By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
 
WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota men's basketball team returns to conference play on Saturday, as the Cardinals entertain Carleton in a 3 p.m. showdown at the Saint Mary's Gym.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (0-1 MIAC, 3-2 Overall) vs. Carleton Knights (0-1 MIAC, 1-3 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video | GameDay Program
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's—November 28, 2018 * Winona, Minn.: The Cardinals put four players in double figures, but St. Olaf used a pair of second-half runs — 11-0 and 6-0 — to pull away from a one-point game in dealing the Cardinals a 75-67 setback in the teams' conference opener at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
• Carleton—November 28, 2018 * Minneapolis, Minn.: Augsburg scored 19 of the game's first 23 points and never let the Knights into the game, as Carleton dropped its MIAC-opener to the Auggies 74-46 at Si Melby Hall | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. Carleton — A Year Ago:
• December 6, 2017 * Winona, Minn.: Kareem Anthony-Bello (Chicago, Ill.) scored in double figures for the third time in his first six collegiate games, but Saint Mary's could not overcome a cold shooting night in falling to Carleton 78-38 at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
• January 17, 2018 * Northfield, Minn.: Sawyer Rosner (Phelps, Wis.) had a night to remember, as the freshman scored a career-high 20 points for Saint Mary's against Carleton. James Cullen (Western Springs, Ill.) also enjoyed a hot-shooting night for the Cardinals, pouring in 18 points. Unfortunately, while Rosner and Cullen combined for a whopping 38 points, the rest of the squad managed just 30, as Carleton pulled away in the second half for an 87-68 victory over the Cardinals at West Gym | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals are right back on their home court at the Saint Mary's Gym on Wednesday, hosting Concordia in a 7 p.m. MIAC matchup.
• Carleton: The Knights return home to West Gym in Northfield, Minn., on Wednesday, as they entertain cross-town rival St. Olaf in an 8 p.m. conference showdown.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals: 
2018-19 Roster | 2018-19 Schedule | 2018-19 Statistics
• Saturday's matchup against Carleton is the fourth of five straight home games for the Cardinals. … Wednesday's conference-opening 75-67 loss to St. Olaf snapped the Cardinals' two-game winning streak. … The Cardinals have scored 70 or more points in each of their three wins this season — including a season-high 79 points against Martin Luther on Nov. 17 — while being held to 60 and 67 points in their two losses. … Saint Mary's put four players in double figures against St. Olaf on Wednesday, led by Eli Cave (St. Paul, Minn.) with 20 and Caden Freetly (Farmington, Minn.) with 13. Sawyer Rosner (Phelps, Minn.) chipped in 11 points and Kevin Gleason (Minneapolis, Minn.) added 10. … Saint Mary's has now had four players score in double figures in back-to-back games. … With his 20-point effort against St. Olaf Wednesday, Cave has now scored in double figures in all five games this season — including 20 or more points three times. … Cave poured in a season- and career-high 35 points in the Cardinals' nonconference win over Martin Luther on Nov. 17. … Cave's 35-point effort was the highest single-game performance since Michael Burfeind netted 38 against Concordia on Dec. 7, 2011. … Saint Mary's has had three players post single-game career-highs of 10 or more points this season — Cave (35), Jakob Bailey (Cameron, Wis. / 19), and Freetly (15). … Cave recorded his first collegiate double-double against Luther on Nov. 24, scoring 19 points and adding a career-high 12 rebounds. … Kareem Anthony-Bello (Chicago, Ill.) enjoyed a career day vs. Luther on Nov. 24, corralling a career-best 13 rebounds. … Cave heads into Saturday's conference showdown against Carleton averaging a team-best 22.4 ppg. … Cave is one of four Cardinals averaging in double figures through five games — Freetly (11.6 ppg), Rosner (11.3 ppg), and Gleason (10.8 ppg) are the other three. … Along with his 22.4 ppg scoring average, Cave also leads the team in rebounds (35, 7.0 rpg), assists (18), and shares the team lead in steals (5). … Anthony-Bello (30 / 6.0 rpg) and Freetly (28, 5.6 rpg) have also collected 20 or more rebounds this season. … Bailey boasts a team-best six blocked shots, while Freetly and Jacob Chilson (Eau Claire, Wis.) join Cave with a team-leading five steals. … As a team, the Cardinals are shooting 43 percent from the field (124-for-287) and have knocked down 52 3-pointers. … The Cardinals drained 13 3-pointers in their season-opening win over Crown on Nov. 10. It was the most 3-pointers since pouring in 13 against Saint John's on Jan. 14, 2017. … Freetly leads the team with 12 3-pointers, two more than Gleason and Cave. … With their 75-67 loss to St. Olaf Wednesday, seven of the Cardinals' last eight games have been decided by 10 points or less. … The Cardinals snapped a 19-game road losing streak with their season-opening 76-71 win at Crown on Nov. 10. … Saint Mary's 3-1 start was its best since the 2010-11 season, when the Cardinals opened 8-1. … With their 76-71 win over Crown on Nov. 10, the Cardinals have now won their season-opener in each of their last five seasons. … Saint Mary's season-opening win over Crown on Nov. 10 was the first collegiate coaching victory for Cardinal head coach Joe Fano. … Saint Mary's improved to 5-0 all-time against Martin Luther with last Saturday's 79-63 win.
 
Scouting The Carleton Knights:
2018-19 Roster | 2018-19 Schedule | 2018-19 Statistics
• Saturday's game against Saint Mary's is the fourth straight road contest for the Knights, who play six of their first eight contests away from home. … With Wednesday's loss to Augsburg, Carleton enters Saturday's matchup with the Cardinals having lost two straight and three of its first four. … Kent Hanson was the only Knight in double figures in Wednesday's loss at Augsburg, finishing with 11 points. … Hanson has now led the team in scoring in three of its first four contests, and enters Saturday's conference tilt against Saint Mary's averaging a team-best 17.3 ppg. … Hanson poured in a season-high 26 points in the Knights' 62-59 loss to Caltech on Nov. 21. … Matthew Stritzel is also averaging in double figures through four games, boasting a 12.3 ppg scoring average. … Carleton boasts six players with 10 or more rebounds, led by Hanson with 33 (8.3 rpg) and Stritzel with 19. … Quinn Johnson is the team's assist leader with 11 and shares the team lead in steals (5) with Hanson. … Carleton is shooting 39 percent from the field (82-for-209) and has hit on 46 of 90 free throws (51 percent). … The Knights have drained 22 3-pointers, led by Stritzel with 12. … Carleton's 22 3-pointers have come from just four players — Stritzel (12), Hanson (4), Zac Olmsted (3), and Joe Thursby (3). … As a team, the Knights are averaging 58.0 ppg, while their opponents are scoring at a 63.5 ppg clip. … Carleton scored a season-high 66 points in its lone win of the season — a 66-48 victory over North Central (Minn.) on Nov. 13) — while their 46-point effort against Augsburg Wednesday was its lowest offensive production of the season.