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Fredette, BYU hand SDSU another loss

Feb 26, 2011 - 11:40 PM San Diego, CA (Sports Network) - Jimmer Fredette drained four of BYU's 14 three-pointers and finished with 25 points and nine assists, as the seventh- ranked Cougars handed No. 6 San Diego State another loss, 80-67.

The Mountain West Conference rivals met last month in Provo, Utah, and Fredette erupted for 43 points to help give SDSU its first loss of the season.

The Aztecs won seven straight since the setback and were looking forward to Saturday's rematch at Viejas Arena, where they had won 18 in a row.

Fredette had help this time, however, as Charles Abouo scored 18 points, Noah Hartsock had 15 and Jackson Emery added 13 in the Cougars' (27-2, 13-1 MWC) seventh consecutive victory.

"A lot of times they were double teaming me and I was getting them the ball and they were wide open, so they are going to make shots if they are wide open," Fredette said. "We were just really, really excited to win this game."

Kawhi Leonard tallied 17 points and 13 rebounds, but the Aztecs (27-2, 12-2) couldn't solve their toughest opponent yet again.

San Diego State scored on its first possession of the game and never led again.

The Cougars held the Aztecs without a field goal over the next five minutes and hit their first six three-point tries, with Fredette dropping in a pair on consecutive possessions for a 27-18 lead with 8:42 left in the opening half.

The Aztecs cut the deficit to 38-35 at the break, but never got over the hump.

A Leonard jumper had the hosts down 42-39 four minutes into the second half, but Abouo answered with one of his four three-pointers at the other end.

The Cougars later scored on five straight touches to take the crowd out of the game as they pushed the lead to 58-49. Fredette netted eight on the run, highlighted by the guard taking James Rahon off the dribble for a layup while getting fouled.

The margin reached double digits, 61-51, on a Stephen Rogers three-pointer near the midway point, and the closest the hosts got from there was seven.

D.J. Gay hit a three-pointer with three minutes to go for a 74-67 game, but the Aztecs were held scoreless the rest of the way.

"They are a really, really good basketball team, and they showed that again today," SDSU head coach Steve Fisher said of BYU. "This is not the first time they have showed it, but they are good. So are we. But today, they were a little bit better."

Game Notes

The teams' combined winning percentage of .946 coming in ranked as the country's fifth-best matchup since the 1996-97 season....Abouo also grabbed a team-high nine rebounds...Malcolm Thomas had nine points and 11 boards for SDSU, which was outscored in the paint, 32-22...BYU hosts New Mexico and Wyoming next week, while San Diego State has games at Wyoming and home against Colorado State to finish up their respective regular season slates...BYU finished the season 10-1 in true road games...Fredette passed Michael Smith on BYU's all-time scoring list and with 2,324 points trails only Danny Ainge by 143 points. He also passed Jonathan Tavernari for most three-pointers in school history with his last and 266th career make.