I thought it would be wise to start the 47th Jimmer related thread in the arena, so everyone, especially UteStar, can express their love of all things Jimmer. Blatant Jimmerphobes like SU are not welcome.
From ESPN:
From ESPN:
Originally posted by Eamonn Brennan
No. 10 BYU 104, Utah 79: I think we can all agree on one thing: At this point, you don't need me to tell you how good Jimmer Fredette is. All you need to do is see the highlights of Fredette's 47-point night. Or check the ridiculous box score: 16-of-28 from the field, 6-of-9 from 3, 9-of-9 from the free throw line, six assists, four rebounds, two steals. Or watch "The Mtn."
OK, so that last one's a little bit sarcastic. Because here's the thing: You probably have a pretty good idea. But if you're like most college basketball fans, you also probably haven't actually seen Jimmer play.
Last night, after we get home from a little basketball of our own, I practically forced my roommate Paul to watch the Fredette highlights. He had a vague idea of how great Fredette was, but he didn't know what he looked like, let alone what his game comprised. He hadn't seen the way Fredette makes impossible shots look routine, the way he hangs in the air on his jumper for that extra half-second, the way nothing he does looks possible until he does it so often you have to submit to the sheer frequency of his excellence.
After watching Fredette play, Paul asked why teams don't run a second defender at Fredette the minute he gets across half court. I told him it was because "Jimmer can pass, too, and BYU is a team of shooters." This launched him into an hour-long Jimmer Fredette research project. He wanted to know who BYU had beaten this season. He wanted to know how athletic their competition was. He wanted to see games when Jimmer had struggled, games when he'd excelled, and wanted to figure out the difference in opposing defensive styles in each. ("You absolutely cannot let this guy beat you! He just singlehandedly won them that game!") He wanted to see Jimmer play against big, strong, rangy defensive guards. (I told him to check the UNLV game.) He wanted to see BYU play San Diego State, and he wanted to see them go deep in the tournament against athletic competition. He is, for lack of a better word, locked in on the Jimmer.
Intentionally or not, Paul hit on the key storyline of BYU's season going forward: How deep can this team go in the NCAA tournament? As John Gasaway wrote for Insider Wednesday, Jimmer-led BYU teams have looked great by every possible measure -- from tempo-free stats to old standbys like the eye test -- in each of the past two seasons, and in each of the past two seasons haven't survived the first weekend of the NCAA tournament.
There's no reason why this BYU team can't break that mold this year. Not only is this a well-rounded scoring bunch, but it's a good defensive team, too. And, above all, the Cougars have the one thing so many teams in college basketball crave, the one thing so many sell their ethical souls in an attempt to find: a bonafide star.
OK, so that last one's a little bit sarcastic. Because here's the thing: You probably have a pretty good idea. But if you're like most college basketball fans, you also probably haven't actually seen Jimmer play.
Last night, after we get home from a little basketball of our own, I practically forced my roommate Paul to watch the Fredette highlights. He had a vague idea of how great Fredette was, but he didn't know what he looked like, let alone what his game comprised. He hadn't seen the way Fredette makes impossible shots look routine, the way he hangs in the air on his jumper for that extra half-second, the way nothing he does looks possible until he does it so often you have to submit to the sheer frequency of his excellence.
After watching Fredette play, Paul asked why teams don't run a second defender at Fredette the minute he gets across half court. I told him it was because "Jimmer can pass, too, and BYU is a team of shooters." This launched him into an hour-long Jimmer Fredette research project. He wanted to know who BYU had beaten this season. He wanted to know how athletic their competition was. He wanted to see games when Jimmer had struggled, games when he'd excelled, and wanted to figure out the difference in opposing defensive styles in each. ("You absolutely cannot let this guy beat you! He just singlehandedly won them that game!") He wanted to see Jimmer play against big, strong, rangy defensive guards. (I told him to check the UNLV game.) He wanted to see BYU play San Diego State, and he wanted to see them go deep in the tournament against athletic competition. He is, for lack of a better word, locked in on the Jimmer.
Intentionally or not, Paul hit on the key storyline of BYU's season going forward: How deep can this team go in the NCAA tournament? As John Gasaway wrote for Insider Wednesday, Jimmer-led BYU teams have looked great by every possible measure -- from tempo-free stats to old standbys like the eye test -- in each of the past two seasons, and in each of the past two seasons haven't survived the first weekend of the NCAA tournament.
There's no reason why this BYU team can't break that mold this year. Not only is this a well-rounded scoring bunch, but it's a good defensive team, too. And, above all, the Cougars have the one thing so many teams in college basketball crave, the one thing so many sell their ethical souls in an attempt to find: a bonafide star.
Comment