Mike Foster Has Proven He Possesses the Goods

Ron Bailey, Publisher

Foster Last Fall During Charlie Weber Action, With Triple Threat (AAU)

March 21, 2006 – DeMatha Catholic High School is considered one of the best basketball programs in the nation, boasting a great leader in Coach Mike Jones, a high number of Division I products, and an impressive basketball history. It’s no wonder the Stags went 34-1 this season, while capturing both the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference’s (WCAC) regular season and tournament crowns, as well as the coveted Alhambra Catholic Invitation Tournament’s championship.

But surprisingly enough, there is a young guy on that team that doesn’t play big minutes, and hasn’t yet signed with a college, but is a senior captain who was voted as such by his teammates, and has played a tremendous role in the team’s success. His name is Mike Foster, and if you don’t know who he is, you didn’t really watch DeMatha basketball last season.

Foster, who stands greater than six foot four inches and weights around 190lbs can be considered a glue guy; he is one of the first players off the bench, he enters the game and immediately impacts it from his swingman position. One person who has no doubt how important the young man is Jones.

“He hasn’t been able to put up big numbers”, said DeMatha’s coach, “But he’s played big in some tough games for us”. That includes postseason play, where “he had two really good games” for the Stags, which enabled them “to go on and win the championship”.

Jones expounded on his captain, by saying the fact that Foster’s averages of “around five to six points a game and several rebounds”per contest“is nothing to ashamed of” at DeMatha, considering the wealth of talent on the roster. In fact, he opined that “Mike could play on any other team in our league…start for most of them, and average in double figures”.

During a recent scrimmage, Foster was a stabilizing force on his team, playing good defense and scoring on mid-range jumpers, drives to the bucket, as well as showing an ability to rebound against taller opponents. He is comfortable near the basket, and away from it.

In addition to his skills, Mike exhibited prodigious floor leadership, of which he is very proud. He characterized being named captain by his fellow players “great”, in that “my team looks at me as a leader, and they always looked at me to be a leader, and I showed them the way”. According to Jones, Foster not only leads by example, but utilizes humor to get his point across.

Despite not receiving the minutes that someone of his skill level would warrant elsewhere, Foster has no regrets about attending DeMatha. “It’s been a great experience, it’s changed my whole game” he said. “Before I came to DeMatha I was kind of like a streetballer (out of D.C.’s Trinidad neighborhood). But it taught me to be a role player, to be a team player. I learned what to do in game situations. Before I came here, I didn’t know how to do that”.

Additionally, Foster feels as if the demands of schoolwork and basketball at DeMatha have forced him to become more focused and able to juggle competing responsibilities: “I always had my grades up, but it’s harder now because you have to come to practice everyday. I didn’t practice everyday (before). You have school, you have to go home to study, and then you go to the gym after basketball practice (to lift weights)…It demands great time management, and prepares you for life”.

In college, Mike hopes to major in “history”, as he enjoys the subject in high school. Jones shared that to date no firm scholarship offers have been received, but that may change soon, as mid-major schools such as those in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) may be possible destinations for the young man. Foster would welcome attending a MEAC school, but is not the kind of young man that is intransigent regarding his future college home, as he stated “It doesn’t matter where I go, I just want to be able to play and show what I can do on the court”.

Jones characterized his young captain as “a great person” who has “a bright future”. There is no doubt that the coach at whatever college he ends up will have similar sentiments. Check back with www.i95Ballerz.com to find out what school will be lucky enough to call Mike Foster one of their own.