The screaming and hollering was held to a minimum during the Hawks' practice Friday.

When you're preparing to play the biggest game of the season, which the Hawks will do each and every time they take the floor over the last 14 games of the season, the usual poking and prodding isn't necessary.

And since their playoff hopes will hang in the balance each game, including Saturday night's against Orlando at Philips Arena, coach Mike Woodson has everyone's attention the minute they hit the door.

"I gave them [Thursday] off, and they came right in here and worked because they know what they're staring at," said Woodson, whose team was tied with New Jersey for the eighth and final Eastern Conference playoff spot Friday, though the Nets own the tiebreaker over the Hawks. "This is the closest this team has been in years [to making the playoffs]. So that's how it has to be. We've got to take them one game at a time, but we also have to play every game like it's our last game. Because we're fighting for something now.

"And it'd be really nice if we handle our business and get in there, because that's when the fun starts."

The chase isn't so bad, either.

The Hawks' locker room was abuzz Friday with the NCAA tournament playing on two big-screen TVs and playoff chatter all around.

Marvin Williams said the Hawks have to play with NCAA title-game intensity in each game to achieve their goal of ending the NBA's longest playoff drought at eight seasons.

"We've got to have the mind-set that we're playing the championship game every night," Williams said. "And if you're not juiced for this, you shouldn't even suit up. Think about the last two years, we weren't even close to this position. It wasn't even a possibility. So if you're not hype for this, you might as well sit on the injured list for a few games."

Captain and All-Star Joe Johnson has been in playoff mode for weeks now, cranking his game up to the next level on both ends of the floor after a conversation he and Woodson had about how Johnson needed to lead this team.

The Hawks followed his lead Wednesday night in New Jersey, scoring 70 points in the first half before fading down the stretch in a 125-117 loss that ended their three-game win-streak.

Johnson insists the Hawks' most daunting challenge now is to maintain that first-half intensity for 48 minutes every night.

"It's Game 7 of the NBA Finals every night," Johnson said. "We've got to come out with energy, take your intensity level up to that next level, and put it all on the line. That's all there is to it."