"China was nice, but center Jordan Hill did not go all that way to see the sights or sample the cuisine.

Although he did not do much of either, he did spend more time as a tourist than he did as a player in the preseason games at Beijing and Guangzhou.

In two games, Hill played a total of seven minutes, not doing much in the playing time he received. Even with Luis Scola back in Houston, Hill could not escape the bench, supplanted in the rotation by Jared Jeffries and needing to earn his playing time.

Hill got another chance Thursday night, and if the Rockets were sending a message, it appeared to have been received.

Hill's high-energy start helped set a tone as the Rockets built a 15-point first-half lead. That did not hold up as the Spurs took over in the fourth quarter with DeJuan Blair, another second-year big man, scoring 11 of his 17 points to key the Spurs' 111-103 victory.

Some positive signs

The Rockets had to be encouraged to have led most of the way when the teams were playing their starters. Hill, starting at center with Yao Ming sitting out, might have done enough of what Rick Adelman wanted to earn back his job as Yao's backup.

"He did a nice job today," Adelman said. "He was aggressive. He stayed active. I liked him. I liked Patrick (Patterson), too. I thought Patrick competed. "