Randy Foye didn't watch the selection show the other day. No need. He'll watch it next year -- with his teammates at Villanova.

"We should make it," the 6-foot-3 guard said late Sunday night from his Newark, N.J., home. "I think we'll make a run at the Big East."

Jay Wright's Wildcats could do just that. The nucleus that's already there -- kids like juniors Ricky Wright and Gary Buchanan and sophomore Derrick Snowden -- helped this year's 'Nova team post a better-than-expected 17-12 record en route to a first-round NIT date with Manhattan on Tuesday night on the Main Line.

Next year's heralded four-man class will do nothing but help.

Jason Fraser, a 6-9 intimidator from Amityville, N.Y., is the gem of the group. Curtis Sumpter is pretty darn good himself -- he was this winter's MVP in New York City's stacked Catholic "A" League -- and Allan Ray's a tough, talented kid from the Bronx.

But Foye? He always has been considered the fourth of the four Wildcat signees. Lord knows why. Maybe because he's from Jersey and not the City or the Island. Maybe because he plays public school ball in a region known for its top-tier private school competition.

Whatever the reason, though, get used to Foye's name. The explosive backcourt star from Newark's East Side High School spent his senior season proving to people -- over and over -- that he's better than his rep.

"I think we had high expectations coming into this year," Foye said, "and everything's gone as expected. This season's gone well."

Well? Better than that.

Foye's averaging 22 points, six rebounds and five assists, and East Side is now 28-1 after beating Shawnee on Sunday at Rutgers to win the state's Group 4 championship. The squad is scheduled to face Burlington City when Jersey's all-classes Tournament of Champions opens this coming Saturday.

"He's got the whole package," NJHoops.com talent evaluator Jay Gomes said. "He's got great range, he creates off the dribble, he's smooth going to the hole, he has a great mid-range game, and he can shoot off the bounce. And he's a good passer, too."

Witness his seven assists and zero turnovers to go with 16 points in Sunday's title-clinching victory.

"He's one of a small crop of guys out there who can create their own offense and create for others," TheInsidersHoops.com recruiting analyst Dave Telep said. "A lot of people claim to be combo guards. But I think Randy Foye is a legitimate combo guard -- and he's a big-time scoring guard."

Villanova assistant Joe Jones certainly thinks so.

"He's an unbelievably talented kid," Jones said. "He's quick, he can really score, and he has a great understanding of the game. But he's been this good for a long time."

Folks just didn't seem to know it. At least they didn't seem to acknowledge it.

Foye had a so-so ABCD performance in Hackensack, N.J., at the adidas-sponsored talent showcase last July. He also played his AAU ball with the New Jersey Roadrunners, a program that doesn't get the heavy hype that, say, the Long Island Panthers or the Paterson, N.J.-based Tim Thomas Playaz do.

Same deal in the winter: Jersey's high school basketball power base is centered around private and parochial juggernauts such as Bob Hurley's St. Anthony's program in Jersey City (led this season by St. John's point-to-be Elijah Ingram), Danny Hurley's up-and-coming team at St. Benedict's in Newark and Kevin Boyle's typically strong group at St. Patrick in Elizabeth.

Even within the publics, though, Neptune's Louisville-bound guard Taquan Dean has garnered the majority of the headlines this season. So there are explanations. But there are no excuses.

"I've been like a lone wolf on this," Gomes said. "I've had him ahead of Elijah and Taquan for over a year. Now everyone's telling me I'm right."

Foye's performance at the Prime Time Shootout in early February might have had a bunch to do with this ongoing re-evaluation process. He went for 29 points, seven rebounds and four assists that night in Elizabeth against St. B's.

"He was fantastic," said Telep, who was in the stands for the game. "He was the best player on the floor, and there were a lot of good players out there. He's better than I thought he was."

Foye was No. 69 in Telep's post-summer rankings. He's all the way down at No. 90 in Brick Oettinger's list in the most recent Prep Stars Recruiter's Handbook. Not that it matters at this point.

"He's an explosive scorer because he's got great range and he has a great mid-range game," Jones said. "No question he's good enough to come in and compete for playing time."

As well as that NCAA bid.

Hoops eyes focused on Texas

Last year it was T.J. Ford and Daniel Ewing and the undefeated Willowridge Eagles. This year it was Georgia Tech-bound center Chris Bosh and SMU-bound point guard Bryan Hopkins and undefeated Dallas Lincoln.

But Texas has become a major player on the national high school basketball scene.

The state's Class 4A tournament drew record-setting crowds to Austin's Erwin Center this past weekend -- 16,995 for Thursday's semifinals and again for Saturday's championship -- and gave Lincoln a 40-0 record along with the mythical national title.

That focus on the Lone Star State won't waver too much as the grassroots world shifts into the spring and summer AAU circuit.

John Eurey's Houston Superstars tournament is set for April 12-14 at Clear Lake High and will feature top adidas traveling squads such as the Atlanta Celtics, Oakland Slam 'N' Jam and the Southeast Raptors.

Hal Pastner's showcase -- scheduled for April 26-28 at multiple sites throughout Houston's Kingwood suburb -- is supposed to include high-profile Nike programs like the Georgia Stars, the Arizona Stars, the Arkansas Wings and Georgia Elite.

And both events are among the few spring circuit showcases around the nation that have been sanctioned by their respective state federations -- in Texas' case, the University Interscholastic League -- and the NCAA.

That means Division I college coaches can attend. And don't think they're not booking plane reservations right now.

"The NCAA is trying to put the sanctioning process under the state federations," Eurey said, "and what the UIL has done is open it up so kids in Texas can play more basketball and get more exposure."

"The UIL realizes that it's giving the kids in Texas more opportunity," Pastner added. "That's really how they feel, and it makes sense."

Especially considering there's a lot of in-state talent to show.

Tack Minor, a point guard from Houston Washington, leads a Class of 2003 group that also includes Houston Westbury Christian swingman Ndi Ebi and Desoto point man Dez Willingham. Pittsburg forward Marvin Porter and Austin swingman Marshall Brown pace an even more promising 2004 crop.

"Texas right now is loaded," Eurey said. "There are a lot of good players. It needs to be recognized as one of the premier states -- if not the best state -- in terms of producing talent."

>Something that'll be on display throughout the early stages of the spring circuit.

"It's good for Texas," said Wes Grandstaff, who runs the Team Texas AAU program that won last year's Peach Jam in North Augusta, S.C., and AAU Super Showcase in Orlando. "And it's good for summer basketball."

News and notes

• Was there ever any question whether Raymond Felton was going to lead Latta, S.C., to another 1A state title? The future North Carolina guard scored 45 points and added 10 assists, six rebounds and six steals in leading the 28-3 Vikings to a 93-78 win over Hunter Kinard-Tyler. The 6-2 superstar finished the year with averages of 30.8 points, 8.4 rebounds, 7.7 assists and 3.9 steals a game.
• Think Vashon was the best public school team in the city of St. Louis and all of Missouri this year? Coach Floyd Irons' Wolverines won their third consecutive 4A championship by beating city foe De Smet -- get this -- 82-27. Missouri signee Jimmy McKinney had 22 of his 26 points in the second half. St. Louis University-bound forward Nicholas Kern added 23.
• Some things seem to never change. Morgan Wootten's a champion in Washington, D.C., again. For the 16th time in his storied coaching career the Hyattsville, Md., leader of DeMatha Catholic earned a city title. His Stags got 23 points from Maryland-bound combo forward Travis Garrison and beat Spingarn 59-52.
• New York City's Public School Athletic League championship game is an all-Brooklyn matchup pitting the nation's top sophomore point guard (Sebastian Telfair) against the city's top senior point guard (Gary Ervin). Telfair's Lincoln Railsplitters are set to meet Ervin's Robeson Eagles this week at Madison Square Garden. The teams' regular-season matchup ended in controversy when an angry Tiny Morton forfeited the game by pulling his team off the court with three minutes to go. "This is what I play for," Telfair told the New York Post. "It definitely would've been a huge disappointment if we didn't get there. Now we have to win."
• Rodrick Stewart and Lodrick Stewart -- the high-flying twins from Seattle -- will be among the most-watched (if not necessarily the best) rising seniors this spring and summer out on the AAU trail. They'll also be reigning high school champions. The swingmen helped Rainier Beach to a final record of 28-1 and Washington's 3A state title.
• Andre Iguodala -- featured a couple weeks ago in this space -- tallied an aggregate 56 points in two playoff wins this week in Illinois. The Springfield Lanphier star -- an Arkansas pledge who'll likely reconsider now that Nolan Richardson is gone from Fayetteville -- has his team a Supersectional matchup on Tuesday.
• Manhattan Rice clobbered Brooklyn Xaverian Sunday in a Catholic "A" semifinal at Fordham's Rose Hill Gym. And to think heralded junior big man Chris Taft and Xaverian actually beat coach Mo Hicks' Raiders back on Feb. 5. "That game played on our minds a lot," Rice guard Jason Wingate told the Post. "This was a revenge game for us." The Raiders are now 26-2 heading into Wednesday night's championship game vs. Bronx All Hallows.

Michael Kruse writes for Basketball America and BasketballAmerica.com.