By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
 
WINONA, Minn. — After back-to-back road games, the Saint Mary's University of Minnesota women's basketball team returns home to the Saint Mary's Gym on Wednesday, as the Cardinals entertain Saint Benedict in a 7 p.m. MIAC contest.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (6-4 MIAC, 10-7 Overall) vs. Saint Benedict Blazers (6-4 MIAC, 10-7 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's—January 19, 2019 * St. Paul, Minn.: St. Thomas caught fire midway through the second quarter and never looked back en route to a 68-41 win over the Cardinals at Schoenecker Arena | Recap
• Saint Benedict—January 19, 2019 * Northfield, Minn.: Maddie Schmitz scored 21 points to lead Saint Benedict to a 75-61 conference win over Carleton at the Knights' West Gym | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. Saint Benedict — Earlier This Year:
• December 12, 2018 * St. Joseph, Minn.: Saint Mary's scored nine of the game's first 11 points and never relinquished the lead in rolling to a 77-51 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference win over the Bennies at Claire Lynch Hall | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. Saint Benedict — A Year Ago:
• January 6, 2018 * Winona, Minn.: Saint Benedict — sitting atop the conference standings and riding a six-game winning streak — used an 8-0 fourth-quarter run to turn a one-point CSB advantage into a nine-point cushion en route to dealing Saint Mary's a 60-55 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference setback at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
   
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals return to their home court on Saturday, playing host to Gustavus in a 1 p.m. conference showdown at the Saint Mary's Gym.
• Saint Benedict: The Bennies are back on the road on Saturday, heading to Hamline's Hutton Arena in St. Paul, Minn., for a 1 p.m. MIAC matchup against the Pipers
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals: 
2018-19 Roster | 2018-19 Schedule | 2018-19 Statistics
• Wednesday's game against Saint Benedict is the first of three straight home games for the Cardinals, who are 5-3 at the Saint Mary's Gym this season. … Saturday's loss to No. 4/5 St. Thomas snapped the Cardinals' three-game winning streak. … Rachel Kedl (Lamberton, Minn.) scored a team-high nine points in the Cardinals' loss to St. Thomas last Saturday. … Brandi Blattner (Eyota, Minn.) scored a team-high 22-points against Macalester on Jan. 12, marking the fourth time this season the Cardinals have had a player score 20 or more points in a game. … Blattner has now scored 20 or more points 22 times in her four-year collegiate career — including a career-best 30 points against Augsburg on Jan. 27, 2018. … Along with her 22 points against the Scots on Jan. 12, Blattner also hauled in 12 rebounds for her fourth double-double of the season — and 34th of her collegiate career. … Blattner has now recorded 10 or more rebounds five times this season. … Blattner shares the team lead in double-doubles with Kedl, who notched her fourth double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds against Hamline on Jan. 2. … Brooklyn Paulson (Holmen, Wis.) scored a game- and career-high 23 points in the Cardinals' 73-62 loss to Augsburg on Jan. 5. Paulson has accounted for Saint Mary's other three games of 20 or more points this season — having also scored 20 points against both Carleton on Dec. 1 and St. Scholastica on Nov. 20. … Paulson knocked down a single-game career-high seven 3-pointers en route to her 23-point showing against the Auggies on Jan. 5. Paulson's seven 3-pointers were one shy of the school record, set by Ashley Luehmann on Jan. 22, 2005. … The Cardinals have had six different players lead the team in scoring this season. … Saint Mary's boasts eight players who have recorded a single-game career-high of 10 or more points this season — Paulson (23), Maggie Robertson (Orland Park, Ill. / 19), Kedl (16), Jada Biermeier (Eau Claire, Wis. / 15), Caily Landers (Palos Heights, Ill. / 12), Isabel Bettag (Maple Park, Ill. / 11), Michele Remer (Grand Forks, N.D. / 11), and Mary Wintroath (Suffern, N.Y. / 10). … Robertson recorded her first collegiate double-double against Carleton on Dec. 1, scoring a career-best 19 points and added a career-high 11 rebounds. … Kedl hauled in a career-high 12 rebounds against Bethany Lutheran on Nov. 24. … Saint Mary's has put four players in double figures in a game three times this year — vs. Nebraska Wesleyan on Nov. 17, against Bethany Lutheran on Nov 24, and vs. North Central (Ill.) on Dec. 22. … Blattner heads into Wednesday's conference showdown against Saint Benedict leading the team in scoring, averaging 13.7 ppg. Paulson is also averaging in double figures (12.1 ppg), followed by Kedl (7.3 ppg), Claire Patterson (Marine, Minn. / 5.9 ppg), and Robertson (5.7 ppg). … Kedl is the team's rebounding leader with 111 (6.9 rpg), followed by Blattner (90, 8.2 rpg). … Saint Mary's has three players with 40 or more assists — Keefe (52), Patterson (48), and Hallie Schmeling (Onalaska, Wis. / 44). … Keefe also leads the team in steals with 17, five more than Kedl, Paulson, and Patterson. … Saint Mary's is shooting 39.4 percent from the field (401-for-1018), while knocking down 191 of 286 free throws (66.8 percent). … The Cardinals have drained 95 3-pointers, led by Paulson with 44. … The Cardinals recorded a season-high nine 3-pointers against Augsburg on Jan. 5. Saint Mary's has now hit seven or more 3-pointers in a game six times this season. … As a team, the Cardinals are averaging 64.0 ppg, while allowing points at a 62.0 ppg clip. … Saint Mary's hauled in a season-high 56 rebounds against Carleton in the teams' first meeting on Dec. 1. … The Cardinals have scored 70 or more points five times this season — including two games of 80 or more points. … Saint Mary's season-high 87 points against Nebraska Wesleyan on Nov. 17 are the most since tossing in 88 in beating Crown 88-34 on Nov. 21, 2015. … Carleton's 48 points on Jan. 9 were the fewest allowed by the Cardinals this season. … Saint Mary's 72-57 win over North Central (Ill.) on Dec. 22 was the final nonconference game of the season for the Cardinals, who went 4-3 against non-MIAC opponents. … The Cardinals picked up their first win under head coach David Foley with their 87-76 triumph over Nebraska Wesleyan on Nov. 17. … Three of the Cardinals' first four games were against teams they had never faced before — Bethany Lutheran on Nov. 24, and Simpson and Nebraska Wesleyan on Nov. 16-17. … The Cardinals — picked sixth in the MIAC Preseason Coaches' Poll — made their sixth MIAC Playoff appearance in the last seven years last season.
 
Scouting The Saint Benedict Bennies:
2018-19 Roster | 2018-19 Schedule | 2018-19 Statistics
• Wednesday's game against Saint Mary's is the second of three consecutive road games for the Bennies, who are 3-2 away from Claire Lynch Hall this season. … With their win over Carleton on Saturday, the Bennies pushed their winning streak to a season-high five straight. Saint Benedict is 7-1 in its last eight games — the lone blemish, a 66-60 loss to Augsburg on Jan. 2. … Maddie Schmitz scored 21 points to lead five Bennies in double figures against Carleton last Saturday. Alex Johnson chipped in 12 points, Megan Thompson netted 11, and Sidney Schiffler and McKenzie Holgate each added 10 against the Knights last Saturday. … Thompson and Schmitz head into Wednesday's matchup against Saint Mary's averaging in double figures. Thompson boasts a team-best 13.1 ppg scoring average, while Schmitz is close behind at 12.6 ppg. … Johnson is the team's rebounding leader with 112 (8.6 rpg), followed by Schmitz with 105 (6.2 rpg). … Saint Benedict boasts eight players with 10 or more assists, led by Thompson (44), Schiffler (41) and Breanna Gates (38). … Thompson is also the team's steals leader with 40, while Johnson has amassed a team-high 25 blocked shots. … As a team, Saint Benedict is shooting 40.8 percent from the field (405-for-993 and have hit on 172 of 263 free throw attempts (65.4 percent). … CSB has drained 109 3-pointers, led by Schiffler (24), Thompson (20), McKenzie Holgate (19), and Schmitz (16). … Saint Benedict is averaging 64.1 ppg, while the Bennies opponents are also scoring at a 64.1 ppg clip. … The Bennies have scored 70 or more points four times, including a season-high 80-point effort in an 84-80 loss to Simpson on Nov. 17. … Seven of Saint Benedict's 17 games have been decided by seven points or less — CSB is 4-3 in those seven contests.