Coca-Cola stops Derby Ace in heated game

Coca-Cola inflicted Derby Ace its first loss in 2 months, 79-76, during a tension-filled KFC-PBA Fiesta Cup game Wednesday night at the Araneta Coliseum.

After losing import James Penny to a nasty cut above his right eye, the Tigers showed character and poise down the stretch in pulling off a pulsating victory to tie San Miguel Beer for the lead with a 4-1 win-loss mark.

"It was really a character-defining game for us to get back in the game," said Coke head coach Bo Perasol, who drew 20 points, 18 rebounds and 6 blocks from Penny before leaving with 5:08 left in the game.

Penny left the game with a one-and-a-half inch wound above his eye caused by Lorenzo Wade’s wayward elbow.

"The energy of the players and their determination were really there when James left. Everybody contributed in their own little ways," he added.

Gary David took charge when Penny left as he drilled in 12 of his 18 points in the 4th including 2 difficult reverse lay-ups, the last one giving the Tigers its first taste of the lead at 70-68.

That sparked a 9-4 run to give the Tigers a 77-72 lead with 51 seconds left in the game.

But missed free throws and a key turnover by Tigers skipper Dennis Espino allowed the Llamados to close the gap by scoring 4 straight points, threatening at 76-78 with 20.5 ticks remaining.

Espino redeemed himself by winning a jump ball over Wade, leading to David pegging the final score by split charities.

Mark Macapagal added 15 points while Taulava chipped in 11.

Wade had 26 points and 12 rebounds for Derby Ace, which hasn’t tasted a defeat since its 76-88 loss to San Miguel Beer in Game 3 of their semifinal series in the Philippine Cup last February 14.

Yap had 11 markers but struggled all night. He was 4-of-14 from the field, 1-of-5 from the free throw area in just 25 minutes of play. - www.abs-cbnnews.com

Scores:

Coca-Cola 79 - Penny 20, David 18, Macapagal 15, Taulava 11, Lanete 5, Ross 4, Gonzales 4, Rizada 2, Allera 0, Cruz 0, Espino 0.

Derby Ace 76 - Wade 26, Yap 11, Canaleta 9, Yap 7, Simon 6, Reavis 5, Maierhofer 4, Artadi 4, Allado 4, Pingris 0.

Quarterscores: 20-17, 34-33, 50-57, 79-76.