Payne Tech coach Brad Howard knew right away that he had a special player growing up in his program when he was coaching Robert Foster as a freshmen and sophomore, but he also knew that there was a lot more to be unveiled in what he knew could be a very well-rounded team leader.
Now the 4-year varsity performer for the Lions is not only the young program’s all-time leading scorer, but he has certainly become that prime example of a well-rounded student-athlete who can certainly epitomize the best qualities of a scholastic sports program.
But, like any high school player on the rise, it has to take some time to be fully revealed.
“Robert was always a hard worker and even as a young player he made it a point to get to practice early and work hard while not at the same time saying a lot,” said Howard. “In games back then, when he didn’t like a referee’s call, he might put his arms up in the air and without any expletives would yell out his displeasure with a call.
“I decided to name him as a team captain his junior year and I wanted him to speak out as a spokesman for our younger kids, and use those big shoulders to represent the team.
“He’s done that, and more, to the point now where he sets the tone and the younger kids follow.
“He’s also shown a lot of charisma, and now if he wants to talk to a ref in the course of a game, he parlays that in a positive way including perhaps discussing what a rule interpretation might be.
“He’s continued to grow as a player and person in such a positive way and as an educator seeing him evolve into such a fine all-around, young man is one of the true joys of coaching!”
The 6-foot- 4 Foster, who has committed to study and play college basketball next year at Dominican (N.Y.) University, is the latest Parisi Fairfield/Sideline Chatter Athlete of the Week.
In another honor for the Lions’ senior standout, he was recently invited to play in the oldest high school all-star contest in the country as a member of the New Jersey squad against a team from Connecticut in the 62nd annual JCC Schoolboy Classic All-Star Basketball Game, 4 p.m., Saturday, March 22, at the historic Cardinal Shehan Center in Bridgeport, Conn.
With 1,533 points, Foster is the top career scorer for the 7-year-old Payne Tech basketball program and he led the Lions (23-8) to a fine season which ended with Tuesday night's (March 4) narrow 57-56 setback at Mendham in the North 2, Group 3 state sectional semifinals.
While his senior season has cncluded, nothing can take away from what was a superb 4-year varsity career for Foster who grew in leaps and bounds as a player and person as a scholastic PT Lion.
He averaged 13.6 points, 6.4 rebounds and a team-leading 4.6 assists per game this season for the Newark Vo-Tech school as he has continued to gain strength while his weight increased from 190 to 210 pounds in the past two seasons making him ready for the college game in one of the better Division II conferences (Central Atlantic Collegiate) in the country.
“It’s been a fantastic senior season for me and it’s been great working since the pre-season with this group of guys with everybody playing their role and clicking more and more together as the season has gone on,” Foster said as he prepared with his team for Tuesday night's N2G3 sectional semifinal. “Our coaches have done a great job preparing us for each game and we love the pressure of competing against the best teams out there.
“I’ve definitely grown in many ways since my freshman year when I may have been a quieter out there. Now, I really enjoy taking the younger guys under my wing and they’re all like my little brothers as I’ve tried to show them the ropes.
“With the refs I feel I’m more mature and am cool with them because I know that they’re doing their best out there, and you just have to move on to the next possession once they make a call.”
On the court, Foster may not be scoring as much as he did last season, but he’s continued to be an even better all-around performer, including with leading the team in assists with other very capable scorers on the team including star 6-5 junior big man Gerald Edwell (18.3 ppg, 13.3 rpg), who averages a ‘double-double’ and impressive senior guard Jamir Westry (19.5 ppg), who has been a huge boost to the team’s success since he became eligible Jan. 11 after transferring back to Payne Tech after spending his junior year at College Achieve Asbury Park.
Since Westry’s return, the Lions went 18-3 including a 14-game winning streak until a 84-79 independent regular-season road setback at Morris Catholic on Feb. 18.
Payne Tech also lost a narrow 65-61 decision to Seton Hall Prep in the finals of the 78th Essex County Tournament on Feb. 22, which was the Lions’ firat-ever appearance in a county championship game.
“That was a tremendous experience to play in a county final on the big court at Essex County College and that game could have gone either way at the end, but give Seton Hall credit,” said Foster. “We knew that we could bounce back and get back to winning right away.”
Payne Tech defeated SEC-American Division rival Arts, 73-69, Feb. 24, as the regular season neared an end, and the Lions kept winning as the NJSIAA tournament got underway, revving up the offense to cruise past both Nutley, 91-48, and Orange, 103-74, in the first two rounds of the N2G3 tourney.
The Orange game was particularly impressive for Foster who registered the first ‘Triple Double’ of his superb 4-year varsity career with a game-high 28 points to go along with 11 rebounds and 10 assists.
“Robert can play either guard position, but I’ve always thought of him of being more of a (former St. John’s and New York Knicks point guard) ‘Mark Jackson-ish’ player, and I’m actually surprised he hasn’t had more ‘triple-doubles,’“said Howard. “Regardless, his overall game has evolved so well and he’s definitely ready for the next level, both as the top student he is in the classroom, and as the excellent, all-around player he has become.”
Foster is strong on math and has interest in the financial field, but he also has learned a great deal about the plumbing profession at Payne Tech, which gives him many fine future options for a career that is off the court.
“I’m big on business, am good with numbers and I’m ready to study in the business field at Dominican, while I’ve also continued to learn a lot about plumbing in school, and I enjoy that as well,” said Payne Tech’s senior leader who is versatile both on and off the hardwood. “I’m really looking forward to going to Dominican. I like the campus and the basketball team has a great program.
“I’ve really enjoyed my time at Payne Tech where they have gotten me ready for a new career, whatever I ultimately decide to do, and I feel that I’m ready for the next challenges in life!”
NOTES- Foster’s favorite player is Kyrie Irving and favorite college team is University of Miami football…He has two older brothers, Ibn Foster and Keith Drake, who both played their high school basketball at Central. Two sisters, Shironda and Faheema, played girls basketball at Shabazz…Their dad, Curtis, who also played high school hoops, is a carpenter with a door company and their mom Monica works for an oil company…Foster has grown up playing endless hours of hoops at both Boylan Recreation and Vailsburg Park….Among the past New Jersey all-stars to play in the JCC Schoolboy Classic in Connecticut have been Mark Armstrong of St. Peter’s Prep (and Villanova), Al-Amir Dawes of The Patrick School (and Clemson and Seton Hall University), Bryce Stokes of Paterson Eastside and Peyton Seals of Ramapo (and Princeton)...Dominican University's men's basketball team entered recent action with a superb 19-7 record (14-2 in the CACC).
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