WINONA, Minn. — The red-hot Saint Mary's University women's basketball team returns home on Saturday, as the Cardinals host league-leading St. Thomas in 1 p.m. conference game at the SMU Gym.



The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (8-4 MIAC | 8-7 Overall)
vs. No. 22 St. Thomas Tommies (12-0 MIAC | 14-1 Overall)

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Last Action:
The Cardinals scored the game's final five points — getting a 3-pointer from Emily DeWitt (Lino Lakes, Minn.) and a layup by Jamie Stefely (Lisle, Ill.) — to rally for a 61-60 win over Carleton in Northfield, Minn., on Wednesday. … St. Thomas, meanwhile, continued its dominance on its home court, winning its sixth straight home contest with a 62-53 victory over St. Olaf Wednesday at Schoenecker Arena in St. Paul, Minn.

SMU vs. St. Thomas — A Year Ago:
January 3, 2011: A tough first half for Cardinals — one where they shot only 24 percent from the field — enabled the Tommies to pull ahead and never let SMU back into the game en route to a 69-55 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference win at the SMU Gym.
February 2, 2011: The Cardinals gave St. Thomas all it could handle for 20 minutes Wednesday evening, battling the Tommies to a 30-30 deadlock at the break. Over the final 20 minutes, however, the Tommies took charge, outscored SMU 42-23 in handing the Cardinals a 72-53 conference setback at Schoenecker Arena in St. Paul, Minn.

Up Next:
The Cardinals are back on the road on Wednesday, traveling to St. Joseph, Minn., for a 7:30 p.m. contest against Saint Benedict. … St. Thomas is also on the road on Wednesday, heading across town for a 7:30 p.m. MIAC game at Hamline.

Saint Mary's Cardinals News and Notes:
2011-12 Roster | 2011-12 Statistics | 2011-12 Schedule | 2011-12 Media Guide
With their 61-60 win over Carleton on Wednesday, the Cardinals extended their season-high winning streak to five straight — their longest since opening the 2004-05 season with five consecutive wins. … SMU enters Saturday's game against St. Thomas looking for its first six-game winning streak since the Cardinals won 19 in a row to open the 1985-86 season. SMU finished 24-3 and reached the NCAA Tournament that season. … Wednesday's 61-60 win over Carleton was the Cardinals' second-straight one-point win over the Knights this season. SMU dropped Carleton 58-57 to open conference play on Nov. 30. … SMU has now won its last five games by a combined 22 points. … Jamie Stefely (Lisle, Ill.) — coming off her fourth double-double of the season, and sixth of her career, with a 14-point, 10-rebound effort against Hamline Monday — scored a game-high 16 points, including the game-winning layup with eight seconds remaining, against Carleton Wednesday. … Stefely has now scored in double figures 10 times this season, including a career-high 25-point effort against Macalester on Jan. 7. … Jessica Thone (Woodbury, Minn.) also scored in double figures vs. Carleton Wednesday with 11 points, while Emily DeWitt (Lino Lakes, Minn.) chipped in nine points. … Thone and DeWitt each drained three 3-pointers against Carleton, accounting for six of the team's eight treys. … Thone has now scored in double figures in five straight games. … Thone recorded her first double-double of the season with 16 points and 10 rebounds against Bethel on Jan. 11. … Thone equaled her career high with seven assists vs. Hamline last Monday. … Thone enters Saturday's game vs. St. Thomas boasting a team-leading 12.0 ppg. She is one of two SMU players averaging in double figures — Stefely (11.2 ppg) is the other, while Courtney Euerle (Hutchinson, Minn.) is close behind at 9.5 ppg. … Stefely also boasts a team-best 122 rebounds (8.1 rpg). … SMU scored a season-high 39 second-half points in last Saturday's 57-49 win over Augsburg, then followed that up with a 32-point second-half outburst against Hamline on Monday. … The Cardinals, who are averaging 57.0 ppg this season, have knocked down 68 3-pointers, led by Thone with 21. … The Cardinals' 69 points in their 69-44 win over St. Catherine on Jan. 2 were a season high. … SMU also recorded season-highs in field goals (30), field goal attempts (78), 3-point attempts (23), rebounds (51), steals (15) and blocked shots (7) against St. Catherine.

St. Thomas Tommies News and Notes:
2011-12 Roster | 2011-12 Statistics | 2011-12 Schedule
With their 62-53 win over St. Olaf, the Tommies extended their winning streak to a season-high 14 straight, while improving to a perfect 6-0 on their home court. UST's lone blemish was a season-opening loss at seventh-ranked UW-Stevens Point on Nov. 16. … St. Thomas' current 14-game win streak is the program's longest since the 1999-2000 Tommies won 26 in a row en route to a third-place national finish. … UST enters Saturday's game at Saint Mary's ranked No. 22 in the latest WBCA poll. … St. Thomas' No. 22 ranking marks the first time in 10 seasons that the Tommnies have cracked the Top 25. … UST has won 35 of its last 41 games against conference teams dating back to February 2010. … Maggie Weiers netted a game-high 18 points to lead three UST players in double figures against St. Olaf Wednesday. UST is now 17-0 when Weiers scores in double figures. … Taylor Young (15 points) and Anna Smith (12) were the other two. … Smith's 12 points were a career high. … Young owns the season's top single-game performance, scoring 27 points in a 62-57 win over St. Olaf on Dec. 13. … The Tommies are getting more than 30 points a game from bench players. … Sarah Smith boasts a team and conference-leading 8.8 rebounds-per-game. … After giving up 60 or more points in each of their first four games, UST has surrendered 60 or more points just once — 66 by Bethel last Monday — in its last 11 games. … St. Thomas has outscored its opponents 1010-779 — including 476-363 in the opening half.