There was no stopping Red Bull yesterday as the Energy Kings came out with enough energy to get back at the Welcoat Paintmasters, 60-49, and force a sudden-death in their semifinal playoff in the second Yakult PBL Challenge at Makati Coliseum.
Ana Water Dispersal likewise forced a rubber match in its own best-of-three duel with Blu Detergents as it fashioned out an 89-72 rout in the other semis encounter.
Slotman Marvin Ortiguerra scored a career-high 24 points that went well with 14 rebounds in a sterling performance that anchored Ana's big turnaround from its woeful stint in a 66-75 loss in Game One Thursday.
Unlike in the series' opener, the Energy Kings got off to a slow start but came up with a big finishing kick as they checked their skid versus the Paintmasters and stayed in the hunt for a crown in their farewell tourney in the league.
The two playoffs are set tomorrow with Ana and Blu clashing at 4 p.m. then Red Bull and Welcoat colliding at 6.
Kerby Raymundo and Davonn Harp both dished out a double-double performance and the Energy Kings made sure to avoid another fourth-quarter meltdown by coming up with an explosive windup this time.
The Energy Kings played with great composure throughout and put the game away from the Paintmasters as playmakers Jun Canoneo and John Prior combined well with Raymundo, Harp and Edwin Bacani in the payoff quarter.
"Obviously, kasalanan ko ang pagkatalo namin sa Game One. I made some adjustments. . . to be specific one was that fielding two guards at the finish. And I'm thankful, it worked," said Red Bull coach Gil Lumberio.
Indeed, the ploy worked for the Energy Kings, who thus erased the stigma of their bitter loss in Game One which they dominated practically throughout only to squander an early 23-point margin.
"Basically, it's our defense that won for us. In Game One, we played physical in the first three quarters but let our guards down in the last quarter," said Lumberio.
True enough, Red Bull played tough throughout yesterday with Raymundo and Harp imposing their strength at the paint while Bacani, Prior and Canoneo hustling Welcoat's ball carriers. -