Jimmer Fredette Dazzles in the Basketball Tournament Semifinal Loss

With a spot in the 2018 Basketball Tournament championship game on the line, Team Fredette came up short as it fell to Eberlein Drive, 80-76, in the semifinals Thursday night in Baltimore.

It took both squads most of the opening period to settle in on offense, but Eberlein Drive was eventually able to grab control—though it would wind up being a hard-fought battle.

Fredette was one of the few players to find easy buckets early. In fact, he ended the first with a buzzer-beater from beyond the arc:

But that wasn't all. He was scoring from all over the court:

It reached a point where Eberlein Drive coach David Nurse told his players to focus on the 6'2" guard and not let him find his rhythm. And Eberlein Drive followed those instructions—until the fourth.

Eberlein Drive took a double-digit lead early in the final quarter, and then Jimmer-mania took over. Fredette led his team on a 13-2 run to even the tally, and he scored eight points in less than a minute.

Jimmer highlighted the run by doing what he does:

He wasn't done, either:

Fredette had Twitter buzzing:

Team Fredette just didn't have enough left to get the come-from-behind victory, though. Eberlein Drive responded to the furious rally and regained control of the game. Former North Carolina Tar Heels star and two-time NBA champion James Michael McAdoo scored the clinching basket on a dunk in transition:

Fredette finished with 24 points, shooting 4-of-5 from three-point range.

Now that his tournament is over, he will return to playing overseas. Fredette talked about his basketball future last week with Michael Shapiro of Sports Illustrated.

"It's just always nice to play in front of American audiences again," Fredette said. "You never know who is watching, but at this point I'm just trying to get better as a player and have fun doing it. I have one year left in China for my contract, but after that I'll be a free agent, and we'll see what's out there."

He last played in the NBA during the 2015-16 season with the New Orleans Pelicans and New York Knicks.

Eberlein Drive will face Overseas Elite on Friday at 9 p.m. ET in Baltimore. The stakes will be at an all-time high, with this tournament featuring a $2 million winner-take-all prize.