, with Tobroxen third with 20. … St. Olaf is averaging 65.3 ppg, while the Oles' opponents are scoring at a 68.2 ppg clip. … St. Olaf has been outscored 660-596 in the first half, but has outscored its opponents 645-635 over the game's final 20 minutes. … The Oles have scored 70 or more points six times this season, including a season-high 79 points in a 79-79-71 win over Saint Mary's in the teams' first meeting on Jan. 16.