Thursday, December 06, 2007 Buenafe rallies Coke to win over Red Bull
MANILA - Rookie Ronjay Buenafe scored nine of Coca-Cola’s last 10 points while Asi Taulava provided the needed leadership as they carved a surprising 98-92 upset win over the Red Bull Barakos last night in the 2007 Smart-PBA Philippine Cup at the Araneta Coliseum.
Buenafe, formerly of Emilio Aguinaldo College, showed enough maturity by scoring big points in the crucial stretch and ably supported Taulava and Mark Telan in their quest to bail themselves out of the cellar.
“Asi Taulava is amazing. He is contributing great numbers but what is really tremendous about him is his leadership ability, when he tried to push everybody in the team,” said Coca-Cola coach Benky Favis.
And with the win, the Tigers, who established their worst eight-game losing streak, are not alone anymore in the cellar as they found themselves in the company of idle Welcoat Dragons. Both have identical 3-8 slates.
“After that win against Sta. Lucia, I told them that this is already the beginning and I asked them to continue with the high spirits especially against Red Bull tonight,” added Favis, who revealed that the 6-foot-9 Taulava is their 11th acquisition since April this year.
After the 10th and last deadlock at 75 with still 9:01 remaining, it was already a show of might and firepower for Taulava, Telan and Buenafe as they outscored the heavily favored favorite Barakos, 23-17, the rest of the way. (FCC)
