11/23/2008 | 07:28 PM
Sunday
Sunday
MANILA, Philippines - It's still too far to say whether defense will win a championship for the Coca-Cola Tigers.
Lately though, it's easy to see that it's been winning games for them.
Asi Taulava led five Coke players in double figures and the Tigers limited the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters to its worst shooting night of the tournament to win 84-73 in the KFC Philippine Basketball Association Philippine Cup on Sunday at the Cuneta Astrodome in Pasay City.
Taulava had 16 points and 10 rebounds and starting playmaker Alex Cabagnot bucked a sore left hamstring to add 15 points and 11 assists as Coke won its second straight game and fifth overall against seven losses.
The similarities between Sunday's win and their win over Purefoods last Friday? Coke held both opponents in the vicinity of 37-percent field-goal shooting and 72.5 points.
"The indication here is that when we play good defense, the result is something we really like," Coca-Cola coach Kenneth Duremdes said.
"This win is very important to us because it's going to be a battle as the preliminaries head to the homestretch."
Even if Gabe Norwood struggled, Rain or Shine gave itself a chance to win, tying the game at 64 early in the fourth quarter. But Coca-Cola went on a 12-1 surge to virtually defuse the Elasto Painters' run.
Mark Telan also finished with a double-double for the Tigers with 11 points and 11 rebounds. Nic Belasco chipped in 13 points and Ronjay Buenafe had 11.
Forward Mark Isip and rookie point-guard Sol Mercado finished with 12 points to lead Rain or Shine, which dropped to an even 6-6 in the standings.
Norwood, the top draft pick this year, only had three points on one-of-seven shooting from the field. He also had a team-high eight assists and two rebounds for Rain or Shine, which notched its lowest scoring output in the tournament. - GMANews.TV
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