Rick Carlisle hailed the efforts of his Indiana Pacers players after they forced their playoff series with the New York Knicks to Game 7.
Carlisle challenged his players directly in the wake of their loss in Game 5, which put them 3-2 down in the series.
And the Pacers responded with a fine display in a 116-103 victory, which sees the series go down to the wire, with Game 7 set for Sunday at Madison Square Garden.
"It was just activity. We played harder tonight, which was a must," Carlisle said.
"We moved the ball better and we got more rebounds, and that's obviously a big key to the series.
"We gotta brace for Sunday. And we must be ready."
Tyrese Haliburton had 15 points and nine assists for the Pacers, and said: "Coaches challenged our effort, I think that was the biggest thing.
"We had some boneheaded things happen [in Game 5].
"He [Carlisle] just really challenged our group [players] 1-15 on how can we be better."
Jalen Brunson finished with 31 points for the Knicks, but he was not overly impressed by his own performance.
"They try to make things difficult," Brunson said. "And I have to adjust as well. Show me different looks and I have to do a better job of reading it."
Pep's helping hand – NBA Finals-winning Celtics coach Mazzulla reveals Guardiola's advice
Pep Guardiola's advice helped the Boston Celtics win the NBA Finals, so says Joe Mazzulla.
The Celtics clinched the NBA title with a 106-88 victory over the Dallas Mavericks in Game 5 on Monday.
That sealed a 4-1 series win for Boston, who won their 18th Championship, and first since 2008.
And head coach Mazzulla revealed that Manchester City manager Guardiola, who was in attendance for Game 1 of the Finals, played a part in his team's success.
"Dallas has one of the smartest defenses," Mazzulla said.
"We had to be creative to counter them."
"Pep helped me in transitions and how to move guys."
Perhaps when he does eventually leave City, Guardiola might just try his hand in the NBA?
Jeff Van Gundy to join Clippers as lead assistant coach
Jeff Van Gundy will finally make his NBA coaching return next season after reportedly agreeing to become Los Angeles Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue’s top assistant.
The 62-year-old Van Gundy spent this season as a senior consultant for the Boston Celtics, who won their 18th NBA title by beating the Dallas Mavericks 106-88 in Game 5 of the Finals on Monday.
Prior to working with the Celtics, Van Gundy was a television analyst for ESPN for 16 years after being the head coach of the New York Knicks and Houston Rockets.
Van Gundy took over the Knicks in March 1996 and resigned 19 games into the 2001-02 season, a stretch that saw New York reach the NBA Finals in the lockout shortened 1998-99 campaign.
Houston hired Van Gundy in June 2003 and fired him after a first-round playoff exit in 2007.
Van Gundy owns a career coaching record of 430-318 in the regular season and 44-44 in the playoffs.
The Clippers went 51-31 this season and won the Pacific Division title for the first time since 2013-14, but they were eliminated by the Mavericks in six games in the first round of the playoffs.
Los Angeles signed Lue, who coached the Cleveland Cavaliers to the NBA title in 2016, to a five-year, $70million extension last month.
Irving backs Mavericks to be regular championship contenders after NBA Finals loss
Kyrie Irving is confident the Dallas Mavericks can be regular championship contenders after their NBA Finals loss to the Boston Celtics came as a "bitter" ending to a "really positive journey".
Jayson Tatum delivered a magnificent performance in Game 5 with 31 points, eight rebounds and 11 assists, as the Celtics capped a dominant season by cruising to a 106-88 victory over the Mavericks on Monday to capture their first league championship since 2008.
It was a difficult night for Irving at TD Garden. Boston's All-Star forward and Finals MVP Jaylen Brown compiled 21 points, eight rebounds and six assists and played lock-down defence on the Mavericks star, who was held to under 39 per cent shooting in three of Dallas' four losses.
Irving, who spent two seasons with Boston before signing with the Brooklyn Nets in 2019, went just 5 of 16 from the field while managing 15 points, the third time in the series he produced 16 points or fewer.
But Irving was looking at the positives despite the 4-1 series loss and hopes Dallas will be back to go one better in the years ahead.
"We answered a lot of questions this year on what we were capable of doing and now it is just about being consistent," Irving said, per ESPN.
"I said that I wanted to be remembered as one of the best teams of this era and our last few champions have been a new one each and every year.
"So, I see an opportunity for us to really build our future in a positive manner where this is almost like a regular thing for us, and we are competing for championships.
"From a spiritual standpoint, I think I enjoyed this journey more than any other season, just because of the redemption arc and being able to learn as much as I did about myself and my teammates and the organization and the people that I'm around."
After Dallas substituted its starters in the closing stages, Irving and Doncic exchanged an embrace and a few words on the sideline as the final seconds of the Celtics' victory ticked away.
"We said, 'We'll fight together next season, and we are just going to believe'," revealed Doncic.
Doncic battled injuries during the postseason and it remains uncertain if he will be able to represent Slovenia at the Olympic Games.
"I don't want to talk about what's next, man," Doncic said. "I have some decisions to make. I'm just trying to get a little bit healthier.
"It doesn't matter if I was hurt, how much was I hurt. I was out there. I tried to play but I didn't do enough."
With Doncic on the team, Mavericks coach Jason Kidd is optimistic there will be more NBA Finals appearances to come for Dallas.
He said: "For [Doncic] at the age of 25 to get to the Finals, to be playing his basketball at the level that he's playing...
"Now it's just being consistent. When you have one of the best players in the world, you should be always fighting for a championship."
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