from the flooor, made 12 of 13 free throws and had seven assists.dddddddddddd Von Hofe was 8 of 12 from the field and made five 3-pointers. Washington finished with 21 p

HOUSTON -- James Harden was second in the NBA with 29 points per game last season and his 7.5 rebounds were a career high.Still, it was a disappointing year for Harden and the Houston Rockets, who were ousted in the first round of the playoffs by Golden State, and the star knew he had to adjust things to take the team farther this year.Last year was frustrating, numbers individually was pretty solid, but just the love and excitement wasnt there, he said. So I had to look in the mirror this summer and realize that I got to change and I got to get back to how I was.To that end, he refocused this offseason and put an emphasis on becoming a better leader. He organized players-only training and outings in both Miami and Las Vegas in an attempt to create cohesiveness within the group before camp.Just getting to know somebody and hanging out ... it was really good, he said. Thats going to carry over onto the court.The way his embraced his role as the undisputed leader of this team has impressed everyone in the organization, starting with owner Leslie Alexander.It shows that James wants to win very badly, Alexander said. Hes a winning player ... James is one of the top three or four players weve ever had here and he wants to win as much as (Hakeem) Olajuwon and (Clyde) Drexler and everybody else.Trevor Ariza is entering his 13th NBA season, but had the excitement of a rookie on Friday as he talked about how much better things feel entering this season than they did last year. It was a season that saw coach Kevin McHale fired after just 11 games and the Rockets take a step back after reaching the Western Conference finals in 2015.I think just last season was frustrating for everybody because we just couldnt figure it out together, Ariza said. I dont even know how to explain. It was just a weird, weird, weird year.So how have things changed now?The vibe has just been totally different, Ariza said. Everybody is excited to show what theyve worked on and excited just to be around each other.These positive-attitude Rockets enter the season with new coach Mike DAntoni and without eight-time All-Star center Dwight Howard, who signed with Atlanta in the offseason. A big question for this team will be who will step in to make up for Howards absence.Their top options are Clint Capela, a third-year player who saw limited action the past two seasons as Howards backup, and Nene, who played 53 games for Washington last year before joining Houston in the offseason.General manager Daryl Morey raved about Capelas improvement in his first year, but knows hell have to do more this season if the Rockets hope to be a force in the Western Conference.Clint is going to have to take a big step forward and its not an easy step, Morey said. To go from playing 15-20 minutes against often not the starting center to playing 25-plus minutes against front-line guys, thats a big step forward. Its more physical. It takes a big toll on your body to do that night-in and night-out.Along with Nene, the Rockets also added outside shooters Ryan Anderson and Eric Gordon this offseason. Houston expects the addition of those two to fill a void that this team has had in recent years.We were able to upgrade our shooting ... for the style we want to play, Morey said. I dont feel like we had enough shooting (before). We do have that.Everyone is saying the right things and Morey believes he made the upgrades necessary for the team to succeed in DAntonis system. But with all the improvements other teams made in the West, its hard to know what to expect from this team.Alexander was confident, yet tempered when asked about his expectations.I think well win more games than people anticipate, he said. 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The 17-year-old native of Marystown, N.L., pulled out of Skate Canada International last month in Saint John, N.B., with the same problem.CHENEY, Wash. -- Bogdan Bliznyuk scored 32 points, Felix Von Hofe added 21 points and made a key 3-pointer with 1:44 to play and Eastern Washington beat San Francisco 96-90 on Sunday night.The game was tied 83-83 when Von Hofes 3-point shot sparked a 13-7 surge to seal it for the Eagles (5-2). Sir Washington added a 3-pointer and made 3 of 4 free throws, and Ty Gibson shot 4 of 4 from the line during the stretch for Eastern Washington.Bliznyuk was 9 of 16 from the flooor, made 12 of 13 free throws and had seven assists.dddddddddddd Von Hofe was 8 of 12 from the field and made five 3-pointers. Washington finished with 21 points.Ronnie Boyce had 27 points to lead San Francisco (4-1). Jordan Ratinho added 17 points.The Dons shot just 14 of 22 from the line while Eastern Washington made 23 of 26 free throws. ' ' '