BYU basketball notebook: Jimmer Fredette meeting 'challenge' on the road

PROVO — During his career at BYU, most of Jimmer Fredette's best performances have happened on the road.

The senior guard has scored 30-plus points 13 times in his career, and 12 of those games — such as his 47-point eruption at the Huntsman Center on Jan. 11 — have been away from the Marriott Center.

"I don't think too much about it," Fredette said when asked about the way he plays on the road. "I think the thing with me is, on the road, I take it as a challenge. It is tough to win road games in our league, or anywhere. So I take it on myself to be the starter, to get things going and be aggressive.

"Here, we have a great crowd, and everybody is ready to roll. I just haven't exploded like that, as I have in the road games. Maybe it will happen, maybe it won't, but we have been doing great so far, however I have been playing."

The No. 9 Cougars may need a big night from Fredette on Saturday (7 p.m., The mtn.), when they visit much-improved Colorado State.

The Rams, who are No. 3 in the Mountain West Conference standings, improved to 13-5 overall and 3-1 in league play with an impressive 78-63 victory at UNLV on Wednesday night.

It marked CSU's first victory over UNLV at the Thomas & Mack Center since the 2003 Mountain West Tournament championship game.

"I thought they played really well. It shows their maturity," BYU coach Dave Rose said of CSU's win over the Rebels. "They've got everything they need to be good. They're an experienced team and a team that's playing with confidence and plays really well at home."

Rose added that his players "know they're in for a battle."

STAYING GROUNDED: With the Cougars being ranked in the top 10 in both national polls for the first time since the 1987-88 season, and given all of the national attention Fredette and the program have received in recent weeks, Rose is doing what he can to keep his players grounded.

"I think coach does a good job of letting us know that it is great we are in the position we are in," said Fredette. "We have worked hard to get here, and now we need to continue to get better.

"Sometimes you lose games. Hopefully, we win them all. But we are looking forward to just playing the next game. We know the next game is the most important game on our schedule. That's how we look at it, because it kind of negates everything else if you lose some games. He does a good job of letting us know that."

HOT SHOOTING: In the past seven games, BYU has shot 77-for-175 (44 percent) from 3-point territory. Fredette has shot 29-for-59 (49 percent) and Emery has shot 28-for-53 (52.9 percent) from 3-point range. Over that span, Noah Hartsock has shot 11-for-18 (61.1 percent) from distance.

"I worked hard this summer on that shot. I'm feeling really comfortable," said Hartsock, who has nailed at least one 3-pointer in seven straight games. "We're all getting real confident in shooting the ball right now."

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