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BYU Cougars center Keba Keita lays the ball up during second-round college NCAA Tournament victory over Wisconsin held at Ball Arena in Denver, Colo., on Saturday, March 22, 2025. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News
Taking the floor in the Sweet 16 is a feeling Jimmer Fredette will never forget.
“It’s very emotional. You have so much adrenaline. You are amped and ready to play,” the former BYU star and 2011 National Player of the Year told the “Y’s Guys” podcast this week. “It’s the Sweet 16. It’s the biggest thing in sports and you think (about) it. You feel it. There is no escaping it, especially now with social media.”
To handle it as a senior in the spotlight, Fredette vigorously stuck to his pregame routine and when the battle finally began, after an eternal week of waiting — he took off running.
“I tell guys, the best thing you can do is sprint (down the floor) as hard as you can in the first couple of minutes and get out that first wind. You want to get to the second wind as quickly as you can,” he said. “When you get to the second one, you are usually calmed down a little more.”
Fredette’s heart raced as his Cougars (32-4) stepped onto the New Orleans Arena floor on March 24, 2011, to face No. 2 seed Florida (28-7), with the winner advancing to the Elite Eight. The Gators pounced early, but once No. 3 seed BYU got its second wind, the Cougars fought back.
The last of Fredette’s game-high 32 points tied the contest at 67 with 2:53 to play. The Gators’ defense stiffened, and Florida pulled away in overtime 84-73. Fourteen years later, BYU returns to the Sweet 16 on Thursday to face another No. 2 seed in Alabama (5:09 p.m. MDT, CBS).
Beating the Tide
The Cougars (26-9) and Crimson Tide (27-8) mirror each other in how they approach offense — they shoot early and often. BYU has made 373 3-point shots and averages 81 points per game. Alabama has hit 357 3s and scores 91 points on average.
If the Cougars are going to upset the Tide, Fredette will be watching three specific areas.
- Limit turnovers: “That’s a huge key. Make sure we are getting as many shots off as Alabama does.”
- Rebounding: “We can’t let them get on the offensive glass. They are super athletic. They crash the glass. They shoot a lot from the outside and there are going to be long rebounds.”
- Free throws: “We need to make sure to get to the free-throw line and hit our free throws efficiently. That is something that’s good for us. We have been hitting our free throws lately, which is key. Wisconsin didn’t hit their free throws (23-29) and we did (15-16) and that was the difference in the game. We must continue that.”
Back in time
BYU’s march through the first and second rounds in Denver gave Fredette a flashback to when he did it — in the same venue.
“It was such a cool experience to be back in that building,” said Fredette, whose teams beat Wofford and Gonzaga in Ball Arena (former Pepsi Center) to reach the 2011 Sweet 16. “It was the first time I’ve seen an NCAA Tournament game live from a fan standpoint. So, to be able to watch that and feel the energy and understand what people were feeling when we were there, it was a really cool experience.”
Fredette’s legendary status remains unfettered in Cougar lore, but his continued appeal outside of the fan base caught him by surprise.
“The amount of people who stopped me, not just BYU fans, but Wisconsin fans, Michigan fans, VCU fans that were like, ‘Hey, we appreciate the run (you had) and we loved what you guys did back in that season’ and they asked for pictures and autographs. That was special. People really loved that time, and it’s something we will never forget as basketball players — and these guys are going through the same thing now. They aren’t going to forget this.”
Jimmer takes the 3
Wisconsin All-American John Tonje passed up an open 3-point shot in the final seconds against BYU on Saturday and instead, he dribbled to the baseline and attempted a 2-point shot to force overtime — which he missed, and the Cougars prevailed 91-89.
Jimmer would have shot the 3.
“I shoot it for sure — if there was any opening at the top,” said Fredette. “When you get down (low) it’s hard at the end of the game. They may not call a foul. There are a lot of trees down there that can block shots.”
Tonje, who led the Badgers with 37 points, was defended by Mawot Mag with Keba Keita close by to offer backup.
“Just trying to get to the rim at that point is difficult. I thought he was going to shoot (the 3),” Fredette said. “For me, at that time frame, you give him the ball and you say, ‘shoot the best shot available,’ whether it’s a 3 or a 2, you take the best available and I thought that 3 was the best available.”
Fortunately for BYU, Tonje passed on the 3 and missed the 2 and ended Wisconsin’s final possession with nothing.
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BYU guard Jimmer Fredette and teammate BYU guard Jackson Emery (4) leave the floor after the Cougars' 89-67 defeat of Gonzaga, Saturday, March 19, 2011, in the third round of the NCAA Tournament at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colo. | Scott G. Winterton, Deseret News
Dave McCann is a sportswriter and columnist for the Deseret News and is a play-by-play announcer and show host for BYUtv/ESPN+. He co-hosts “Y’s Guys” at ysguys.com and is the author of the children’s book “C is for Cougar,” available at deseretbook.com.
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