"Rockets center Jordan Hill returned to practice Friday after several days of battling the flu, an experience that included an ambulance ride and night in the hospital where he received four liters of fluid intravenously.

"It was the first time I ever had the flu," Hill said. "Now I know what to expect. It felt like it was going to be the last time. I was scared. I never felt like that before."

It's a rarity — practice time

The Rockets on Friday held their first practice since Jan. 9 and worked on execution.

"We had to clean up on some things defensively, then some stuff offensively," coach Kevin McHale said. "It was nice to be on the floor where you can actually watch video, show the guys and then go out and work on stuff. We didn't do a lot, but what we did, we did pretty well.""