Barako hard nut to crack: Tigers arrest 7-game slump

MANILA, Philippines - Coca-Coca survived a game-long struggle against Barako Energy Coffee last night, squeezing out a 105-100 win in overtime to snap a seven-game losing skein in the PBA Fiesta Conference at the Araneta Coliseum.

The Tigers fought back from a seven-point deficit in the last 2:45 of regulation play and sustained the momentum in the extra period to pound out the victory, their fifth against eight losses.

Rashad Bell blew away a chance to win it in regulation but redeemed himself in the extra period, canning in two free throws in the last 5.9 seconds to seal the victory for the Tigers.

“I’m ecstatic we won this game. I’m happy for the guys, most importantly as we showed sense of urgency which we didn’t show in the previous games that we lost,” said Bell, winning a game for the first time since taking over from James Penny as Coca-Cola import.

“We’re going to build on this momentum. An outright quarters slot is kind of dim, but we still have a chance. If we can string up some wins, we may get it. If not, we’ll prepare hard for the wildcard round,” Bell said.

“We fought back from a deficit and, no question, Rashad helped us with his energy and not to mention his leadership in practice. I admit I was losing confidence with the tough seven-game skid. Rashad helped a lot in building our mindset,” said Coca-Cola coach Bo Perasol.

Bell demonstrated on the floor what he preached in practice, coming through with 33 points, 11 rebounds, four assists, three blocks and one steal in 46 minutes of action.

Gary David and Asi Taulava backed Bell up all throughout with the former logging 25 points, five rebounds and two assists and the latter tallying 12 points and 14 rebounds.

The three themselves delivered the goods as the Tigers overcame an 84-91 deficit late in the fourth quarter and completed a stirring win in overtime.

It was another frustrating loss for the Energy Coffee Masters who reeled back in a tie with the Air21 Express in the cellar at 2-11.

On Wednesday, Barako rallied from 31 points down only to lose by one, 98-99, to Air21.

“The bottom line is that the team as a whole can’t handle pressure situation. It’s not pushing the right buttons,” said Barako coach Junel Baculi.

“It’s really bad considering we led all the way up to the last minute of (regulation). Unfortunately, the players made bad decisions in the end. Instead of passing, they’re shooting the ball and instead of shooting, they’re passing the ball,” Baculi added.

The Energy Coffee Masters got an opportunity to salvage the game after Bell committed an error with the count tied at 93-all with 6.8 ticks left in regulation period.

Rain or Shine wavered offensively at endgame but made key defensive stops to salvage an 84-83 decision over Barangay Ginebra in the nightcap.

“We’re lucky to escape with the win. Good job on the boards and communication on defense helped us through,” said coach Caloy Garcia as his Elasto Painters held off the Kings for their sixth win against five losses.