When you look at the schedule at the start of the season, some games you circle right away - division rivals, the defending champs, games against Kobe or LeBron. Throughout the course of play, some matchups may become more attactive than others and some may become less (like say, any game against the Heat).

Tonight's contest against the Rockets is one of those games. At the start of the season, I wouldn't have had any particular reason to mark this date on the calendar. Yes Houston has Yao and T-Mac, but we haven't had any legendary meetings with them in the last few years, and with both players' injury histories, there was no sure bet either would even be available come mid-March. True to form, Yao is out for the season with a foot injury.

However, as I sit here just a few hours away from tip-off, I cannot wait for tonight's game to start. Why? Because the Rockets are on the verge of history, and the Hawks stand in their way of accomplishing anything.

Only two teams in league history have ever won 20 straight games in a season: the 1971-72 LA Lakers won an incredible 33 games in a row on their way to a then record 69-13 record and an NBA title. The year before, the Lew Alcindor-led Milwaukee Bucks won 20 on the way to a title of their own. Needless to say, the Rockets have a chance to join some pretty rarified company.

The length of Houston's winning streak is impressive enough, but there are facets of it that make it even more impressive. First and foremost, they've won the last seven without the services of Yao, arguably both their best player and the best center in the league. Secondly, they aren't just squeaking by anyone. They've won the past 10 games by double-figures, and an 11th would set a new league record as well.

That's a lot of impressive things the Rockets could pull off with a win - and a lot of things the Hawks could deny them with a loss, which makes tonight's contest much more intriguing than it might otherwise be.

And you know what? I think the Hawks are going to win. I know the team hasn't been playing its best ball of late, and I know these same Rockets beat them by 21 for win #6 of this current run. But if there is one thing we can say, definitively, about the 2007-08 Hawks, it's that they play their best at home against the best of the West. The Lakers, Suns, Mavericks, and Jazz can all attest to that. Even the Warriors, who beat them by 17, would tell you the game was much closer than it looked (it was basically even except for a three-minute stretch of the third).

The Hawks players know how important every game is to them at this point as they cling to a slim half-game lead for the 8th spot, and they also remember very well the loss at Houston. That, plus a chance to spoil the Rockets' party, makes me think they will come out firing tonight and bring home a win.

Another reason I like Atlanta's chances tonight is the return of PG Acie Law. Mike Bibby has been gutting it out on a bad heel since he came over to Atlanta, but has had to go deep minutes every night without a serviceable option behind him (no knock on Salim Stoudamire, who I am happy to see getting minutes, but he is a shooting guard). Law's return gives Bibby a chance to rest more, and if he can return to the form we started to see right before he got hurt, the minutes he can provide will be a positive as well.

I spoke to Law after shootaround today about getting back on the court, and he realizes the pressure the team is under. And even though he is a rookie and lacks NBA experience, I still think his familiarity with late-game heroics will play a role in the Hawks playoff push.

Tonight's game promises to be a good one, and - you heard it here first - a Hawks win.

See you there!

UPDATE: I didn't see this until just now - Tracy McGrady guaranteed a victory tonight. If the Hawks didn't have enough motivation before, that should just about do it.