ATLANTA -- There's no fire drill more absurd than the metro Atlanta area bracing for winter precipitation. The region, which has grown exponentially since the Hawks moved to town, has little regard for tradition, so it's almost quaint to see that the afternoon before a forecasted dusting the scene at the Kroger hasn't changed in three decades. Grown adults storm the frozen-food aisle like it's the last chopper out of Saigon. The Storm Team from the local television affiliates are out in full force. By 3 p.m., major thoroughfares typically choking on traffic are deserted.

About that time on Wednesday, Hawks players were told the team's game against the Dallas Mavericks at 7:30 p.m. was off. The governor of Georgia had declared a state of emergency for 50 counties in North Georgia. And beyond any official order, Atlanta is still spooked by last January's Snowpocalypse, which snuck up on the city, stranded tens of thousands and became "Daily Show" gold. Unamused at being a national laughingstock, Atlantans have decided to play it safe this winter.

The city of Atlanta's paranoia notwithstanding, an NBA game isn't cancelled lightly, and about an hour later, Hawks players who were hunkering in to wait out the storm received word that the ball would be tipped, as scheduled. After a rough first quarter, the Hawks played some of their best basketball since January and pummeled the Mavericks 104-87.

Like any honest-to-goodness Atlantan, Hawks forward DeMarre Carroll was at the grocery store with his family when he learned that he needed to return to work.

"We thought we were going to get snowed in, and I was on Aisle 7 when I looked at my phone," Carroll said. "I told my fiancee, 'The game is back on.' So we had to rush, hurry up, get back and get here. I think that had a lot to do with it."

The "it" Carroll referred to was the Hawks' ragged start, during which they fell behind 14 to the Mavericks in the first quarter and finished the period down 34-22. Though coach Mike Budenholzer was quick to point out that Dallas was also waiting in basketball purgatory to see if the game was a go, Hawks center Al Horford allowed for the idea that the indecision didn't help the Hawks out of the gate.

"It's hard mentally," Horford said. "You're preparing, then they tell you it's not, so you kind of let your guard down. Then, it's like, 'Wait. We are playing.' It definitely affected me. I'm not going to lie."

Truth be told, the defense wasn't as atrocious as Dallas' 34 points would suggest. Monta Ellis and J.J. Barea combined to shoot 7-for-8 in the quarter without a trip to the line, but six of those seven shots were long 2s off the dribble, largely contested. Yet, the Hawks felt like the Mavericks' backcourt was getting off a little too easy.

"We changed a few coverages," Hawks forward Paul Millsap said. "We were showing out, but we were focused in too much on Dirk [Nowitzki] and the bigs, and the guards were giving us problems, finding shots."

The Hawks' on-court personnel was just one piece of the dysfunction in the first quarter at Philips Arena. Toward the end of the quarter, a small leak in the arena's roof caused a five-minute delay. Three times in the period the official game clock froze, causing a stoppage in play as the hamster required resuscitation before being reinserted onto its wheel.

Out in the stands and up in the concourse, the Hawks and Philips Arena were working short-staffed, as the organization advised game-night staff with travel or family issues to stay at home. All but a couple of concession stands were open for business, and the Hawks' chief revenue officer was pouring beer.

Problem solving has been a Hawks trademark this season, and as the second quarter got underway, the defense addressed the first-quarter hemorrhaging. Hawks defenders didn't exactly neglect Nowitzki, who finished with only four points, but they refocused their efforts of their pick-and-roll coverage onto the Mavericks' platoon of quick guards, which did not include Rajon Rondo, who was serving a one-game suspension for conduct detrimental to the team.

"They're a pretty good defensive team," Nowitzki said. "Their bigs are very mobile. They show on the pick-and-rolls hard. They corral our ball handlers. They rotate around on the perimeter. They have quick hands."

After notching 34 points in the first quarter, the Mavericks managed only 67 over the 53 possessions of the final three quarters -- an anemic 79.1 offensive efficiency rating. On the other end, it was the usual Hawks blueprint: Six players in double digits but none with more than 17.

The Mavericks were also under the impression the game would likely be canceled. They were loading up their luggage in an effort to try to beat the weather out of town when they learned they'd need to be in uniform for the national anthem at 7:30 p.m.

"The afternoon was weird," Nowitzki said. "I don't think the NBA handled it pretty good. They screwed this one up pretty good. They kept telling us, 'We're waiting to hear from the NBA.' The next thing you know, we're all kind of sitting around. We didn't know if we should go to our meeting or not, so I thought they played that pretty poorly. We fought through it and I thought we were ready to play."

Carroll ultimately left Aisle 7, but not before loading up on Little Debbie cakes in the event the Atlanta storm obliterated glucose from the area.

"That's my aisle," Carroll said.

As of publication, the temperature had not yet dropped below freezing at Philips Arena.