Tony Gutierrez / AP

Kansas State guard Jacob Pullen surpassed 30 points for the third time in his career while matching a career best with seven 3-pointers on Saturday.

Pullen said he had studied Fredette’s crossover move and his favorite tendencies, and he executed Martin’s plan to keep Fredette out of the middle of the floor.

“I just tried to remember all of the those little things to make sure that I kept him at arm’s distance,” Pullen said. “He’s a good player, though. He still found ways to score the ball. I give him a lot of credit because he’s an amazing scorer. He finds a way to score the ball, regardless of the defensive presence.”

When he wasn’t being hounded by Pullen, Fredette faced the kind of physical play he’d prepared for by playing a handful of games against inmates at upstate New York prisons.

Fredette took shots to his face and head at least three times in the game, including a midcourt run-in with Denis Clemente that left him grabbing at his nose to check for blood. Fredette also got smacked in the face in transition after a K-State steal in the first half and had his head dinged under the basket just after halftime.

“They did a good job, were aggressive and sometimes that happens,” said Fredette, who added that he hadn’t made up his mind about whether to enter the NBA draft. “They had a good game plan, executed it pretty well and played good defense.”

Fredette put his stamp on March Madness with a combination of tricky scoop shots and clutch 3-pointers as he matched BYU’s NCAA tournament scoring record in the opening game.

Slideshow   The name game Looking at some of the most unique names in the NCAA tournament like Tweety Carter. more photos

The two got tangled up after Pullen knocked the ball away from Fredette with just under 7 minutes left in the first half and Pullen remained on the court for a few moments grasping his left hip. He stayed in the game and hit a 3-pointer from the right wing that gave K-State its first lead with 4:21 left before halftime.

“They turned it up a notch and put a lot of pressure on us,” said Jackson Emery, who hit two 3-pointers in BYU’s opening 10-0 spurt. “It wasn’t a pressure that we haven’t seen before ... but it took us a little while to respond to their pressure and to just counter that. By the time we did that, we were already in a hole.”

More news

Mark J. Terrill / AP

Gordon reacted to article right way

CBT: Drew Gordon is taking a different approach to SI's UCLA article than Reeves Nelson, one much more likely to result in hearing his name called come NBA draft day.

Former Indiana coach Watson dies at 88

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) - Former Indiana coach and player Lou Watson has died at the age of 88.

Headlines

• Label

CBT: Cincinnati, Xavier to continue rivalry

CBT: 4 Indiana schools extend Crossroads Classic

CBT: Stony Brook says it's staying put ... for now

CBT: Will Michigan re-hang the Fab Five banners?

CBT: Is the new early entry deadline working?

CBT: Fine's wife to sue ESPN for libel

CBT: Coach K gets a lot of bucks and bennies

CBT: ACC will include all 14 teams in tournament