SAINT MARY'S CARDINALS 

(0-0 MIAC, 0-1 OVERALL)

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MACALESTER SCOTS

(0-0 MIAC, 3-2 OVERALL)

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LAST MEETING: Jan. 29, 2020 * W, 66-61

HEAD-TO-HEAD: Series History

SAINT MARY'S LAST ACTION:

Nov. 16, 2021 * Augustana * L, 79-73 (ot)

MACALESTER LAST ACTION: 

Nov. 17, 2021 * Crown * L, 68-65

SAINT MARY'S UP NEXT:

Nov. 23, 2021 * Hamline * St. Paul, MN * 7:00

MACALESTER UP NEXT: 

Nov. 23, 2021 * Concordia * Moorhead, MN * 7:00

• FOR THE RECORD: The Cardinals enter Saturday’s conference-opener against Macalester having played just one game, dropping their season-opener to Augustana 79-73 in overtime Tuesday in Rock Island, Ill.

• LAST ACTION: The Cardinals put four players in double figures against the Vikings on Tuesday — including a team-high 14 points from Kareem Anthony-Bello (Chicago, Ill.) and 13 from Hunter Phillips (Minong, Wis.) — but Augustana would hold a 13-7 scoring advantage in the five-minute overtime in beating SMU 79-73.

• ROAD WARRIORS: Saturday’s game at Macalester is the second of three straight road games for the Cardinals, who do not open the home portion of their schedule until Dec. 1, when they welcome Saint John’s to the Saint Mary’s Gym for a 7 p.m. showdown.

• GETTING RED-HOT: Anthony-Bello’s team-high 14 points Tuesday night against Augustana all came in the second half — when the senior went 3-for-7 from the field with one 3-pointer, and added a 7-for-9 effort from the free throw line.

• CAREER PERFORMANCES: Phillips and Noah Frechette (Lakeville, Minn.) each recorded single-game career-high performances of 10 or more points against Augustana on Tuesday. Phillips scored the Cardinals’ first eight points en route to his 13-point showing, while Frechette finished with a career-best 10 points.

• SPREADING THE WEALTH: Eleven of the 12 Cardinals who saw playing time against Augustana on Tuesday scored at least two points.

• ON THE GLASS: The Cardinals hauled in 39 rebounds in Tuesday’s season-opening loss to Augustana, led by Anthony-Bello and Phillips with eight each.

• WORKING OVERTIME: Saint Mary’s 79-73 loss to Augustana on Tuesday was its first overtime game since beating Carleton 79-77 on Feb. 12, 2020. Saint Mary’s finished 2-0 in overtime games during the 2019-20 season.

• CONFERENCE CLIMB: Saint Mary’s enters Saturday’s conference-opener against Macalester having not played an official MIAC game since the 2019-20 season, when the Cardinals finished 10-10 and earned their first MIAC Tournament berth since 1985. Saint Mary’s made its first MIAC Tournament appearance since 1985 in 2019-20, collecting the program’s first postseason victory with its 72-59 quarterfinal win over Bethel on Feb. 25. … SMU’s 10 MIAC wins in 2019-20 were the most since going 11-9 during the 1999-2000 season.

• WINNING WAYS: Saint Mary’s 6-2 record in the pandemic-shortened 2020-21 included a five-game winning streak. It was the longest winning streak since winning six in a row as part of an 8-1 start to the 2010-11 season.

• PERFECT AT HOME: The Cardinals closed out the pandemic-shortened 2020-21 season a perfect 3-0 on their home court — beating Gustavus (67-45), Bethel (57-48), and Hamline (57-54).

• FOR THE RECORD: The Scots enter Saturday’s conference-opener against Saint Mary’s sitting at 3-2 overall, having opened the season with three straight wins, before dropping back-to-back decisions to North Central and Crown.

• LAST ACTION: Macalester found itself staring at a nine-point halftime deficit and had their second-half rally fall three points short, as the Scots dropped their second consecutive game, falling to the Storm 68-65.

• HOME COURT ADVANTAGE: Saturday’s conference-opener against Saint Mary’s is the second of back-to-back home games for the Scots, who play four of their first six games on their home court. Macalester is 2-1 at Leonard Center Gym this season — beating Luther (80-59) and UM-Morris (89-77), while falling to Crown (68-65).

• LEADING THE CHARGE: Macalester heads into conference play boasting two players who are averaging in double figures after five games — Caleb Williams (23.6 ppg) and Colby Gold (15.8 ppg). Robert Grace IV is sitting third on the team with a 9.6 ppg scoring average, while Shane Anderson is averaging 9.2 ppg.

• ONE-TWO PUNCH: Williams and Gold have both scored 10 or more points in all five games this season — with Williams topping the 20-point mark four times. Williams netted a season-high 29-point effort against UM-Morris on Nov. 11, and followed up that 29-point effort with 28 points against North Central and 25 vs. Crown. Gold, meanwhile, tallied a season-high 24 points against Martin Luther on Nov. 9.

• FROM DOWNTOWN: Gold and Williams have each drained 14 3-pointers this season, with the duo accounting for 28 of Macalester’s 36 treys through five games.

• HITTING THE BOARDS: Gold and Anderson are the Scots’ rebounding leaders, owning 28 (5.6 rpg)and 26 (5.2 rpg) boards, respectively. … As a team, 128 of Macalester’s 164 rebounds have come on the defensive end.

• LENDING A HAND: Grace IV has dished out a team-leading 17 assists and is one of three Scots with 10 or more helpers through five contests, being joined by Gold (13) and Williams (10).

• STEALING THE SHOW: Macalester has recorded 43 steals in five games, led by Gold with 14 and Eric Sathy with nine. Gold has recorded a season-high four steals twice, while grabbing a pair of steals in each of the Scots’ other three games.

• AS A TEAM: Macalester is shooting 47.2 percent from the field (143-for-303) with 36 3-pointers, and has knocked down 55 of 73 free throws (75.3 percent). … The Scots are averaging 75.4 ppg, while their first five opponents are scoring at a 70.5 ppg clip. Macalester netted a season-high 89 points in beating UM-Morris 89-77 on Nov. 11. It was the second time this season the Scots hit the 80-point mark, having opened the year with an 80-59 win over Luther on Nov. 6.