Jordan jr: Son rises in Sunshine State

Marcus has always wanted to make a name for himself and not be just known as son of NBA great Michael Jordan.

Marcus Jordan has always wanted to make a name for himself on the basketball court,and not be just known as the son of NBA great Michael Jordan. He found the place to do it at Central Florida. Though not exactly known for its basketball tradition,the 6-foot-3,205 pound guard knew University of Central Florida was the programme for him.

Jordan led the Knights to a Division I-best 14-0 start,but the sophomore is the face of a programme in fast transition under first-year coach Donnie Jones.

They are definitely one of the big stories of the season no question, CBS Sports college basketball analyst Seth Davis said. Marcus may not be the freakish athlete that his dad was,but hes definitely a capable scorer that is making his own name.

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That individuality extends to everything about Marcus. He wears No. 5,instead of his fathers famous No. 23. His forearms and biceps are stenciled with several tattoos. He also sports facial hair and goggles on the court,which are both departures from his fathers clean-shaven look in college.

He had written offers to schools like Stanford,Iowa,Miami,Butler and Toledo. But then-UCF coach Kirk Speraw sold him on being a member of the first recruiting class to play in the universitys new 10,000-seat arena.

Weve gone from hunting teams,like UF and Miami,to now were the hunted. Everybody wants to boost their program by beating us. Its kind of a mentality change for our team. But as for me being the leader of the team,Im just trying to go out and play my game.