If you’ve kept your eyes on Southeastern division foes – the Atlanta Hawks and the Miami Heat – you’d be completely baffled…

…like I am right now.

Earlier this week, in Miami’s American Airline Arena, these two teams – both fully loaded with all of their best players in tow – played a tilt that was ultimately decided by a 33-21 fourth quarter advantage in favor of the visiting Hawks. Sparked by the unexpected late-game heroics of Tracy McGrady, Atlanta walked out of South Beach with a 100-92 victory.

Fast forward to TNT’s first game of a Thursday night doubleheader, where the Heat were presented with an opportunity to avenge its only blemish of the young season. With the memory of the stunning loss fresh in their minds, All-Stars LeBron James and Dwyane Wade would certainly come out to Phillips Arena and make a statement that would validate public opinion that Monday’s outcome was a fluke.

But there was one problem: both James and Wade were relegated to the role of spectators as they sat out with minor ailments.

So, TNT was now left with unevenly matched teams, and a game that Erik Spoelstra’s bunch would be fortunate to keep within double figures.

But no one gave that script to any of the actors in this scene.

What we ended up with was a triple-overtime delight, one in which the visiting team once again came up victorious.

Johnson was only 7-20 from the field against Miami.

Who are the Hawks? A team that can beat the Heat with perhaps the top two players in the league, but lose to them without the studs in the lineup. Since that doesn’t make any sense whatsoever, we are left to dig for more answers with Atlanta.

The Hawks allowed the visitors to establish a double-digit lead mid-way through the third quarter, before appearing to wake up and take control of the tempo. Although Atlanta had worked it ways back from borderline embarrassment, the Hawks missed free throws, took bad shots, played uninspired defense, and just plain got tired.

In the overtime sessions, Atlanta rarely played its sparkplugs – McGrady and Ivan Johnson – both of whom put the Hawks in the drivers seat to win the game at the close of regulation. Atlanta has become too favorable to playing its starters, even when their performance dictates otherwise.

It was an amazing win for the Heat, who predictably depended heavily on Chris Bosh (33 points, 14 boards, 5 assists) and Mario Chalmers (29 points, 7 boards, 8 assists). The most impressive part of the win was the fact that Miami didn’t come into the game conceding defeat, and their belief catapulted them to a tough, hard-fought win.

There’s lots of basketball game left this season…and tonight’s game was an example of why each and every one of them need to be played.

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