Doc Rivers Reveals Message for Sixers Going Into Game 6 vs. Miami Heat

The Philadelphia 76ers and the Miami Heat knew their second-round series would require at least six games when the Sixers took down the Heat for a

The Philadelphia 76ers and the Miami Heat knew their second-round series would require at least six games when the Sixers took down the Heat for a second-straight matchup on Sunday night in Game 4.

After the Sixers fell short in the first two matchups of the series, they got a key player in Joel Embiid, back in the mix, which helped them pick up two victories on their home court to tie the series.

The Sixers were confident in their ability to go into Miami and steal a win on the road for the first time this series, but their execution was off. 

Following the Sixers' Game 5 blowout loss, Doc Rivers highlighted a lack of physicality and pace as some of the primary reasons why they came up short on Tuesday.

As Rivers mentioned, he wants to burn the game tape after he reviews it on Wednesday morning when the Sixers return to Philadelphia, the head coach revealed the message he wants to send to his team after Game 5.

"That's one game -- we move on," said Rivers. "You learn from it. Some of the things they did and some of the things we just didn't do were obvious to the naked eye."

At no point during Tuesday's matchup did the Sixers look in sync. Going into Thursday's matchup, Rivers wants to see his team execute the key game plan right out of the gate and stick with it throughout the matchup.

"We have to establish Joel at the beginning of the game," Rivers explained. "I thought we went away from that. That's who we have to establish every night and then play from that. I don't think we did that. I thought they also denied where we can't be denied. We to own our space. I thought they owned our space the entire night."

The Sixers have their backs against the wall as a loss in Game 6 could end their season for good. However, Rivers doesn't want to allow one bad loss to kill his team's confidence. As the Sixers have proven they can win and win big at home this series, he wants the Sixers to learn from Tuesday's mistakes and come back better in Game 6.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.

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