• FOR THE RECORD: The Cardinals head into their conference showdown against Concordia sitting at 5-7 overall, while boasting a 3-5 record in conference play.
• LAST ACTION: The Cardinals surrendered the game’s first 14 points, and never recovered, as Carleton dealt Saint Mary’s a 58-47 conference setback last Saturday at the Saint Mary’s Gym.
• HOME SWEET HOME: After three straight home games, Saturday’s game at Concordia is the second of three consecutive road games for the Cardinals — who played seven of their first nine games of the season on the road. Saint Mary’s owns a 4-3 record on the road, while winning just one of its five home contests this season.
• CLOSE CALLS: Six of Saint Mary’s 12 games this season have been decided by 11 points or less. Along with their five-point, 83-78 win over UW-Superior on Dec. 28, the Cardinals also own two-point wins over Macalester (63-61) and St. Scholastica (68-66), and a three=point win over St. Olaf (63-60), while the SMU’s three losses were a three-point setback vs. Hamline (67-64), a 10-point loss against Saint John’s (73-63), and last Saturday’s 11-point loss to Carleton (58-47).
• LEADING THE CHARGE: Raheem Anthony (Chicago, Ill.) — who has scored 10 or more points nine times, including five games with 20 or more points — enters SMU’s matchup with Concordia averaging 18.8 ppg, followed by Noah Frechette (Lakeville, Minn. / 8.6 ppg), Owen Ziegler (Mount Horeb, Wis. / 7.8 ppg), and Caden Freetly (Farmington, Minn. / 6.8 ppg). … Anthony, whose 18.8 ppg average is second in the MIAC behind Augsburg’s Joe Palmer (22.6 ppg), has led the team in scoring in seven of its last nine games.
• GREATER THAN 20: Anthony has poured in 20 or more points in a game five times, the most recent a 20-point showing against Crown on Jan. 3. He has also eclipsed 20 points by netting 22 against UW-Superior on Dec. 28; 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: Anthony picked up his second double-double of the season against UW-Superior on Dec. 28, scoring 22 points and adding a career-high 14 rebounds, and followed that up with Monday’s 20-point, 15-rebound double-double. … Freetly recorded his first double-double of the season — and third of his collegiate career — against Crown last Monday, scoring 11 points and adding 10 rebounds. … Anthony — who now owns seven doubles-doubles in his three year SMU career — missed his first collegiate triple-double by one assist against UW-Superior on Dec. 28.
• SEEING DOUBLE: The double-doubles by Anthony (20 points, 15 rebounds) and Freetly (11 points, 10 rebounds) against Crown last Monday marked the first time since Wylie Ferron scored 16 points and added 11 boards, and Quashingm Smith-Pugh chipped in 11 points and 11 rebounds, against Martin Luther on Nov. 15, 2016 that the Cardinals had two players record double-doubles in the same game.
• CAREER SCORING PERFORMANCES: Saint Mary’s has had eight players who have recorded single-game career-highs of 10 or more points this season — Anthony (35 v. St. Scholastica), Frechette (18 v. Mary Hardin-Baylor; v. Crown), Ziegler 15 v. Hamline), Hunter Phillips (Minong, Wis. / 13 v. Martin Luther), Breyton Buysman (Inver Grove Heights, Minn. / 11 v. St. Olaf), Jabari Sawyer (Chicago, Ill. / 11 v. Macalester), Lockwood (10 v. Gustavus), and Cameron Mallory (Joliet, Ill. / 10 v. UW-Superior).
• 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 Kareem Anthony-Bello each added 10.
• ON THE GLASS: Along with his team-leading 18.8 ppg scoring average, Anthony also leads the team — and the MIAC — in rebounds with 92 (9.2 rpg), while Freetly is second with 45 (4.1 rpg). … Saint Mary’s recorded a season-high 54 rebounds against Crown on Jan. 3.
• GOING DEEP: The Cardinals drained a season-high 12 3 pointers against Saint John’s on Dec. 1. … SMU’s 12 3-pointers were just two shy of the single-game school record. … Saint Mary’s has knocked down 88 3-pointers through 12 games, led by Ziegler with 22, Frechette with 12, and Freetly with 10. … SMU boasts 12 players who have recorded at least one 3-pointer this season. … The Cardinals attempted a season-high 34 3-pointers against Hamline on Nov. 23.
• LENDING A HAND: Saint Mary’s has dished out 150 assists, including a season-high 17 against Mary Hardin-Baylor on Dec. 30. Anthony leads the team with 44 helpers, while five other Cardinals own at least 10 assists… Anthony’s nine assists against UW-Superior on Dec. 28 were a season- and career-high.
• AS A TEAM: The Cardinals are shooting 39.3 percent from the field (296-for-753), with 88 3-pointers, and are 105-for-179 (58.7 percent) from the free throw line. Saint Mary’s is averaging 65.4 ppg, with their opponents scoring at a 69.8 ppg clip. … The Cardinals scored a season-high 83 points in their 83-78 win over UW-Superior on Dec. 28. Saint Mary’s posted season-highs in field goals (30) and field goals attempted (74) against Gustavus Wednesday.
• 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.
• STREAK-SNAPPERS: The Cardinals have not won, or lost, more than two games in a row all season — SMU has had two two-game losing streaks, and one two-game winning 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.
• INDIVIDUAL HONORS: Anthony was named to the D3hoop.com Classic All-Tournament Team on Dec. 31 and the D3hoops.com Team of the Week on Dec. 4. It was his second and third individual honors of the season, having also been 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.
