By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director

ARDEN HILLS, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota women's basketball team opens play in the MIAC Playoffs on Tuesday, heading to Bethel's Robertson Center for a 7 p.m. showdown against the fourth-seeded Royals.
 
The Matchup:
• #5 Saint Mary's Cardinals (10-8 MIAC (5^th), 15-10 Overall) vs. #4 Bethel Royals (13-5 MIAC (4^th), 18-7 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video | MIAC Championships Homepage
 
MIAC Playoff Schedule
Quarterfinals | Tuesday, Feb. 20, 2018 | 7 p.m.
• #6 St. Catherine at #3 Gustavus | Live Stats | Video
• #5 Saint Mary's at #4 Bethel | Live Stats | Video
Semifinals | Thursday, Feb. 22, 2018 | 7 p.m.
• Lowest remaining seed at #1 St. Thomas
• Highest remaining seed at # 2 Saint Benedict
Championship | Saturday, Feb. 24, 2018 | 3 p.m.
• Semifinal winners at highest remaining seed
 
Admission
• MIAC Playoff admission is $7 for adult and $3 for any student (5 years old and younger are free). There is no senior discount. Only MIAC Passes will be honored—no other passes are to be accepted.
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's—February 17, 2018 * Winona, Minn.: Brandi Blattner (Eyota, Minn.) scored 19 points and added 12 rebounds, and Alexa Huisman—playing in her final collegiate home game—chipped in 15 points—as Saint Mary's locked up the No. 5 seed for the upcoming MIAC Playoffs with a 57-46 win over Hamline at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
• Bethel—February 17, 2018 * Arden Hills, Minn.: The Royals shot nearly 60 percent from the field—led by Taite Anderson, who finished with a game-high 26 points and added 11 rebounds—as Bethel closed out the regular season with a 95-59 rout of Carleton at the Robertson Center Gym | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. Bethel—Earlier This Year:
• December 9, 2017 * Arden Hills, Minn.: The Royals outscored Saint Mary's 16-9 in the second quarter and 21-18 in the third and held off a furious fourth-quarter rally in dealing the Cardinals a 70-67 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference setback at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
• February 3, 2018 * Winona, Minn.: Bethel opened the fourth quarter with five unanswered points and outscored the Cardinals 29-13 in the final 10-minute period in dealing Saint Mary's an 80-62 setback at the Robertson Center Gym | Recap
 
Up Next:
• The winner of Tuesday's Saint Mary's/Bethel matchup will advance to the MIAC Playoff semifinals on Thursday, traveling to regular-season champion St. Thomas.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2017-18 Roster | 2017-18 Schedule | 2017-18 Statistics
• The Cardinals are making their sixth MIAC Playoff appearance in the last seven years—including reaching the MIAC Playoff title game in both 2013-14 and 2015-16. … Saint Mary's heads into post-season play having won eight of its last 11. … Brandi Blattner (Eyota, Minn.) scored a team-high 19 points and added 12 rebounds in the Cardinals' regular season-ending 57-46 win over Hamline. … The double-double was Blattner's 11^th this season and the 29^th of her collegiate career. … Blattner scored 25 points and added a career-high and school-record 20 rebounds in the Cardinals' 69-57 win over Macalester on Feb. 10. The 20 rebounds against the Scots were one more than Blattner's previous school record total, set against UW-Eau Claire on Nov. 29, 2015. … Blattner has scored 10 or more points in 24 of the team's 25 games this season, while also recording 10 or more rebounds in a game 11 times this season and 34 times as a Cardinal. … Blattner has scored 20 or more points eight times this season. … Blattner scored a career-high 30 points—two better than her previous career best—and added 15 rebounds in Saint Mary's win over Augsburg on Jan. 27. … Alexa Huisman (Adrian, Minn.)—the lone senior on the Cardinals' roster—scored a career-high 32 points—12 more than her previous career best—against Hamline on Jan. 20. … Huisman's 32 points were the most since Bridget Pethke poured in 32 against St. Olaf on Jan. 29, 2014. … Along with her 32 points, Huisman also hauled in a career-best 10 rebounds en route to the first double-double of her collegiate career. … Blattner's 3-pointer with 2:05 remaining in the third quarter against Hamline last Saturday gave the Cardinal junior her 1,000^th career point. Blattner is the 11^th player in program history to reach the 1,000-point mark. … Blattner—who enters Tuesday's playoff opener against Bethel with 1,145 career points and 729 career rebounds—is just the fourth player in Cardinal history to record 1,000 career points and 700 career rebounds. … Shayley Vesel (Austin, Minn.) scored a career-best 23 points in the Cardinals' 80-62 loss at Bethel on Feb. 3 to become the fourth Cardinal to eclipse the 20-point barrier this season— joining Blattner (8 times), Huisman (2 times) and Abby Winter (Winona, Minn. / 1 time). … The Cardinals boast eight players who have recorded a single-game, career-high of 10 or more points this season—Huisman (32), Blattner (30), Winter (25), Vesel (23), Hallie Schmeling (Onalaska, Wis. / 15), Kirsten Keefe (Chatfield, Minn. / 14), Claire Patterson (Marine, Minn. / 13), and Rachel Kedl (Lamberton, Minn. / 10). … Kedl recorded a career-best 10 rebounds against Augsburg on Dec. 2. She is the second Cardinal freshman to post 10 or more boards in a game this season—Winter recorded an 11-rebound effort in Saint Mary's season-opening win over Martin Luther on Nov. 15. … The Cardinals put a season-high five players in double figures in their 74-70 win over the University of Dubuque on Nov. 21. … Blattner (17.4 ppg) and Huisman (12.8 ppg) enter Tuesday's playoff opener against Bethel averaging in double figures. … Blattner also leads the team in rebounds with 250 (10.0 rpg). … Winter and Huisman have also reached the 100-rebound plateau with 126 (5.3 rpg) and 100 (4.2 rpg), respectively. … Saint Mary's boasts eight players with 20 or more assists, led by Keefe (69), Schmeling (52), and Blattner (44). … Schmeling and Keefe have each recorded a single-game career-high eight assists this season—Schmeling did it against St. Olaf on Jan. 24, while Keefe equaled that feat against St. Catherine on Jan. 31. … Blattner holds the team lead in steals with 34, nine more than Huisman. … The Cardinals, who finished with 141 3-pointers a year ago, have already knocked down 165 treys this season—including a season-best 13 against UM-Morris on Nov. 18, not to mention 12 in both meetings against St. Olaf. … The Cardinals' 13 3-pointers vs. UM-Morris on Nov. 18 are the most since raining in 14 against St. Catherine on Jan. 22, 2005. … Huisman—who notched a single-game career-high seven 3-pointers against Hamline on Jan. 20—leads the Cardinals with 69 treys. … Fifteen Cardinals have netted at least one 3-pointer this season. … Saint Mary's had six different players net a 3-pointer against UM-Morris on Nov. 18. … The Cardinals enter Tuesday's playoff game against Bethel averaging 64.7 ppg, while limiting their opponents to a 61.1 ppg scoring average. … Saint Mary's netted a season-high 81 points against UM-Morris on Nov. 18. … The Cardinals' 81-point effort against UM-Morris on Nov. 18 was their highest single-game offensive output since scoring 81 in an 81-79 win over Augsburg on Jan. 11, 2017. The last time Saint Mary's scored more than 81 points was during the 2015-16 season, when the Cardinals scored 85 in beating St. Olaf 85-56 on Feb. 13, 2016. … The Cardinals' 69-67 loss to St. Catherine on Jan. 31 was the first overtime game of the season for the Cardinals, who played a pair of overtime games last season—beating Carleton (61-60) and falling to Saint Benedict (60-55). … Seven of the Cardinals' 10 losses have been by 10 points or less. … Saint Mary's 49 points in its 49-44 win over Concordia on Feb. 7 were the fewest in a Cardinal win since beating St. Catherine 40-22 on Dec. 1, 2012. … Concordia's 44 points in its 49-44 loss to Saint Mary's on Feb. 7 were the fewest points allowed by the Cardinals this season—and the second time SMU has held a team to 45 points or less. Macalester managed just 45 points in the Cardinals' 73-45 victory on Jan. 13. … Saint Mary's one-point victory over Martin Luther on Nov. 15 was its second one-point win in the last two years—with both being decided by a 61-60 final score. The Cardinals dropped Carleton 61-60 in overtime last season. … With their 61-60 win over Martin Luther on Nov. 15, the Cardinals have now won their season-opener in each of their last six seasons, dating back to a 63-58 loss to Elmhurst on Nov. 22, 2011.
 
Scouting The Bethel Royals:
2017-18 Roster | 2017-18 Statistics | 2017-18 Schedule
• The Royals enter post-season play having won back-to-back games—including a 95-59 rout of Carleton in their regular-season finale. BU has also won five of its last six and seven of its last nine. … BU squares off against Saint Mary's owning an 8-2 record on their home court, while going 10-5 away from the Robertson Center this season. … The Royals head into Tuesday's playoff opener against Saint Mary's boating three players—Hannah Johnson (15.2 ppg), Taite Anderson (14.1 ppg), and Abby Miller (13.4 ppg). … Johnson is also the team leader in rebounds with 253 (10.1 rpg). … Anderson has also amassed more than 100 rebounds this season, coming into Tuesday's game with 168 (6.7 rpg). … Johnson leads the MIAC in rebounds-per-game (10.1), while Miller is the conference leader in 3-point percentage at 45.1. … Johnson, who has scored 10 or more points in 23 of the team's 25 games, has recorded 13 double-doubles this season. … Johnson owns five games of 20 or more points—including a season-high 28-point effort in the Royals' last meeting with the Cardinals on Feb. 3—while hauling in a season-high 17 rebounds against Carthage on Nov. 17. … Bethel boasts six players with 30 or more assists, led by Haylee Barker (59) and Angie Kirchoff (50). … Barker (40) and Anderson (33) are the team's steals leaders, with Johnson accounting for 85 of the Royals' 155 blocked shots. … Bethel is shooting 46.4 percent from the field (659-for-1421) and has drained 168 3-pointers. … Miller (60) and Jasmin Bretoi (46) lead the Royals in 3-pointers, while 12 different BU players have netted at least one try. … Bethel, which is averaging 72.9 ppg, has scored 80 or more points seven times this season—including three games of 90 or more points. Along with their 95-point effort in last Saturday's win over Carleton, the Royals also scored 96 points in beating Augsburg 96-64 on Jan. 10, and erupting for a season-high 97 opints I dropping MacMurray 97-47 on Dec. 21.