Playing in the second night of a back-to-back is never an easy task, no matter how good the collective conditioning of a team is. And the Indiana Pacers learned this the hard way when they faced the Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday night. With Damian Lillard not available to play, the Bucks turned over the offense to the very capable hands of Giannis Antetokounmpo and he feasted, dropping 54 points on the Pacers' heads.

But the Pacers were also unstoppable on the offensive end themselves; taking advantage of what has been a poor Bucks defense to start the season, Indiana rained fire from deep, keeping in step with Milwaukee even with Antetokounmpo dominating the paint. The Pacers, led by 29 points from Tyrese Haliburton and 26 points from the nascent Bennedict Mathurin, were able to pull out all the stops en route to a rousing 126-124 victory to give Indiana its third straight win.

Now, Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle applauded his team for their mental fortitude, withstanding all the adversity Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks put them through on Thursday night en route to their most enthralling win of the new campaign.

“The only way you really grow as a team in this league is to be battled tested under tough circumstances. Tonight, there were tough circumstances, and ours guys did a tremendous job,” Carlisle told reporters after the game, via Tony East of Sports Illustrated Pacers.

That, indeed, is a true statement, as of course Rick Carlisle knows what he's talking about given how long he has coached in the NBA. Carlisle himself is no stranger to teams that have gone through adversity; after all, he was the Pacers' coach when they came up short in heartbreaking fashion during the 2004 Eastern Conference Finals, he oversaw the Malice at the Palace, and he too ushered the Dallas Mavericks from three consecutive playoff exits in the late 2000s to finally win a championship in 2011.

If there's someone who recognizes the value of accumulated effort, it's Carlisle. And for a young Pacers team, the value of this kind of adversity cannot be overstated, especially when they aim to be one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference come the end of the season.