Indiana fans saw a preview of what they'll be getting next year and Illinois fans saw what they missed out on when ESPN2 showed Eric Gordon pour in 43 points as his North Central High pummeled Loyola Academy 88-47.Gordon, of course, is the great high school guard who initially committed to Illinois, but then backed off his commitment and decided to attend Indiana instead. Indiana coach Kelvin Sampson's recruiting of Gordon (which Sampson says wasn't really "recruiting") led to some serious ill will between Sampson and Illinois coach Bruce Weber.
But as great as Gordon is, the reason this game was on TV is that Michael Jordan's sons, senior Jeff and sophomore Marcus, play for Loyola Academy. (That's the adorable Marcus holding a basketball in a picture taken 13 years ago.) With dad in the stands, neither Jordan was particularly impressive. Marcus is likely to go to a big-conference school and is considered the better prospect, with Jeff still undecided among the few mid-majors recruiting him. But I saw a mistake-prone Loyola team that was totally outclassed by the much more talented North Central. The star in the stands was named Jordan, but the star on the floor was named Gordon.




