HOUSTON - James Harden is doing it all, helping the Rockets get off to a great start despite several starters missing significant time with injuries. Brandon Kintzler Jersey .He ranks second in the NBA in scoring with 25.2 points a game and the Rockets are 13-4 and in second place in the Southwest Division of the Western Conference entering Wednesdays game against league-leading Memphis.Theyve gone 4-2 in their last six games with Dwight Howard out with a knee strain.Were definitely in a good place right now, Harden said. Obviously were banged up a little right now, but were fighting through adversity.Along with Howard, the Rockets are also without point guard Pat Beverley (hamstring) and forward Terrence Jones (left leg nerve damage). Isaiah Canaan filled in nicely for Beverley but now hes hurt, too, out indefinitely with an ankle injury.Hardens workload has increased with so many players injured and he is averaging more than 37 minutes a game this season. Coach Kevin McHale raved about what he has done so far, but worries about overloading him.Hes got a lot of responsibility on him, McHale said. Theres a lot of nights its tough. He has the ball a lot creating offence for himself and for others. Hes just got to keep hanging in there and doing it. It would be nice if we could get some of these guys healthy and give him a little bit of a rest.Harden, who has six 30-point games this season, chuckled and shook his head when told that McHale is concerned about his workload. The 25-year-old knows there really isnt another option right now.I just go out there and not worry about it and just do my job to the best of my ability, Harden said.Howard has enjoyed watching Harden work.Hes doing a great job of getting everyone involved, finding people late in the shot clock, attacking the basket and making plays, Howard said. (Hes) been a little bit more scrappy. Hes rebounding, Hes doing everything.With both Beverley and Canaan out, the Rockets started 37-year-old point guard Jason Terry for the first time this season on Saturday in a win over the Bucks. He responded with a season-high 18 points and McHale hopes he can build on that performance to help take some pressure off of Harden.Were going to have to have that, McHale said. Were going to have to get him off the ball at times and other people are going to have to step up.Harden has been a high scorer since arriving in Houston in a trade with Oklahoma City in 2012. But this year hes become a more complete player and has increased his numbers in rebounding (6.2 a game), assists (6.8) and steals (1.9). But perhaps more important than any of those statistics is that hes made a conscious decision to beef up his defence after being criticized for sub-par play in that area this off-season.Trevor Ariza, who was added before the season in part to improve Houstons defence, has been impressed with Hardens work defensively.Hes definitely putting forth an effort to get better at that, Ariza said. Hes the first person to say when he makes a mistake or when he slips up on an assignment ... and when you call yourself out on your mistakes, that shows improvement and that youre willing to get better and you want to get better.Harden has been a leader for Houston since joining this team, but seems to have a renewed focus on helping the Rockets improve this season after last years first-round exit from the playoffs.I think this past summer really helped me out maturing as a basketball player, he said. Not really worrying about the things I cant control and focusing on my teammates, my coaching staff and winning basketball games. Then everything else will fall in place.Houston will need him to continue his strong start with no timetable for the return of any of the injured starters. Howard is making progress and said Tuesday that the pain in knee is subsiding, but he doesnt know when hell return.I want to get back out there now if I could, but I dont think its smart to try and rush anything, Howard said. When Im 100 per cent, when Im close to it, Ill play. I dont want to give my teammates nothing but the best. Allen Webster Jersey . However, Jim Popp isnt sure how long hell be able to admire wide receiver Duron Carter. Sammy Sosa Cubs Jersey . Every. Single. Game. Thats 1,230 in total to cover the regular season. The man is Corey Sznajder, a soft-spoken 23-year-old Salisbury University grad who lives in Annapolis, Maryland and has been charting zone entries and zone exits throughout the NHL. I love big projects, he said. No kidding. At the 2013 Sloan Sports Analytics Conference, I met Eric Tulsky, who presented research on the value of controlled zone entries (short answer: about twice as valuable to enter with control of the puck rather than dumping it in) and Sznajder had charted a couple hundred games that were included in that study. https://www.cheapcubs.com/3070t-mark-prior-jersey-cubs.html . That assertion is getting harder and harder to make, especially given the way 23-year-old Danilo Gallinari has been playing this season.LOS ANGELES, Calif. - After 19 consecutive starts without a victory, Hector Noesi finally got one against the struggling Los Angeles Dodgers. And his teammates were just as happy as he was to see the drought end. Jose Abreu homered for the second straight game after coming off the disabled list, and Tyler Flowers also went deep to lead the Chicago White Sox to a 4-1 victory on Tuesday night. "It was good for Hector to get that off his back, and hopefully it just keeps going for him," manager Robin Ventura said. "Youre happy for him with everything hes been through this year — being on a bunch of teams. And pitching the way he did tonight was a little icing on the cake. For him to go through a lineup like that was impressive." Noesi (1-3) won as a starter for the first time since May 6, 2012 with Seattle, after going 0-12 with a 5.42 ERA. The 27-year-old right-hander allowed a run and five hits over six innings with six strikeouts. Noesi walked three of his first nine batters, but all the Dodgers could get out of it was a sacrifice fly in the second inning by Dee Gordon. "He was effectively wild and didnt really give us much to hit," Los Angeles catcher Drew Butera said. "He had a really good changeup, which is his pitch, and he threw it in fastball counts. When we were sitting on the fastball, he didnt really give us the same look on any one fastball." Former Dodgers reliever Ronald Belisario pitched a perfect ninth for his fourth save. "I think tonight he was a little fired up and had some adrenaline going," Ventura said. "Thats what happens anytime a guy goes back and sees his former team." Dan Haren (5-4) gave up four runs on six hits through six innings. Abreu put the right-hander in a 2-0 hole right away with his team-high 17th homer, driving an 0-1 pitch into the lower seats in the left field corner after Gordon Beckham doubled off the top of the fence in left. On Monday, Abreu came off the disabled list and opened the scoring with a two-run shot against Clayton Kershaw before the Dodgers rallied. Abreu is this years Cuban rookie sensation. Yasiel Puig was last years, and hes been even better so far this season — even if he is still sometimes a bit unpredictable. Cole Hamels Jersey. The right fielder was tardy for an earlier-than-usual pregame workout with his teammates. Unlike opening day, when manager Don Mattingly scratched him from the lineup for being late for batting practice, Puig remained in the third spot in the order and doubled his first time up. He went 2 for 4 with a double for the Dodgers on the one-year anniversary of his major league debut. Haren, who has walked no more than two batters in 11 of his 12 starts, issued a leadoff walk to Adam Eaton and Abreu drove him in with a fielders choice grounder for Chicagos second run. Flowers increased the margin to 3-1 in the fourth with his 27th big league homer — and his first to the opposite field. "We know hes got a few different weapons," Flowers said. "And even though he doesnt throw overly hard, he changes speeds well and can make the ball move in every direction. So you kind of pick a half of the plate and stick with that. " The defending NL West champions put two men on base with two out in the seventh and eighth innings, but Zack Putnam escaped both threats by retiring Adrian Gonzalez and Dee Gordon on flyballs to centre field. "Were struggling to put a few wins together, but were not down. Were still optimistic," Butera said. NOTES: On the eve of the Los Angeles Kings showdown with the New York Rangers in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals, former Dodger 3B Ron Cey said he would be rooting against the Rangers because they eliminated the Pittsburgh Penguins in the first round. Ceys nickname has always been "The Penguin" because of the way he ran the bases. ... Puig was named NL Player of the Month for May, after batting .398 with eight homers and 25 RBIs in 28 games. His 43 hits tied Willie Davis L.A. Dodger record for that month. Puig received the same honour last June. ... White Sox LF Adam Dunn started in the cleanup spot, despite the fact that he came in 2 for 18 lifetime against Haren with eight strikeouts. Ventura gave Dunn the night off on Monday against Kershaw, even though he was 8 for 13 with four home runs against the two-time Cy Young Award winner. ' ' '