Dennis Espino came through with a crucial five-point binge at endgame as Sta. Lucia overcame a scrappy Coca-Cola team under interim coach Kenneth Duremdes, 83-82, in the KFC PBA Philippine Cup at the Araneta Coliseum last night.
Espino scored the deciding basket with 33 seconds left in the contest as he found himself alone underneath with defender Asi Taulava getting entangled with teammate Ronjay Buenafe.
The Tigers had a chance to salvage the game but Aris Dimaunahan, Buenafe and Mark Macapagal missed the go-ahead baskets from the long range in the dying seconds.
Thus, Sta. Lucia made it three in a row after dropping its season debut to Barangay Ginebra while Coca-Cola suffered its third loss in four outings.
In a meeting Tuesday night, the Tigers unanimously named Duremdes to be the team’s acting coach with Binky Favis taking a leave of absence.
“He’s not fired. He chose to take a backseat in the meantime. There’s no intention to send him away. But of course it’s his decision if he likes to stay,” said team manager JB Baylon.
The Coca-Cola top official hoped Favis and the players would resolve their differences before he makes a decision on the issue.
“I don’t see the need to rush things up. I want to make sure we’re on the same page before making any move,” Baylon said. “This is just about differences of opinion. I don’t see any reason why this can’t be resolved.”
Coca-Cola assistant coaches Boybits Victoria, Ritchie Ticson and Eric Gonzales joined Favis in taking a leave. Duremdes still has a live contract which expires on Dec. 31 this year.For a while, it appeared the Tigers would pull through after making a seven-to-nothing run to surge ahead at 82-78 entering the final minute of the contest.
Espino, however, bailed the Realtors out of trouble, spoiling the night of Duremdes, a former teammate at Sta. Lucia.
Under Favis, the Tigers had beaten the Realtors in all their last three matches.
Taulava hurt his right foot in a collision with Buenafe, suffering a suspected calf muscle tear.