Source: PBA.PH
Wed, 11/18/2009 - 20:43
Mark Yee had a flawless fourth quarter to cap a late rally by Burger King en route to a 106-97 victory against the Coca-Cola Tigers Wednesday night in the 2009-10 KFC-PBA Philippine Cup at the Araneta Coliseum.
Mark Yee went 4-of-4 from the field, including three 3-pointers and made all six of his free throws in the decisive period as the Whoppers bounced back from a 3-game losing streak and improved to a 2-5 (win-loss) record. He eventually finished with a career-high 19 points to share scoring honors with Ronjay Buenafe.
Gary David added 17 points for Burger King which allowed a 19-point lead in the opening quarter to dissipate.
The Whoppers, who were coming off a 79-83 loss against Barangay Ginebra in Tubod, Lanao del Norte last Saturday, appeared in trouble when the Tigers shot 12-of-27 in the third quarter to seize control and stay ahead until the final five minutes of the match.
But Mark Yee went into an offensive flow, pouring in 17 of his points in the fourth when the Whoppers needed someone to carry the fight. His 3-pointer with 2:30 to play put Burger King back on top, 96-93.
Although Dennis Espino manage to complete a 3-point play 22 seconds remaining to tie the count for the last time, Coca-Cola’s effort to snap a two-game skid came up short as the Whoppers closed the quarter with a 10-1 run.
“We really needed this win to get us going. It’s tough to motivate the team when you’re not winning so I hope this would get us back on track,” said Burger King coach Yeng Guiao afterwards.
“I’m not too happy with the way we played defense in our previous games. But tonight I thought we made decent stops and shot well from the field,” he added.
Guiao said the Japeth (Aguilar) episode and the suspension of team captain Wynne Arboleda greatly affected the team’s campaign.
Alex Cabagnot led Coca-Cola with 20 points. Espino added 15 and Marvin Cruz had 12 and four assists for the Tigers, who fell to 1-5.
Espino opened the game with a short jumper but Burger King scored the next 21 points, the all-time best scoring run in franchise history, and appeared to have the game well under control.
With Buenafe going 6-for-6 from the field the Whoppers remained pretty much in control for most of the first half until Espino and Cabagnot came up with big baskets in the last four minutes of the second quarter to trim Burger King’s lead to just 45-46 at the half.
Coca-Cola opened the third quarter with a 13-3 run and took a 58-49 lead on a jumper and a 3-pointer by Norman Gonzales.
The Tigers protected the lead until the fourth with Francis Allera’s 3-pointer giving the Tigers a 93-88 edge with 5:23 left to play.
But once again they crumbled the stretch due to poor defense and costly turnovers. Coca-Cola committed six of their 20 turnovers in the fourth. (DBC)
The scores:
BURGER KING 106 - Yee M. 19, Buenafe 19, David 17, Belga 15, Quinahan 9, Matias 7, Sharma 7, Lanete 5, Yee R. 5, Bilones 2, Williams 1, Aban 0.
COCA-COLA 97 - Cabagnot 20, Espino 15, Cruz 12, Rodriguez 11, Gonzales 11, Bono 6, Ross 2, Rizada 1, Calimag 1, Macapagal 0.
QUARTERSCORES: 29-20, 46-45, 70-75, 106-97.
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