SAINT MARY’S CARDINALS

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2023-24: 3-10 MIAC, 4-14 Overall

BETHEL ROYALS

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2023-24: 6-7 MIAC, 9-9 Overall

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SMU-BETHEL * LAST MEETING:

Dec. 9, 2023 * Arden Hills, MN

L, 77-65 * Series History

SAINT MARY’S * LAST ACTION:

Jan. 24, 2024 * St. Paul, MN

Hamline * L, 99-65

BETHEL * LAST ACTION:

Jan. 24, 2024 * Arden Hills, MN

Augsburg * W, 69-60

SAINT MARY’S * UP NEXT:

Jan. 31, 2024 * Moorhead, MN

Concordia * 5:30 p.m.

BETHEL * UP NEXT: 

Jan. 31, 2024 * St. Paul, MN

Macalester * 7 p.m.

SAINT MARY’S SCOUTING REPORT:

• FOR THE RECORD: The Cardinals enter their home conference matchup against Bethel sitting at 4-14 overall, while owning a 3-10 mark in conference play.

• LAST TIME OUT: SMU got 15 points from Breyton Buysman (Inver Grove Heights, Minn.), but did not have an answer for Hamline’s high-powered offense, as the Pipers dealt SMU a 99-65 MIAC setback Wednesday evening at Hutton Arena in St. Paul, Minn.

• HOME SWEET HOME: Saturday’s game against Bethel is the fourth home game in the last five contests for the Cardinals — the lone road game, Wednesday’s loss at Hamline. … Following Saturday’s matchup against Bethel, SMU will play three of its next four games on the road. … Saint Mary’s is currently 3-7 on its home court, while sporting a 1-7 record away from the Saint Mary’s Gym..

• STREAK-SNAPPERS: The Cardinals’ thrilling 74-72, last-second win over St. Olaf last Saturday put an end to their three-game losing streak. … SMU’s 83-56 victory over Macalester on Jan. 6 also snapped a three-game SMU losing streak, while the Cardinals’ 12-point, 92-80 win over St. Scholastica on Dec. 6 snapped their season-high four-game losing streak. … SMU’s win against the Saints on Dec. 6 was its fifth straight win against the St. Scholastica and moved the Cardinals to 7-1 against CSS all-time.

• CARRYING THE OFFENSIVE LOAD: The Cardinals head into their matchup against Bethel boasting two players who are averaging in double figures in scoring. Cameron Mallory (Joliet, Ill.) leads the way for SMU, owning a 16.3 ppg average, while Buysman is close behind at 14.7 ppg. Owen Ziegler (Mount Horeb, Wis.) and Jabari Sawyer (Chicago, Ill.) are both percentage points away from averaging in double figures, sitting at 9.1 and 9.0 ppg, respectively. … Mallory or Buysman has led or shared the team lead in scoring in 15 of SMU’s 18 games.

• HITTING DOUBLE FIGURES: Mallory has scored in double figures in 14 of SMU’s 18 contests. He has set a single-game career high four times this season — netting a then-career-high 20 points against UW-Platteville on Nov. 10, bettering that by three with a 23-point showing against UW-River Falls on Nov. 18. He improved on that mark with 25 points against St. Scholastica on Dec. 6, before delivering his new career-best with 27 points against Macalester on Jan. 6. … Buysman has scored in double figures 14 times this season — including a season-high 24-point effort three times — against Hamline on Nov. 21, vs. St. Scholastica on Dec. 6, and against Bethel on Dec. 9.

• GREATER THAN 20: Saint Mary’s has had a player score 20 or more points in a game 12 times this season — including a 20-point effort by Mallory against St. Olaf last Saturday. Mallory has reached the 20-point mark eight times this season, while Buysman has netted 20+ points four times.

• GREATER THAN 20 x 2: With Mallory’s 25 points and Buysman’s 24 against St. Scholastica on Dec. 6, the Cardinals recorded their second game with two players reaching the 20-point mark in the same game. The duo also achieved the feat against St. Olaf on Dec. 2. … SMU had two 20+ scorers in the same game six times last season — including a program record three players with 20 or more points in the same game against Augsburg on Jan. 16, 2023.

• CAREER SCORING NIGHTS: Saint Mary’s has had a player post a career high of 10 or more points in a game three times this season. Mallory’s 27-point showing against Macalester on Jan. 6 was a career high, while Jemari Moore (Broadview, Ill.) delivered a career-high 14 points against Concordia on Dec. 4 and Bruce Lockwood (Shakopee, Minn.) tallied a career-best 14 against Saint John’s on Jan. 17. … Saint Mary’s boasted six players who recorded single-game career-highs of 10 or more points last season.

• SPREADING THE WEALTH: Saint Mary’s put five players in double figures against Saint John’s on Nov. 29 — Mallory (13 points), Sawyer (11), Lockwood (11), Buysman (10), and Moore (10). It was the first time SMU put five players in double figures in the same game since Jan. 15, 2022.

• ON THE GLASS: Saint Mary’s boasts five players with 50 or more rebounds through 18 games, led by Lockwood with 96 (5.6 rpg). Buysman owns 87 boards (4.8 rpg), followed by Mallory (75, 4.2 rpg), Sawyer (63, 3.5 rpg), and Moore (55, 3.1 rpg). … Lockwood pulled down a season- and career-high 12 rebounds against Saint John’s on Jan. 17. Buysman matched his career-high nine rebounds against St. Olaf last Saturday, while Mallory and Moore have both posted season-best eight-rebound performances this season. … As a team, Saint Mary’s matched its season high with 36 rebounds against Augsburg on Jan. 3. SMU also corralled 36 boards against UW-La Crosse on Dec. 13.

• DOUBLING UP: With his career-highs in points (14) and rebounds (12) against Saint John’s on Jan. 17, Lockwood collected his first collegiate double-double. Lockwood’s double-double is the Cardinals’ first of the season.

• FEW FREE POINTS: The Cardinals attempted just two free throws — making both — in their 71-57 loss to Concordia on Dec. 4. It was the fewest FT made in a game since hitting 2 of 4 against St. Olaf on Feb. 9, 2015, while the two FT attempts were the fewest since Feb. 8, 2006, when SMU went 0-for-1 from the line against Hamline. 

• GOING DEEP: Saint Mary’s has made 122 of 357 3-point attempts this season (34.2 %) — including a season-high 12 treys against UW-River Falls on Nov. 18. … Ziegler leads the team with 45 3s, followed by Buysman with 22, Mallory with 17, Khai Branham (Bemidji, Minn.) with 13, and Sawyer with 10. … Ziegler has drained a season-high five 3-pointers in a game three times — vs. St. Olaf on Dec. 2, vs. St. Scholastica four days later, and vs. Carleton last on Jan. 13. … The Cardinals have gotten at least one 3 from nine different players. … SMU’s season-high 12 3-pointers against UW-River Falls on Nov. 18 were just two treys shy of the program’s single-game record of 14, set against Finlandia a year ago.

• ALL-TIME LEADER: With the first of his four 3-pointers against Macalester on Jan. 6, Ziegler became the program’s all-time leader in 3-pointers made. Ziegler has now drained a program-record 175 3-pointers during his four-year career.

• LENDING A HAND: Sawyer and Ziegler lead the way for SMU with 53 and 52 assists, respectively. Buysman (29), Mallory (22), Moore (18), and Lockwood (12) have also reached double figures in helpers. … Sawyer collected a season-high seven assists against St. Olaf on Dec. 2.

• FACING THE NATION’S BEST: Saint Mary’s has faced two teams that received recognition in the D3hoops.com Preseason Poll. UW-Platteville received votes in the opening poll, while UW-Whitewater — an NCAA Division III Final Four participant last season — was ranked No. 2. … SMU’s six-point win over then-No. 7 UW-La Crosse a year ago marked the first time in program history the Cardinals had beaten a team ranked in the Top 10 in the country. The win also snapped a six-game losing streak against the Eagles — dating back to a 65-50 triumph on Nov. 24, 1986.

• CRUNCHING THE NUMBERS: The Cardinals are shooting 44.7 percent from the field (482-for-1079), with 122 3-pointers, and are 151 of 218 (69.3 %) from the free throw line. … SMU is averaging 68.7 ppg, with its opponents scoring at a 78.8 ppg clip. … Saint Mary’s has scored 70 or more points eight times — including three games of 80+ points. SMU netted a season-high 92 points against St. Scholastica on Dec. 6. On the flip side, Saint Mary’s has surrendered 80 or more points eight times, including allowing 90+ points on three occasions. … SMU’s 92-point effort in its 92-80 win over St. Scholastica on Dec. 6 were the most since netting a season-high 102 against Finlandia on Jan. 2, 2023.

BETHEL SCOUTING REPORT:

• FOR THE RECORD: The Royals head to the Saint Mary’s Gym for Saturday’s showdown with the Cardinals owning an 9-9 overall record, including a 6-7 mark through the first 12 games of their conference slate.

• LAST TIME OUT: Bethel put three players in double figures and knocked down 10 3-pointers, as the Royals downed Augsburg 69-60 in an MIAC matchup Wednesday evening in Arden Hills, Minn.

• ROAD WARRIORS: Saturday’s game against Saint Mary’s is the first of back-to-back road games for the Royals, who are in the midst of playing three of four contests on the road — the only home contest in that stretch was Wednesday’s nine-point win over Augsburg. … BU is currently 4-5 on its home court, while going 5-4 away from Robertson Center Gym. 

• BACK ON TRACK: With their 69-60 conference win over Augsburg on Wednesday, the Royals have won back-to-back games, having beaten Concordia 76-61 last Saturday. … BU’s victory at Concordia last Saturday snapped its season-high four-game losing streak.

• CARRYING THE OFFENSIVE LOAD: Bethel heads into its conference road test at Saint Mary’s boasting three players who are averaging in double figures in scoring, led by Payton Thomsen’s 16.4 ppg scoring average. Zach Doely (15.9 ppg) and Nick Burke (11.6 ppg) are also scoring more than 10 points a game, while Joey Kidder (9.3 ppg) is just percentage points from joining the 10+ point club. … Doely has reached double figures in all 18 game this season, while Thomsen has scored 10 or more points 16 times — including five games with 20+ points. … Thomsen netted a season-high 31 points against UW-La Crosse on Nov. 18. … Thomsen, Doely, or Burke has led the team in scoring in all 18 games.

• CLEANING THE GLASS: Doely has been a rebounding machine for the Royals this season, hauling in 166 boards (9.2 rpg) in 18 games. Kidder is second on the team with 97 rebounds (6.9 rpg), followed by Burke (65, 3.6 rpg) and Thomsen (60, 3.3 rpg). … Doely pulled down a single-game, season-high 17 boards in BU’s first meeting with Saint Mary’s on Dec. 9 and has racked up nine double-doubles

• FROM BEYOND THE ARC: Bethel has poured in 144 3-pointers on 394 attempts (36.4 %), with Thomsen (48) and Burke (45) accounting for 93 of those 144 treys. Emmanuel Schmitter is the only other Royal with more than 10 3-pointers, sitting at 16. … Thomsen is shooting nearly 45 percent from beyond the arc, going 48-for-107 (44.9 %). … Burke drained a season-high six 3-pointers against Gustavus on Jan. 6, while, as a team, BU knocked down a season-high 12 3-pointers against Concordia on Jan. 20.

• LENDING A HAND: Doely and Kidder are the Royals’ assist leaders, owning 57 and 56 helpers, respectively. Thomsen (28), Burke (20), and Gabe Siler (20) have also reached the 20+ assist mark this season. … Doely has recorded a season-high six assists in a game three times, with Kidder reaching six assists once. … Bethel delivered a season-best 21 assists against Augsburg on Nov. 21.

• CRUNCHING THE NUMBERS:As a team, the Royals are shooting 46.8 percent from the field (485-for-1036), with 144 3-pointers, and have made 181 of 283 (64.0 %) from the free throw line. … BU is averaging 71.9 ppg, while its opponents are scoring at a 72.0 ppg clip. … Bethel has scored 80 or more points four times this season, including a season-high 95-point effort in beating Berea 95-86 on Dec. 20. On the flip side, BU has also given up 80+ points four times — including 93 against UW-La Crosse on Nov. 18 (L, 93-81) and a season-high 98 against Carleton on Jan. 15 (L, 98-74). … BU has played one overtime game this season, beating Gustavus 80-71 on Jan. 6.