thdraw from Cincinnati, hold up? Perhaps more importantly, what was her state of mind entering the seasons final Grand Slam at Arthur Ashe Stadium?After her surprisingly routine 6-3, 6-3 vict

NEW YORK -- After her disappointing flameout in Rio de Janeiro, Serena Williams highly anticipated first-round match at the US Open was a time for temperature-taking.How would her tender, 35-year-old right shoulder, the one that forced her to withdraw from Cincinnati, hold up? Perhaps more importantly, what was her state of mind entering the seasons final Grand Slam at Arthur Ashe Stadium?After her surprisingly routine 6-3, 6-3 victory over Ekaterina Makarova on Tuesday night (in 63 minutes), we can report that both the shoulder and psyche are resting comfortably.I got off to a fast start because I knew she was a really tough opponent, Serena said in her on-court interview. I definitely think its fair to call it a home court.Serena has now won 305 Grand Slam matches -- one shy of Martina Navratilovas Open era record. Roger Federer?has won 307. Williams is 64-1 in first-round matches at Slams.Here are some more takeaways from the match:Serena served smartly: She was credited with 12 aces, a healthy number, but it must be noted that the majority of those were in the low 100s. She placed the ball beautifully. Her fastest serve (not an ace) was 121 mph, a little slower than her usual highest heat. Of her shoulder, she said, Im going to have to wait until tomorrow to see. I was just happy I was able to make it out here today. Every day, Ill just see how it goes.Focus was not a problem: Some Serena fans were concerned when she drew one of the toughest unseeded players for her first-round match. Serena has been known to take some of her lesser-ranked, early-round opponents lightly, but there was no danger of that. Markarova beat her in a big spot -- the fourth round of the 2012 Australian Open -- and Serena was engaged from the beginning. She finished with 27 winners and 22 unforced errors.Makarova shrank from the moment: If anyone is equipped to stand up to Serena, its the big-hitting Russian. But forehand errors gave Serena the key break in the sixth game of the match, and Makarova finished with five double faults and four aces. Serena has now beaten Makarova at the US Open in 2012, 2014 and 2016.History continues to beckon: Its all in front of Serena in New York. She can break the Open era record of 22 Grand Slam singles titles, which she shares with Steff Graf, and tie Grafs all-time mark of 186 consecutive weeks at No. 1. A win would give Williams a staggering seven US Open titles, one more than Chis Everts total. That would be a pretty sweet cherry on the top of 2016. http://www.officiallionsgear.com/Lions-Anthony-Zettel-Draft-Jersey/ . Anthony Calvillo, through 20 CFL seasons, was frequently invincible and largely stoic in the heat of competition. But underneath the professional exterior he was, and is, compellingly human. http://www.officiallionsgear.com/Lions-Quandre-Diggs-Draft-Jersey/ . Jim Rutherford, President and General Manager of the Carolina Hurricanes, announced Wednesday that the team would assign Swedish forward Elias Lindholm to his nations team for the upcoming tournament. http://www.officiallionsgear.com/Lions-Sam-Martin-Draft-Jersey/ . -- The St. Johns IceCaps weathered a wild first period with the help of goaltender Jussi Olkinuora, before finding offensive inroads in the second. http://www.officiallionsgear.com/Lions-Sylvester-Williams-Draft-Jersey/ . - Derek Wolfe says hes finally healthy after suffering a seizure in November that doctors now believe was related to the spinal cord injury he suffered in the preseason. http://www.officiallionsgear.com/Lions-Teez-Tabor-Draft-Jersey/ . But when it comes to determining if Raymond will find a place on the Leafs roster when training camp concludes in a week, well, that decision will ultimately fall to the head coach. BOSTON -- Boston College coach Jim Christian knows that so far this season his teams success relies solely on Jerome Robinsons play.Robinson was there again when the Eagles needed him to carry them.The 6-foot-5 sophomore guard scored a career-high 32 points and Jordan Chatman hit consecutive 3-pointers 27-seconds apart late in the game to help Boston College beat Sacred Heart 82-75 on Sunday.Hes maturing. He knows hes really good player, Christian said. Hes a really good offensive player. We need other guys around him to play with similar consistency.It was the second straight win for Boston College (6-5). Ky Bowman had 12 points and A.J. Turner 10 for the Eagles.The Eagles opened a big lead early in the second half only to become sloppy before pulling it out late.In these types of games, we have a chance to put the game away with soundness and execution and weve been inconsistent, Christian said.Quincy McKnight scored 25 of his career-best 36 points in the second half for Sacred Heart (5-7).Weve been playing better, Pioneers coach Anthony Latina said. We talk about improving every game. The reality is we didnt play well enough to beat an ACC team.Trailing by 13 points early in the second half, the Pioneers went on a 16-0 run over a 5:26 span. The Eagles were held without a basket for nearly seven minutes.The Eagles crept back in front 54-49 on Garland Owens basket with 8:27 to play. They pushed it to 64-57 on Connar Tavas fastbreak layup with just over four minutes to play.Chatman hit his 3s -- both from the left corner in front of BCs bench -- to push the Eagles lead to 71-59 with 3:03 to play.BC had used a 10-0 run late in the opening half en route to a 41-30 edge at intermission. Robinson and Nik Popovic coombined for all of the points in the spree, with Robinson getting seven -- the last coming on a baseline jam.ddddddddddddBIG PICTURESacred Heart: The Pioneers were sloppy early in the game. They had 15 turnovers in the opening half -- a few passes thrown nowhere near their own players and out of bounds -- but settled down and ended up with 21 for the game. ... Picked eighth in the Northeast Conference preseason poll out of 10 teams, theyll need to find additional consistent scorers besides McKnight.You cant play that poorly with the ball in the first half and expect to win a game at Boston College, Latina said. If its a Division III team, we can probably turnover like 15 times and win the game.Boston College: Coming off a last-second victory against Auburn in their last game on Monday, the Eagles looked more fluid offensively at the start with good ball movement and many cuts to the basket for high-quality shots before reverting to the team that suffered losses to teams from weaker conferences early in the second half. ... The Eagles improved to 8-0 lifetime against Sacred Heart.Everything we did well in the first half, we didnt do in the second half, Christian said.20 AGAINRobinson, who entered the game third in the Atlantic Coast Conference averaging 19.3 per game, posted his seventh game over 20 points this season. He also had a four-point play with 9:23 to play, hitting a 3 from the right wing and the free throw after he was fouled on the shot.UP NEXTSacred Heart: Hosts Holy Cross on Wednesday.Boston College: Faces Fairfield on Wednesday at Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Connecticut. 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