Fredette’s following grows

PROVO, Utah -- "Jimmermania" is reaching a new level of crazy.

Hours after frenzied fans stormed the court and tried to carry Jimmer Fredette after he scored 43 points to help Brigham Young knock No. 4 San Diego State from the unbeaten ranks, the rest of the sporting world was chiming in about BYU's star guard.

The NBA's top scorer, Kevin Durant, tweeted that Fredette "is the best scorer in the world."

The Harlem Globetrotters issued a "Trotter tribute" for a Curly Neal-like performance in Wednesday's big matchup.

And Fredette wasn't even hitting 3-pointers from NBA range, as the senior has done in topping 40 points three of the last four games for the ninth-ranked Cougars (20-1).

"It's something I'll never forget, especially with such a big win and all the hype around the game," Fredette said of the March Madness-like atmosphere in BYU's packed 22,700-seat arena. "It's a special memory, something I'll remember forever."

While the momentum has been building at BYU since last year when the Cougars advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament, only lately has Fredette gained respect at the national level.

ESPN analyst Chad Ford raised Fredette to No. 12 on his NBA Draft board after the win.

"NBA scouts are tough to impress but even they are giving in," Ford tweeted. "Huge game for his draft stock tonight. San Diego State has NBA-caliber athletes. If Fredette can score against them, he can score in the NBA."

No one can deny Fredette is doing something big if his following has risen beyond sports into the entertainment world.

Rapper Nelly tweeted that Fredette is "definitely the truth!" Musician Adam Duritz of the band Counting Crows said Fredette reminded him of Utah Jazz guard Deron Williams.

The 195-pound Fredette has never met Williams, but he mixed it up in Las Vegas last summer with some of the NBA's best as part of a select team of 20 top college players.

"I've seen guys that are unbelievable, and D-Will is a guy I look up to ... when I see how he handles the ball," Fredette said Thursday. "Hopefully that will help my game get better."

Fredette also took Durant's comments in stride.

"It was kind of cool to hear (about) them," said Fredette, who has a Facebook page but no Twitter account.

BYU coach Dave Rose, only a texter himself, called Fredette special but said he seemed almost embarrassed by some of the attention.

"We knew if Jimmer had the type of year he's capable of having there'd be a lot of national media on him. I don't know that we expected him to have a year like he's having right now," Rose said.

Fredette leads the nation with a 27.4-point average, which would be the highest since Steph Curry averaged 28.6 in 2008-09. He is shooting 48 percent from the field, 42 percent on 3-pointers and has averaged 38.2 points in the last four games. He needs 361 points to break Danny Ainge's BYU career mark of 2,467.

"These players play out here in the West sometimes in obscurity. It's good for them when they get a chance for people to see their games. But you have to win games. Jimmer could be doing all this for a 9-15 team and it wouldn't be a story," Rose said.