BYU basketball: Fredette says energy key

PHILADELPHIA — Usually, every member of the BYU Cougars gets an occasional chance to showcase his stuff in front of friends and family.

But sophomore guard Jimmer Fredette, who came across country to BYU from Glen Falls, N.Y., isn't normally one of them. For the most part, he's played the past two seasons in front of strangers.

That won't be the case, however, when the Cougars take the court today in Philadelphia. Fredette didn't have an exact number or even an estimate, but said "a lot" of family and people he knows made the five-hour drive to see their favorite son lead BYU in its quest to break a 16-year victory drought in the NCAA Tournament.

"I need a lot of tickets for sure," Fredette said. "I'm going to have a lot of guys out there, so I'm going to get as many tickets as I can. But it's going to be nice to see a lot of familiar faces out there."

When the Cougars and Aggies met last March, it was a breakout game for Fredette. He played 34 minutes, the most in his career to that point, and played the entire second half.

"It was an exciting thing for me, even though I was disappointed in the loss, but hopefully this year it will come out better.

"It was a game that was on a huge stage and was obviously a very important game, and I was able to go out there and play a lot and play a pretty big role, and I was able to gain some confidence from that going into (this) season."

One thing Fredette is promising those who made the long drive is that he'll leave everything he has out on the court today.

"The biggest key is going out there and getting loose balls and being able to have the most energy, and I think whoever can do that is the team that's going to come out with the win," he said.

SPECIAL MOMENT: Coach Dave Rose has stressed this week the importance of trying to stay in a regular routine. That's hard to do with the strict schedule that the NCAA adheres to regarding practices, shootarounds and time with the media.

While aiming to keep his players poised, he also doesn't want them to lose the excitement of playing in the tournament or forget the special nature of the opportunity.

"That excitement when you get out there on the floor and get going is something I think you want them to have and to be able to play and deal with it," Rose said.