• ANTIPOLO— It was evident that COca-Cola wanted it more.

The Tigers chased every loose ball, contested every rebound and played with a lot more desire in holding off the Alaska Aces, 81-74, last night at the Ynares Center to secure the No. 8 seeding in the wild card phase of the Motolite PBA Fiesta Cup here.

James Penny scored 12 of his 29 points in the breakaway second period and coach Kenneth Duremdes pulled an ace out of his sleeve in seldom-used RJ Rizada as the Tigers earned a knockout match against No. 5 Sta. Lucia on Wednesday.

“I give all credit to the players, it had been a tough (last) five days,” said Duremdes, referring to two crucial matches that included a convincing win against San Miguel on Friday which he said gave the Tigers a confidence boost.

“That was a big game for us, because it gave us the confidence (coming into this game),” added the former MVP.

Coca-Cola blanked the Aces in the final three minutes of the second period, breaking free from a 30-all game to take the half with a nine-point lead before pouring it on some more in the final two quarters to win with conviction.

Their performance was far from the lethargic, oftentimes mediocre, games that the Tigers produced throughout the classification phase.

The loss was a big letdown for the Aces who came into the game inspired by a great win over Barangay Ginebra also on Friday. The Aces made just 3-of-11 free throws and their three triples for the night came only inside the final 4:49.

Now Alaska has to win two straight times against the No. 4 team, Burger King, to stay alive in the playoffs.

Coca-Cola took leads of as many as 16 late in the third period as Asi Taulava bullied his way inside the paint to complete a three-point play with three minutes left in the third quarter for 58-42.

Coca-Cola dominated the Aces thoroughly from there until Alaska strung up nine unanswered points—which proved to be its last gasp—for 73-69 with 1:23 left.

Rizada, who can always look forward to a promising golf career once his cage stint is over, scored a career-high 11 points in 21 minutes. He had the rare chance to start in just his fourth game of the tournament.

The 6-foot-2 swingman also helped put the cuffs on former two-time MVP Willie Miller, who struggled all night until he broke loose in the fourth when he hit three triples to finish with 17.

• The Ginebra Gin Kings, meanwhile, vented their ire on Rain or Shine to score a 114-71 victory that finally nailed for them an outright Final Four seat.

The form that the Kings displayed was precisely the same they showed Friday night when they erased a 21-point third quarter deficit to lead in the fourth period only to be beaten by a Willie Miller layup with 4.6 seconds left.

Against the Painters, the Kings jumped out of the gates hard and never looked back to post the most lopsided victory of the season and the biggest winning margin for the franchise in the last 16 years

Aside from joining sister team San Miguel in the Final Four outright, Ginebra will enjoy at least two weeks of rest while the eight other teams in the field slug it out in the wild card starting Wednesday.

“Though we will be having a long rest, the advantages (of being in the semifinals outright) far outweigh the disadvantages,” coach Jong Uichico said.

The loss dropped Rain or Shine to No. 3. The Painters will play Barako Bull in the quarterfinals starting Wednesday.

The scores:

First Game
COCA-COLA 81—Penny 29, Taulava 18, Rizada 11, Buenafe 7, Belasco 6, Telan 5, Macapagal 3, Cabagnot 2, Dimaunahan 0, Singson 0, Misolas 0.

ALASKA 74—Miller 17, Dela Cruz 16, Ellis 13, De Vance 10, Thoss 7, Tenorio 6, Hugnatan 4, Borboran 1, Fonacier 0, Ferriols 0, Cablay 0, Cariaso 0.
Quarters: 18-20, 39-30, 61-51, 81-74

Second Game
BARANGAY GINEBRA 114—Tubid 18, Noel 17, Baguio 16, Helterbrand 12, Salvacion 12, Lanete 10, Artadi 10, Mamaril 5, Reavis 5, Se 4, Menk 2, Pacana 2, Intal 1.

RAIN OR SHINE 71—Reyes 17, Norwood 12, Arana 9, Laure 7, Lewis 6, Tang 6, Andaya 6, Laure 6, Salangsang 3, Mercado 2, Ibanes 2, Dulay 1, Isip 0, Wainwright 0.
Quarters: 30-14, 50-24, 76-48, 114-71