SAINT MARY'S CARDINALS 

(6-9 MIAC, 8-11 OVERALL)

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ST. OLAF OLES

(7-8 MAC, 11-9 OVERALL)

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EARLIER THIS YEAR:

Dec. 8, 2021

W, 63-60 * Series History

SAINT MARY'S LAST ACTION:

Feb. 5, 2022 * Bethel * W, 77-64

ST. OLAF LAST ACTION: 

Feb. 5, 2022 * Augsburg * W, 77-73

SAINT MARY'S UP NEXT:

Feb. 9, 2022 * Augsburg

Winona, MN * 7:00

ST. OLAF UP NEXT: 

Feb. 9, 2022 * St. John’s

Northfield, MN * 7:00

• FOR THE RECORD: The Cardinals head into their conference matchup against league-leading Augsburg sitting at 8-11 overall, while boasting a 6-9 record in conference play.

• LAST TIME OUT: Raheem Anthony (Chicago, Ill.) and Noah Frechette (Lakeville, Minn.) each scored more than 20 points for the second straight game — and the Cardinals erupted for 47 second-half points — in dealing Bethel a 77-64 conference setback Saturday in Arden Hills, Minn.

• BACK HOME: Saturday’s game against Bethel was the second of back-to-back road games for the Cardinals, who play three of their final four regular-season contests on their home court, beginning Monday against St. Olaf. SMU is 5-6 on the road this season, while winning three of its eight home contests.

• CLOSE CALLS: Ten of Saint Mary’s 19 games this season have been decided by 11 points or less, including three of its last five games — a 76-72 loss at Macalester, a 69-58 win over Hamline, and a 73-70 setback at Gustavus

• STREAKING: The Cardinals — who had beaten Hamline (69-58) and St. Scholastica (77-58) in its previous two games — had their two-game winning streak snapped with last Wednesday’s 73-70 loss to Gustavus. SMU’s 11-point win over Hamline on Jan. 26 snapped its season-high five-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.

• LEADING THE CHARGE: Anthony — who has scored 10 or more points 13 times this season — enters SMU’s matchup with St. Olaf averaging 17.6 ppg, followed by Frechette (10.7 ppg), Caden Freetly (Farmington, Minn. / 7.9 ppg), Owen Ziegler (Mount Horeb, Wis. / 6.8 ppg), and Breyton Buysman (Inver Grove Heights, Minn. / 6.8 ppg). … Anthony has led the team in scoring in 10 of its last 16 games.

• GREATER THAN 20: Anthony has poured in 20 or more points in a game seven times, including back-to-back 20+ showings against Gustavus (23 points) and Bethel (22 points) in his last two outings. … Anthony has now scored 20 or more points 12 times in his career. … Frechette is the only other Cardinal to eclipse the 20-point mark this season — having done it in each of SMU’s last three games. The sophomore tallied a career-high 24 points against St. Scholastica on Jan. 29,  added a 21-point effort against Gustavus last Wednesday, and netted 20 vs. Bethel three days later.

• TWENTY x 2: With their 22- and 20-point performances against Bethel last Saturday, Anthony and Frechette have now both scored 20 or more points in a game in back-to-back contests — having recorded 23 and 21 points, respectively, against Gustavus last Wednesday.

• CAREER NIGHT x 2: Jabari Sawyer (Chicago, Ill.) and Buysman each recorded single-game career-high performances against Hamline on Jan. 26, with Sawyer scoring 18 points — including 10-for-10 from the free throw line — while Buysman chipped in 16 points. … All 18 of Sawyer’s points against the Pipers came in the second half.

• CAREER SCORING PERFORMANCES: Saint Mary’s has had nine players who have recorded single-game career-highs of 10 or more points this season — Anthony (35 v. St. Scholastica), Frechette (24 v. St. Scholastica), Freetly (23 v. Macalester), Sawyer (18 v. Hamline), Buysman (16 v. Hamline), Ziegler 15 v. St. Scholastica, v. Hamline), Hunter Phillips (Minong, Wis. / 13 v. Martin Luther), Cameron Mallory (Joliet, Ill. / 12 v. Concordia), and Bruce Lockwood (Shakopee, Minn. / 10 v. Gustavus).

• 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 fourth double-double of the season against Gustavus last Wednesday, scoring 23 points and adding 12 rebounds. Anthony — who now owns nine double-doubles as a Cardinal — missed his first collegiate triple-double by one assist against UW-Superior on Dec. 28. … Freetly recorded his first double-double of the season — and third of his collegiate career — against Crown on Jan. 3, scoring 11 points and adding 10 rebounds. … 

• SEEING DOUBLE: The double-doubles by Anthony (20 points, 15 rebounds) and Freetly (11 points, 10 rebounds) against Crown on Jan. 3 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.

• DOUBLE DIGITS x 5: The Cardinals put a season-high five players in double figures against Concordia last Saturday. Freetly led the way with 17 points, followed by Anthony with 14, Mallory with 12, Buysman with 11, and Frechette with 10. … The Cardinals’ performance against Concordia marked the first time since Jan. 11, 202 that SMU has had five players score 10 or more points in the same game.

• 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.

• ON THE GLASS: Along with his team-leading 17.6 ppg scoring average, Anthony also leads the team in rebounds with 152 (8.9 rpg), while Freetly is second with 83 (4.6 rpg). … Anthony has led the team in rebounds in 14 of the 16 game's he's played in. … 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 148 3-pointers through 19 games, led by Ziegler with 33, followed by Frechette with 29 and Freetly with 21. … Ziegler has posted two games with five 3-pointers this season, having also achieved the feat against Hamline on Nov. 23. … SMU boasts 11 players who have recorded at least one 3-pointer this season. … The Cardinals — who have recorded 10 or more treys in a game four times this season — attempted a season-high 34 3-pointers against Hamline on Nov. 23.

• LENDING A HAND: Saint Mary’s has dished out 240 assists, including a season-high 17 against Mary Hardin-Baylor on Dec. 30. Anthony leads the team with 77 helpers, while eight other Cardinals own at least 10 assists… Anthony’s nine assists against UW-Superior on Dec. 28 were a season- and career-high.

• PERFECT FROM THE LINE: Sawyer was a perfect 10-for-10 from the free throw line against Hamline on Jan. 26. His 10 free throws were the most since Anthony knocked down 13 of 15 attempts against Augsburg on Feb. 5, 2020. … Sawyer’s effort against the Pipers marks the first time since Michael Burfeind on Jan. 12, 2013 that an SMU player has gone 10-for-10 from the line.

• FEW TRIED: Saint Mary’s attempted 13 free throws against Hamline on Jan. 26, with just two players — Sawyer and Anthony — accounting for all 13 attempts. Sawyer finished 10-for-10 and Anthony was 0-for-3.

• AS A TEAM: The Cardinals are shooting 41.1 percent from the field (484-for-1179), with 148 3-pointers, and are 154-for-252 (61.1 percent) from the free throw line. Saint Mary’s is averaging 68.2 ppg, with their opponents scoring at a 69.7 ppg clip. … The Cardinals scored a season-high 83 points in their 83-78 win over UW-Superior on Dec. 28. … SMU has recorded a season-high 30 field goals twice this season, vs. St. Scholastica on Jan. 5 and v. Bethel last Saturday.

• BIG SECOND HALF: The Cardinals’ 47 second-half points against Bethel last Saturday were a season high, and marked the fifth time this season SMU has scored 40 or more points in a half this season — with four of those five 40+ efforts coming in the second half.

• 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.

• 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.

• FOR THE RECORD: The Oles head into Monday’s road showdown at Saint Mary’s sitting at .500 with a 10-10 record, including a 6-10 mark in 16 conference games.

• LAST TIME OUT: Dominic Bledsoe hit the game-winning jumper with 2.9 seconds remaining, as St. Olaf dealt league-leading Augsburg its first conference loss of the season with a 77-73 victory Saturday in Minneapolis, Minn.

• ON THE ROAD AGAIN: Monday’s game at Saint Mary’s is the second of back-to-back road games for the Oles, who are in the midst of playing four of their last six regular-season games away from Skoglund Center Gym. … St. Olaf is 6-5 on its home court, while going 5-5 away from home this season.

• STREAKING: Last Saturday’s win over No. 22 Augsburg extended St. Olaf’s winning streak to three straight. STO has also put together a season-high five-game win streak and has won back-to-back games twice. On the flip side, the Oles have suffered through a two-game losing streak and a pair of three-game slides. 

• LEADING THE CHARGE: The Oles have a trio of players who come into Monday’s game averaging in double figures in scoring — led by Dominic Bledsoe’s 13.9 ppg scoring average. Nathan Hendler (12.8 ppg) and Connor Martin (10.9 ppg) are also averaging more than 10 points-per-game. … Bledsoe has scored 10 or more points in a game 15 times this season — including six games of 20 or more points. … Bledsoe owns the team’s highest single-game performance, scoring 27 against Bethany Lutheran on Nov. 13.

• HITTING THE BOARDS: Charlie Haff leads the team in rebounds with 143 (7.2 rpg), followed by Michael Meriggioli with 100 (5.9 rpg) and Bledsoe with 72 (3.6 rpg). … Haff owns a pair of double-doubles — 17 points and 15 boards v. Hamline on Jan. 3 and 16 points and 10 rebounds v. UW-Eau Claire on Dec. 30 — while Meriggioli has also picked up two double-doubles, owning a 15-point, 10-rebound effort against Carleton on Jan. 15 and a 14-point, 11-rebound showing against Augsburg lst Saturday. 

• FROM LONG RANGE: The Oles have poured in 117 3-pointers this season, and have three players — Hendler (32), Bledsoe (26), and Haff (20) — with 20 or more treys.

• LENDING A HAND: Connor Martin has dished out a team-best 71 assists, with Bledsoe close behind with 68. St. Olaf has three other players — Meriggioli (36), Haff (33), and Carter Uphus (22) — with 20 or more helpers through 20 games.

• AS A TEAM: The Oles are shooting 46.0 percent from the field (546-for-1188) with 119 3-pointers and are 183-for-261 (70.1 percent) from the free throw line. … St. Olaf is averaging 69.6 ppg, while its opponents are scoring at a 66.2 ppg clip. … The Oles have scored 80 or more points twice this season — beating Hamline 85-50 on Jan. 29 and netting a season-best 90 points in a 96-90 overtime loss to Gustavus on Jan. 26.