SAINT MARY'S CARDINALS 

(3-3 MIAC, 3-4 OVERALL)

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UW-SUPERIOR YELLOWJACKETS

(1-1 UMAC, 3-7 OVERALL)

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LAST MEETING: Jan. 24, 1948 * L, 69-64

Series History

SAINT MARY'S LAST ACTION:

Dec. 11, 2021 * Bethel * L, 70-58

UW-SUPERIOR LAST ACTION: 

Dec. 18, 2021 * Lawrence * L, 78-68

SAINT MARY'S UP NEXT:

Dec. 30, 2021 * #19 Mary Hardin-Baylor * Las Vegas, NV * 8:00 (PST)

UW-SUPERIOR UP NEXT: 

Dec. 29, 2021 * Whittier * Las Vegas, NV

• FOR THE RECORD: The Cardinals head into their nonconference Las Vegan showdown against UW-Superior sitting at 3-4 overall, while boasting a 3-3 record in conference play.

• LAST ACTION: The Cardinals have been off since Dec. 11, when Bethel outscored them 45-29 over the game's final 20 minutes, erasing a four-point Saint Mary’s halftime lead in dealing SMU a 70-58 setback Saturday afternoon at the Saint Mary’s Gym.

• BACK ON THE ROAD: The Cardinals head into their D3hoops.com games against UW-Superior and Mary Hardin-Baylor having played just two of their first eight games on their home court, going 1-1. The Cardinals are 3-2 on the road this season.

• STREAK-SNAPPERS: The Cardinals’ loss to Bethel on Dec. 11 snapped their two-game winning streak. … Saint Mary’s 68-66 win over St. Scholastica on Dec. 4, meanwhile, put an end to SMU’s two-game losing streak. … The Cardinals’ 63-60 win over St. Olaf was their first win in Northfield since beating the Oles 66-57 on Jan. 16, 2013.

• CLOSE CALLS: Saint Mary’s 70-58 loss to Bethel on Dec. 11 snapped a streak of five straight conference games decided by 10 points or less — a streak that included two-point wins over Macalester (63-61) and St. Scholastica (68-66), and a three=point win over St. Olaf (63-60), while the Cardinals’ two losses were a three-point setback vs. Hamline (67-64) and a 10-point loss against Saint John’s (73-63) in a game that was a four-point contest with 2:30 to play in regulation.

• GREATER THAN 20: Raheem Anthony (Chicago, Ill.) has scored 20 or more points in three of the five games he’s played this season — netting 23 against Saint John’s on Dec. 1, 24 vs. St. Olaf on Dec. 8, and a career-high 35 against St. Scholastica on Dec. 4. Anthony has now scored 20 or more points 10 times in his career.

• CARRYING THE LOAD: Anthony’s career-high 35-point performance against St. Scholastica on Dec. 4 accounted for more than half of the Cardinals’ 68 points — and was the team’s highest single-game performance since Eli Cave scored 35 against Martin Luther on Nov. 18, 2018. 

• DOUBLING UP: Along with his career-high 35 points, Anthony also added 10 rebounds against St. Scholastica on Dec. 4 en route to his first double-double of the season, and fifth of his collegiate career.

• LEADING THE CHARGE: Anthony — who has scored 10 or more points in all five games he’s played — enters SMU’s nonconference games against UW-Superior and Mary Hardin-Baylor averaging 22.0 ppg. Anthony, whose 22.0 ppg average is second in the MIAC behind Augsburg’s Joe Palmer (23.5 ppg), has led the team in scoring in each of its last four games. … Kareem Anthony-Bello (Chicago, Ill.) is sitting at 9.6 ppg, followed by Caden Freetly (Farmington, Minn. / 7.5 ppg) Owen Ziegler (Mount Horeb, Wis. / 6.8 ppg), and Noah Frechette (Lakeville, Minn. / 6.2 ppg).

• WEEKLY HONOR: Fueled by his 23- and 35-point performances on Dec. 1 & 4, Anthony was named MIAC Athlete of the Week on Dec. 6. It was the second time in his collegiate career that Anthony has been named MIAC AOW.

• CAREER PERFORMANCES: Saint Mary’s has six players who have recorded single-game career-highs of 10 or more points this season — Anthony (35 v. St. Scholastica), Ziegler 15 v. Hamline), Frechette (14 v. Macalester), Hunter Phillips (Minong, Wis. / 13 v. Martin Luther), Breyton Buysman (Inver Grove Heights, Minn. / 11 v. St. Olaf), and Jabari Sawyer (Chicago, Ill. / 11 v. Macalester).

• PLENTY OF OPTIONS: All 10 SMU players who saw playing time against Bethel on Dec. 11 scored at least two points. … Eleven of the 12 Cardinals who took the court against Augustana on Nov. 16 recorded at least two points. … Saint Mary’s put four players in double figures against Saint John’s on Dec. 1. Anthony led the way with 23 points, while Ziegler chipped in 12, and Freetly and Anthony-Bello each added 10.

• ON THE GLASS: Along with his team-leading 22.0 ppg scoring average, Anthony also leads the team in rebounds with 41(8.2 rpg) — including a season-high 10 rebounds vs. St. Scholastica on Dec. 4. Anthony-Bello is second with 34 boards (5.7). … Saint Mary’s has recorded 36 or more rebounds in six of its first seven games — including a season-high 41 against both Hamline and Macalester.

• GOING DEEP: The Cardinals drained a season-high 12 3 pointers against Saint John’s on Dec. 1, led by Anthony and Ziegler with three each. … SMU’s 12 3-pointers were just two shy of the single-game school record. … Saint Mary’s has knocked down 56 3-pointers through seven games, led by Ziegler with 11 — including five en route to his career-high 15-point performance against Hamline on Nov. 23 — and Anthony-Bello with 10. … SMU boasts 11 players who have recorded at least one 3-pointer this season.

• LENDING A HAND: Saint Mary’s has dished out 77 assists in its first six games, including a season-high 15 against Augustana on Nov. 16. Anthony leads the team with 16 helpers, six more than both Anthony-Bello and Freetly.

• AS A TEAM: The Cardinals are shooting 39.8 percent from the field (169-for-424), with 56 3-pointers, and are 58-for-101 (57.4 percent) from the free throw line. Saint Mary’s is averaging 64.6 ppg, with their opponents scoring at a 68.0 ppg clip. … The Cardinals scored a season-high 73 points in their season-opening loss to Augustana on Nov. 16. 

• WORKING OVERTIME: Saint Mary’s 79-73 loss to Augustana on Nov. 16 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: Prior to its conference-opener against Macalester on Nov. 20, Saint Mary’s had 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.

• FOR THE RECORD: UW-Superior heads into its nonconference showdown against Saint Mary’s sitting at 3-7 overall, while sporting a 1-1 mark after two UMAC contests.

• LAST ACTION: Eli Vogel and Xavier Patterson combined for 39 points and 15 rebounds, but the Yellowjackets fell behind by seven points at the half and could not recover in dropping a 78-68 loss to Lawrence on Dec. 18.

• MIAC CONNECTION: Saint Mary’s will be the fourth — and final — game against an opponent from the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference for the Yellowjackets. UW-Superior has already faced Saint John’s (L, 67-45), Concordia (W, 63-58), and Bethel (L, 64-51).

• ROAD STRETCH: UW-Superiors games against Saint Mary’s and Whittier in Las Vegas, Nev., are the third and fourth of five straight road games for the Yellowjackets, who are X-X on the road this season.

• AS GOOD AS EVER: Vogel equaled his season-highs with 22 points and seven rebounds against Lawrence on Dec. 18, while Patterson posted career-bests of 17 points and eight boards against the Vikings.

• LEADING THE CHARGE: Vogel heads into UW-S’s two games in Las Vegas leading the team in scoring, averaging 13.1 ppg. J’Vaun Walker is also averaging in double figures in scoring, sitting at 12.5 ppg. Mason Ackley (9.1 ppg) and Patterson (8.3 ppg) are also averaging more than eight points through 10 games. … Vogel has now led the team in scoring in back-to-back games and five times overall.

• 22 IS THE NUMBER: UW-Superior has had a player score 20 or more points four times — including three 22-point performances. Walker has put together games of 20 and 22 points, while Vogel owns a pair of 22-point showings. 

• ON THE BOARDS: The Yellowjackets have four players with 30 or more rebounds through 10 games, led by Josef Fahrenholtz with 61 (6.1 rpg). Walker owns 47 boards (4.7 rpg), followed by Ackley (45, 5.6 rpg), and Patterson (44, 4.4 rpg). Fahrenholtz has posted a season-high 11 rebounds twice, while Walker has hauled in 11 boards once this season.

• DOUBLING UP: Walker owns the team’s lone double-double through 10 games, netting 14 points and adding 11 rebounds against St. Scholastica on Nov. 17.

• FROM DOWNTOWN: UW-Superior has drained 57 3-pointers this season, led by Vogel with 25. Patterson and Josh Reinertsen have each knocked down nine treys.

• LENDING A HAND: Walker has dished out a team-leading 25 assists this season. He is one of four Yellowjackets with 10 or more helpers, being joined by Patterson )23), Ackley (18), and Vogel (15).

• STEALING THE SHOW: Walker has amassed a team-leading 21 steals, with Patterson and Vogel chipping in 16 and 12 steals, respectively.

• AS A TEAM: The Yellowjackets are shooting 42.2 percent from the field (254-for-502) with 57 3-pointers and have knocked down 84 of 139 free throw attempts (60.4 percent). UW-Superior is averaging 64.9 ppg, while its opponents are scoring at a 63.1 ppg clip. … The Yellowjackets have scored 70 or more points twice this season — netting 85 against Martin Luther and scoring a season-high 97 in routing Finlandia 97-52 on Nov. 5. On the flip side, UW-S has only allowed a team to score 70 or more points twice, surrendering 75 against UW-Eau Claire and a season-high 78 against Lawrence on Dec. 18.

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STREAKING ALONG:

 After opening the season with a 45-point, 97-42 win over Finlandia, UW-Superior dropped its next three games, before beating Concordia 63-58. UW-S followed up that win over the Cobbers by dropping its  next four.