Jimmer Fredette and BYU: No Longer College Basketball's Best-Kept Secret

BYU’s Jimmer Fredette doesn’t get the kind of publicity or ESPN air-time that players such as Connecticut's Kemba Walker, Duke's Nolan Smith or Michigan State's Kalin Lucas enjoy. Fredette wasn’t a McDonald’s All-American coming out of high school and he didn’t even crack the Rivals 150, either.

Still, without much fanfare or publicity, Jimmer Fredette has forced his way into the memory banks of college basketball fans nationwide and is making his case as the top player in the country.

The senior out of Glen Falls, New York is averaging 27.4 points per game for the Brigham Young Cougars this season. In fact, Fredette has scored more than 20 points in 16 of BYU’s 20 games so far.

Fredette’s coming-out party came two days ago against fourth-ranked San Diego State. Jimmer torched Steve Fisher’s previously unbeaten San Diego State squad, putting up 43 points and scoring BYU’s final 15 points of the first half.

SDSU tasted defeat for the first time all season, and Jimmer Fredette finally received some much overdue publicity.

After the SDSU win, a modest Fredette remarked that he couldn’t take credit for the team’s victory.

"I think the key to the win was our big guys coming in and rebounding the heck out of the ball in the second half," Fredette said.

Now, I know that one individual player doesn’t win games and that basketball is a team sport, but, Jimmer...you accounted for close to 66 percent of your team’s scoring.

I think you can take a little credit for the victory.

Carrying a 20-1 record and a lofty ranking of ninth in the Associated Press poll, BYU is projected as either a two- or three-seed for the NCAA Tournament. Regardless of where the Cougars end up on the new 68-team bracket though, you can count on Jimmer and company to be a tough out.

BYU is an established college basketball program, just like Jimmer Fredette is an established player. The Marriot Center, where BYU plays its home games, holds 22,700 people and the Cougars have been to seven NCAA Tournaments over the past 10 years. Fredette, meanwhile, averaged 16.2 points and 4.2 assists per game as a sophomore.

So, while the masses are finally taking notice of the Cougars’ success and the great play of Jimmer Fredette, these kinds of performances aren’t earth-shatteringly new to those in Provo, Utah.

I’m not taking anything away from impressive power-conference giants like Walker, Smith, Ohio State's Jared Sullinger and Duke's Kyle Singler. But, you can’t refuse to recognize Fredette’s greatness because he doesn’t swim in the same stream that UConn, Duke and Ohio State do.

When you discuss the possible Player of the Year, Jimmer Fredette should be mentioned.

At this late stage in his collegiate career, fans nationwide are truly grasping what BYU loyalists realized two years ago...Fredette is special. As the old saying goes, better late than never.