Scotland captain Jamie Ritchie said "we have got a lot more in us" after Gregor Townsend's team routed Wales 35-7 at Murrayfield.
Wales were no match for their hosts in Edinburgh on Saturday, as Scotland cruised to a bonus-point win that sees them join Ireland at the top of the Six Nations standings.
George Turner went over in the first half but Ken Owens crossed for Wales, who should have gone into the interval on the back of a second try, only for Rio Dyer to squander a golden opportunity.
Scotland made Wales pay – Finn Russell combining twice with Kyle Steyn before Blair Kinghorn and Matt Fagerson drove through late on.
Their winning margin of 28 points marks Scotland's biggest victory over Wales in Test rugby, with the only other time they have beaten them by more than 20 points coming back in 1924.
Next up is a trip to reigning champions France on February 26, and Ritchie is hoping for more from his side at the Stade de France.
"It wasn't perfect but we did enough to get the job done," he told BBC Sport.
"We have belief that if we play to our best we can beat any team. It wasn't perfect today, we've got a lot more in us. We're looking to improve when we go to Paris, definitely."
Saturday's match marked the first Test at Murrayfield since the death of Doddie Weir, who passed away in November.
Scotland were presented the Doddie Weir Cup for their victory, and Ritchie said: "We're delighted and I'm glad to be holding Doddie's trophy.
"The first game here without him, we miss him so much, I'm just glad we have our hands on this. We're so delighted, I'm a bit all over the place at the moment – a bit emotional. I'm glad I could do this for [Weir's widow] Kathy and the boys."
Russell was the star of the show for Scotland, teeing up three of their tries and kicking 10 points.
He has now provided 10 try assists in nine Test matches for Scotland since the start of 2022, more than any other player from a Tier One nation in that period.
"I was just doing my job – making other boys look good," Russell joked after becoming the first Scotland player to register a hat-trick of assists in a Six Nations game.
"It showed the continuity in the squad. The boys were all on the same page and it allowed us to attack how we did today."
Scotland have won back-to-back games to start a Six Nations campaign for the first time, with the last time they had managed to triumph in their opening two games of the Championship coming in 1996, when it was the Five Nations.
Russell added: "Great game, great result for us. We knew we'd struggled before after the first games to back it up, and I think the boys put in a good performance today, which was great to have back here at Murrayfield."
Wales have lost their opening two games, conceding at least four tries in each match. It is the first time they have done so in back-to-back Six Nations Tests in the same year.
"When you're winning and you have that momentum, it's hard to lose. The flip side to that is the same," said captain Owens, with Wales having won just twice in their last 10 Tests.
"We've got to work hard next week. There's plenty of experience but plenty of youngsters coming through. There's new coaching staff, new players coming in, we just need to work hard.
"Turn the corner hopefully, against England, we've got to grind out a win, find a win and build that momentum. There are positives there. People are going to say there isn't but we believe in what we're trying to achieve, we work hard and try to deliver."
Olympiacos 2-0 Aston Villa (6-2 agg): Villans fall in last four as El Kaabi strikes again
Olympiacos will face Fiorentina in the Europa Conference League final after an Ayoub El Kaabi double secured a 6-2 aggregate win over Aston Villa.
After a stunning 4-2 win at Villa Park last weekend to take the ascendancy in the semi-final tie, first-leg hat-trick hero El Kaabi struck early before netting again late on to stamp out any hopes of a Villa comeback.
After a strong start from the visitors, El Kaabi scored his fourth goal of the tie just 10 minutes into Thursday's second leg at Stadio Georgios Karaiskaki, getting on the end of Quini's low cross to turn home at the far post.
It looked an uphill battle for Villa, who dominated the possession throughout the contest in Greece but struggled to make a dent in the stubborn hosts.
Douglas Luiz saw a long-range effort saved by Kostas Tzolakis while the Olympiacos goalkeeper also denied Moussa Diaby. El Kaabi made sure late on, getting on the end of a long ball to fire past Martinez and secure Olympiacos' final berth.
The fairytale comeback never materialised for Villa, and it will be Olympiacos who take on Fiorentina at the Agia Sophia Stadium in the Greek capital of Athens on May 29, looking to utilise familiar surroundings to claim their first major European trophy.
Data debrief
El Kaabi was the hero again for Olympiacos as his two second-leg finishes took him to 10 Europa Conference League goals for the campaign, more than any other player, while his 13 strikes in major European competitions are also more than any other player when factoring in his three Europa League goals.
Villa had 73.9 per cent of the ball in the second leg, yet their 1.14 xG (expected goals) was still inferior to Olympiacos' 1.23 as the Greek Super League side's ruthlessness clinched their spot in the final.
Dyche demands 'maximum effort' as the minimum requirement from Everton
Sean Dyche is demanding maximum effort as the minimum requirement from Everton when they host already relegated Sheffield United this weekend.
Despite another nervy season at Goodison Park, during which they were deducted six points following a breach of Profitability and Sustainability Rules, the Toffees have secured their top-flight status for another year at least.
Everton are enjoying a strong end to the campaign with last weekend's 1-1 draw at Luton Town extending their unbeaten run to four matches, and Dyche is not expecting his players to rest on their laurels.
"I want us to perform and at least give everything, as we did at Luton," he said.
"You can’t always guarantee you are brilliant. But you can guarantee you give everything, and that was on show again this past weekend.
"The minimum requirement is maximum effort. It hasn’t changed, we want to take that into Goodison and hope we play a little bit better with the ball, and hopefully score some more goals."
Dyche also saluted the impact of the younger members of his squad, with eight players aged 25 or under appearing 10 or more times during a testing season.
"There are a lot of challenges for these players," he added. "But they are beginning to come together as a group, and we have seen that. It has rewarded us, of course, and the fans."
However, their opponents' focus is already on next season, with their immediate return to the Championship confirmed.
In an English top-flight campaign of 38 games or less, only Darwen (112 in 1891-92) and Leicester City (102 in 1908-09) have conceded more goals than the Blades (100).
Chris Wilder knows there is plenty of work to do in United's quest to bounce straight back into the Premier League, but believes the close season will allow him the opportunity to get them in the best shape possible.
"I'll have time to put my own stamp on it," he said. "I'll have time to sign players that I know are going to be good and have a strong enough mentality to do it.
“Defensively and from set-plays and everything else, there's an incredible amount of work to do. We can't do that at the moment because it's difficult, but we will do it, and we'll get it right in terms of those aspects of the game."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Everton – Jordan Pickford
The Everton goalkeeper has kept 12 clean sheets in the Premier League this season – including one in each of the Toffees’ last four home games – with only Arsenal’s David Raya recording more (15)
It is Pickford’s second-highest tally of shutouts in a single campaign after 2018-19 (14).
Sheffield United – Ben Brereton
Despite only joining the club in January, the Chile international has scored the most Premier League goals for the Blades this season (six).
Brereton’s rate of a goal every 158 in the second-best by a United player in a single campaign (minimum 500 minutes) after Nathan Blake in 1993-94 (a goal every 145 minutes).
MATCH PREDICTION: EVERTON
Everton have responded to their 6-0 defeat at Chelsea last month by embarking on a four-match unbeaten streak (winning three, drawing one).
By contrast, United have lost each of their last five games, and are only the second side in Premier League history to concede 100 or more goals during a single campaign after Swindon Town in 1993-94.
While the Toffees have lost their final home league match in just one of the last eight seasons (winning six, drawing one), the Blades have lost their final away game in each of their last four Premier League campaigns.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Everton: 54.1%
Sheffield United: 19.3%
Draw: 26.6%
Knicks salute 'warrior' Brunson after inspirational injury return in Pacers win
Jalen Brunson was hailed "a warrior" by team-mate Donte DiVincenzo after his return from injury inspired the New York Knicks to a second-half turnaround against the Indiana Pacers.
The Knicks ran out 130-121 winners in Game 2 at Madison Square Garden to take a 2-0 lead in the Eastern Conference semi-final series.
Things did not look good for the hosts, who also lost OG Anunoby in the third quarter to a hamstring injury, as Brunson was forced to exit during the first quarter with a foot problem.
However, with the Knicks trailing 73-63 at half-time, the point guard received a raucous ovation from the home supporters as he returned to warm up in a bid to shake off his injury.
"He's a warrior," said DiVincenzo, who finished with 28 points. "There was no doubt in my mind he'd be back."
"He's a great leader, and the players all have respect for that when a guy tries to give whatever he has. It says a lot about him," coach Tom Thibodeau added.
"To me, the actions say a lot more than the words. It says that you care a lot about your team and your team-mates."
Brunson's return certainly inspired New York, who were already without Julius Randle, Mitchell Robinson and Bojan Bogdanovic due to season-ending injuries.
He notched up 24 of his 29 points during the second half as the Knicks moved halfway towards reaching their first Eastern Conference final since 2000.
"It was really cool," Brunson said of his half-time reception. "But I just knew I had to get my mind in the right place to figure out how I was going to attack in the second half."
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
