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DALLAS - Louisiana Tech and Illinois will duke it out in the Zaxby's Heart of Dallas Bowl here Friday at noon on the storied turf of the Cotton Bowl.

But Monday night, their first night in town for bowl, the two teams were allowed to be just fans as basketball took center stage.

The bowl treated players to an NBA game -- Dallas against Atlanta in American Airlines Center. Tech got an extra reward as former Bulldog star Paul Millsap led the Hawks to a 105-102 win over the hometown Mavericks. The only player in NCAA history to lead the nation in rebounding three consecutive years, Millsap, a Class of 2013 Tech Athletics Hall of Famer, dressed and addressed the team and several dozen Tech fans and players after the game in the stands behind the Mavericks bench.

"This is a big week for our school," said the soft-spoken Millsap. "It's a big game Friday; I hope we can get it. I know you've got a lot going on, so i really do appreciate you coming to our game tonight. It means a lot to me."

Millsap has meant a lot to the Hawks since he signed with the team in the summer of 2013 after seven years with the Utah Jazz. An efficient 6-6, 258-pound forward, Millsap has helped the Hawks climb to first place in the NBA's Southeast Division. Atlanta is 20-7 and has won 13 of its last 14 games, including Monday's, in which Millsap just missed a triple double with 13 points, a team-high 12 boards and seven assists.

"I like that we are really starting to build Louisiana Tech," Millsap told the team. "I like the way we're going."

He could have just as easily been talking about the Hawks.

Millsap's style of play is one Tech -- or any team or player -- would be wise to copy. He wastes little motion, thinks ahead, seldom seems rushed and maintains the same body language from start to finish. In Monday's victory, Millsap seemed to get most every loose ball, and example of doing the little things right and a reason why the Hawks are atop their division.

"He plays with a lot of confidence," said Tech junior cornerback Bryson Abraham, who has five career interceptions, two during this 8-5 season. "That's why he's so smooth on the court. He's not nervous; he has confidence in what he does."

It's a good example, he said, of how the Tech defense has played this year. The Bulldogs lead the nation with 164 points off turnovers.

"If we can just force a turnover," Abraham said, "we know the offense is going to score."

Although the first day of bowl week felt "like vacation," Abraham said he and the team knows the week is about "all business from noon until five," the time of meetings and practices. But even the non-football time is important. "It's about bonding as a team," Abraham said. "It started when we got on the bus to drive over here."

Although he was a three-sport star at Jennings High, the speedy Abraham gave up basketball after his freshman year to concentrate on track and field, baseball, and mainly football. But he still loves the game of basketball and the NBA, although Monday was the first time he's seen an NBA game live. It won't be the last; his second cousin is head of security at American Airlines Center.

"The team sat up high but my cousin got me right down on the floor for the game tonight," Abraham said.

After the Heart of Dallas Bowl Friday, Abraham's got it made, win or lose.

"I'll be back here Friday night," he said, "to see the (Los Angeles) Lakers. Not bad, right?"

Tickets are still available to the game and can be purchased online at LATechSports.com 24 hours a day. The LA Tech Ticket Office (318-257-3631) will be open today from 8:30 a.m. until 5:30 p.m. A ticket Will Call table will also be open in the lobby of the Omni Tuesday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

For complete coverage of bowl week, fans can log onto LATechSports.com. Fans can also follow throug=h social media avenues, including Twitter (@LATechSports, @LATechFB), Facebook (/LATechAthletics, /LATechFB) and Instagram (@LATechSports).