early adversity. Houston is 15-2 since Beverley returned to action.

In-form Ariya Jutanugarn has put herself in a strong position as she pursues a third successive LPGA victory. The 20-year-old fired an opening seven-under 65 at the inaugural Volvik Championship in Michigan on Thursday.In a bogey-free round, Ariya bagged seven birdies to put her one stroke behind LPGA veteran Christina Kim at Travis Pointe Country Club. Ariya, coming off back-to-back wins at the Yokohama Tire Classic and Kingsmill Championship, spoke highly of her mentor Kim, whose first of three LPGA titles came in 2003.Shes a very nice person. Shes great, Ariya said. Last year, I played badly and she was the only person to come and talk to me like, Keep going. Shes such a nice person.The two friends enjoyed a nice cushion over the chasing pack, with Australian Minjee Lee, Ryu So-yeon of South Korea and American Alex Marina equal third on 68. Christina Kim is leading the Volvik Championship in Michigan Ariya has a chance to become the first player to win three consecutive LPGA tournaments since Inbee Park pulled off the trifecta in 2013.Park, meanwhile, was forced to withdraw for the second week in a row due to a nagging thumb injury after gamely struggling to an 84 that included a quintuple-bogey nine on the par-four 10th hole.Well, it was torture out there today, but I really wanted to finish it off today and I just didnt want to give it up in the middle of the round like last week, Park said.Im just really restricted on my swing. To make a couple of movements, its painful.Park is planning to skip next weeks ShopRite LPGA Classic and try to tee it up again and defend her title at the KPMG Womens PGA Championship major in a fortnight. Also See: PGA Tour Schedule World Rankings Golf live on Sky Sports 4 Free HD Golf Game Wholesale NFL Jerseys . 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The Lightning are 2-0 so far on a four-game road trip, giving the club five straight wins as the guest and improving Tampas away record this season to 11-8-2. HOUSTON -- It might be too early in the season to get ensnarled in the implications of one particular game, but given the recent trajectories of the San Antonio Spurs and Houston Rockets, their meeting on Tuesday at Toyota Center could feature plenty of intrigue.The Spurs (22-5) have responded to their first road loss of the season (and chastisement from coach Gregg Popovich) on Dec. 8 at Chicago with four consecutive wins by an average margin of 16 points.San Antonio and Houston split their two previous meetings this season, each winning on the road as part of a home-and-home last month. The teams will not meet again until March 6 in San Antonio, by which time the Southwest Division standings could look different.Even with their early-season hiccups the Spurs remain a juggernaut, ranking in the top 10 in both offensive (sixth) and defensive (fourth) rating. And as another testament to their collective professionalism, the Spurs handled an emotional night centered on the jersey retirement of Tim Duncan with focus by dispatching the New Orleans Pelicans 113-100 on Sunday night prior to honoring The Big Fundamental.I thought our physical effort was pretty good, Popovich said. The mental effort was better than it has been. A lot of people participated and got involved, so that was good.The Rockets (21-7) claimed their 10th consecutive victory on Saturday night with a white-knuckle win at Minnesota, rallying from a 17-point deficit in the second half, 11 points with just over a minute remaining, to win in overtime 111-109.Playing the second half of a back-to-back on the road against a team that had three nights off, the Rockets had every reason to pack it in once the deficit swelled to double digits. But one attribute they have shown this season is a resiliency they lacked last year as they stumbled to a .500 finish.Jamees Harden scored 10 of his 28 points in overtime while Ryan Anderson hit seven 3-pointers en route to 28 points.ddddddddddddIm so confident in this team, Harden said. I dont ever see us out of a game. We score the ball so easily, so well.The Rockets exceptional 3-point shooting is an obvious asset, but their tenacity requires a deeper appreciation.Unbeaten in December, the Rockets rank third in offensive rating (113.6 points per 100 possessions), second in defensive rating (98.4) and second in net rating (15.2) over 10 games this month. Opening the season without guard Patrick Beverley qualified as early adversity. Houston is 15-2 since Beverley returned to action.Now, the Rockets will be tested again, this time via the loss of center Clint Capela, who suffered a left knee contusion against the Timberwolves. Capela, averaging 17.4 points, 11.8 rebounds and 2.3 blocks per 36 minutes, underwent an MRI on Monday, has been declared out for the Spurs game and reportedly for four to six weeks.Rockets coach Mike DAntoni has done a commendable job juggling the minutes of his big men, a collection that also includes veteran center Nene plus second-year power forward Montrezl Harrell.With Capela sidelined for an indefinite span of games, that rotation shrinks and responsibilities will be greater for Nene and Harrell.Nothing changes for me, Harrell said. I come out and do the same things that the teams needs me to do every night. I come in and play the game with a lot of energy, I come in and do all the little things they need me to do and its as simple as that.Its unfortunate that were missing a teammate thats definitely a huge part of our roll but it doesnt change anything with what I have to do. ' ' '