By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
 
WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota men's basketball team returns to Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play on Monday, as the Cardinals entertain St. Thomas in a 7 p.m. showdown at the Saint Mary's Gym.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (0-13 MIAC, 1-17 Overall) vs. St. Thomas Tommies (8-5 MIAC, 10-8 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video | GameDay Program
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's—January 27, 2018 * Winona, Minn.: Sawyer Rosner (Phelps, Wis.) scored a team-high 11 points, but the Cardinals could not overcome Augsburg's 58-point first-half outburst, as the Auggies dealt Saint Mary's a 96-62 MIAC setback at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
• St. Thomas—January 27, 2018 * St. Paul, Minn.: The Tommies, coming off a heartbreaking 69-68 conference loss at Gustavus on Wednesday, took out their frustrations on visiting Hamline, building a 32-point lead midway through the second half and rolling to a 77-52 win over the Pipers at Schoenecker Arena | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. St. Thomas—A Year Ago:
• January 18, 2017 * Winona, Minn.: Fueled by an 8-2 run to open the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference contest, the Tommies raced out to a 50-25 lead at the half and never let the Cardinals closer than 17 over the game's final 20 minutes in handing Saint Mary's a 100-65 setback at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
• February 15, 2017 * St. Paul, Minn.: Saint Mary's gave playoff-bound St. Thomas all it could handle—and then some. In fact, the Cardinals trailed by just four, 44-40 midway through the second half, and were within striking distance late in regulation—only to have Grant Shaeffer score 10 points in a 12-5 St. Thomas run that lifted the Tommies to a 65-57 victory at Schoenecker Arena | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals are back in Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play on Saturday, traveling to Bethel's Robertson Center Gym in Arden Hills, Minn., for a 1 p.m. showdown with the Royals.
• St. Thomas: The Tommies return home to Schoenecker Arena on Wednesday, hosting Macalester in a 7 p.m. conference tilt.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2017-18 Roster | 2017-18 Statistics | 2017-18 Schedule
• Monday's game against St. Thomas—rescheduled from last Monday—is the third straight home games for the Cardinals. Saint Mary's has collected five of their last seven wins on their home court. … Sawyer Rosner (Phelps, Wis.) scored a team-high 11 points, while James Cullen (Western Springs, Ill.), Kareem Anthony-Bello (Chicago, Ill.), and David Lindstrand (Lakeville, Minn.) all chipped in nine in Saturday's loss to Augsburg. … The Cardinals have now had a different player lead the team in scoring in each of their last three games. … Rosner scored a team- and career-high 20 points in the Cardinals' 87-68 loss to Carleton on Jan. 17. … The Cardinals boast eight players who have recorded single-game career-highs of 10 or more points this season—Cullen (24), Rosner (20), Jakob Bailey (Cameron, Wis. / 18), Anthony-Bello (16), Lindstrand (15), Brady Stevens (St. James, Minn. / 12), Christian Oliveras (Bolingbrook, Ill. / 11), and Kristjan Meitz (Waukesha, Wis. / 10). … With his 20-point showing against Carleton on Jan. 17, Rosner became the second Cardinal to reach the 20-point plateau this season—Cullen poured in a team-, season- and career-best 24 points against Martin Luther on Nov. 15. … Along with his 14 points against Concordia-Chicago on Nov. 25, 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. … Rosner enters Monday's matchup against St. Thomas averaging a team-best 9.8 ppg, while Bailey (9.7 ppg), Cullen (9.2 ppg), and Anthony-Bello (9.1 ppg) are also all averaging more than nine points. … Bailey is the team-leader in rebounds with 79 (4.4 rpg), two more than Anthony-Bello (77, 4.3 rpg). … Lindstrand boasts a team-high 39 assists. He is one of five players with 20 or more assists through 18 games—Bailey (30), Bradley Hill (Matteson, Ill. / 28), Cullen (25), and Anthony-Bello (24) are the other four. … Anthony-Bello owns a team-high 21 steals, while Bailey has accounted for 14 of the team's 39 blocked shots. … The Cardinals equaled their season high with 10 3-pointers against Concordia on Jan. 8. Saint Mary's also knocked down 10 3-pointers in their first meeting with Gustavus on Nov. 29. … As a team, Saint Mary's has drained 119 3-pointers through 18 games, led by Cullen with 32 and Anthony-Bello with 28. … As a team, the Cardinals are shooting 40 percent from the field (414-for-1025), while knocking down 180 of their 258 free throws (69 percent). … The Cardinals put a season-high five players in double figures in their 86-76 loss to Concordia-Chicago on Nov. 25. … The Cardinals' 87 points in their 116-87 MIAC loss to Macalester on Jan. 13 marked the second time this season Saint Mary's has eclipsed the 80-point barrier. The Cardinals scored 89 points in a season-opening 89-75 win over Martin Luther on Nov. 15. … The Cardinals' 89 points vs. Martin Luther 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. … 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.
 
Scouting The St. Thomas Tommies:
2017-18 Roster | 2017-18 Statistics | 2017-18 Schedule
• Monday's game against Saint Mary's is the third road game in the last four contests for the Tommies, who are 5-7 on the road this season. … Last Saturday's 77-52 win over Hamline snapped the Tommies' two-game losing streak. … St. Thomas has lost two or more games in a row twice this year—having also dropped three straight in a seven-day span in early December. … Five of St. Thomas' eight losses have been by 10 points or less. … Ryan Boll and Connor Bair each scored a team-high 11 points in the Tommies' win over Hamline last Saturday. UST had 13 players score at least two points vs. the Pipers. … Boll has now led or shared the team lead in scoring in 11 of the Tommies' 18 games—including three of their last four. … Boll enters Monday's game against Saint Mary's leading the team with a 14.5 ppg scoring average. … St. Thomas has had a player score 20 or more points four times this season. Boll owns UST's top two single-game efforts—39 points against Marietta and 28 vs. Concordia, while Bair tossed in 21 against Bethel and Tyler Potts posted a 20-point showing against UW-Stevens Point. … Boll also leads the Tommies in rebounds with 163 (9.1 rpg) and 45 assists. … Boll is one of three Tommies with 30 or more helpers through 18 games—Burt Hedstrom (40) and G.T. Johnson (33) are the other two. … Hedstrom owns a team-high 13 steals, one more than John Veil and three in front of Elijah Hannah. … The Tommies are shooting 44.5 percent from the field (485-for-1084) and have knocked down 165 3-pointers. … Hedstrom has drained a team-leading 26 3-pointers and is one of nine Tommies who have netted 10 3-pointers or more this season. … The Tommies are averaging 73.2 ppg and have scored 80 or more points five times—including a 120-point showing in routing Macalester 120-74 on Jan. 3. On the flip side, St. Thomas has been held to 61 points or fewer five different times—all losses. … UST has played one overtime game this season, falling to Marietta 85-83 on Nov. 18.