Magnolia lives for do-or-die vs Bacchus

Magnolia Purewater pounced on Paul Lee’s early ouster on injury and drubbed Bacchus Energy Drink, 83-69, to force a sudden death in their PBL PG Flex Linoleum Cup semifinal showdown at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City yesterday.

Neil Raneses scored a game-high 23 points that went with 12 rebounds and JP Alcaraz and Lizstian Amparado chipped in 12 and 11 points, respectively, as the Wizards sent their series to a deciding Game Five set at 2 p.m. tomorrow in the same venue.

The winner in the match faces Harbour Centre in the finals. The Batang Pier swept past the Hapee Toothpaste Complete Protectors in their own semis duel.

Bacchus suffered a crucial blow in its bid as Lee, the sensational rookie out of University of the East who leads the league in scoring with an impressive 16-point average, hurt his right shoulder early in the game.

The lightning-quick Lee sustained the injury in a collision with Raneses just a minute into the contest.

Lee came back late in the first quarter and scored an easy lay-up before feeling the pain again forcing him to sit out the rest of the game.

Magnolia took the opening quarter at 22-11 and kept Bacchus at bay till the end.

“I keep on telling the players that if we defend well, we’ll have a chance to win the series. We did that in this game,” said Magnolia coach Koy Banal.

Without Lee, the Warriors struggled on the floor, shooting horribly and committing several lapses.