| Red Bull came through with a solid defensive effort to score a convincing 105-78 win that was marred by a late-game fight by their respective imports Wednesday night in the Smart-PBA Fiesta Conference at the Araneta Coliseum. Cyrus Baguio had 10 of his 16 points in the second quarter where the Barakos outscored the Realtors 24-11, setting the tone for the rout. 
Import Adam Parada also contributed big for Red Bull before his ejection, finishing with a double-double of 17 points and 14 rebounds while former NCAA MVP Leomar Najorda came off the bench for a team-high 19 points. The win gave Red Bull back the lead with a 6-2 win-loss card, half a game ahead of Coca-Cola and Talk ’N Text which tote similar 5-2 records. It also made up for a 102-95 defeat to Magnolia Beverage over the weekend in Lipa City. On the other hand, the Philippine Cup champion Sta. Lucia dropped to 4-3 to tie Magnolia at fourth place. “We played good defense. The key was holding down their top two local players, Kelly Williams (19 points) and Ryan Reyes (scoreless). We just played better defense against them,” said Red Bull head coach Yeng Guiao. The 7-foot Parada and Sta. Lucia’s 6-foot-11 reinforcement Wesley Wilson were ejected at the 3:45 mark of the final frame with the Barakos comfortably ahead, 89-65. It started when Wilson bumped rookie guard Jojo Duncil that dropped the latter at midcourt. Parada, who was running behind the SLR import, pushed Wilson in retaliation with the SLR import reacting via an elbowing that hit Parada on the face. The two shoved each other before their respective teammates separated them. Both were assessed with fighting fouls. Wilson was also given a Flagrant Foul-Penalty 1 on his foul against Duncil. “I thought we’re friends. We played for different teams in other countries. I cannot allow him (Wilson) to do that to any of my teammates,” Parada said. Guiao defended Parada’s reaction, saying: “He doesn’t deserve a fighting foul, he just reacted instinctively. That’s a normal reaction and the push is because he was running behind. It wasn’t premeditated.” PBA commissioner Sonny Barrios said he will meet with the two imports Monday at his office. “We’ll have to review the tape to determine kung tama ang tawag and classification, F1 and fighting foul. Then we’ll make a decision because an ejection doesn’t mean automatic suspension, only if kung F2 ang tawag,” Barrios said. Topex Robinson’s three-pointer gave Red Bull a 30-point lead, 89-59, with 5:33 left, the biggest in the game. Red Bull was up by 17 points at halftime, 42-25, after shooting 19-of-42 or 45.2 percent from the field despite committing 13 turnovers. They held the Realtors to a miserable 10-of-48 or 20.8 percent shooting. Overall, Red Bull shot 43-of-82 or 52.4 percent from the field, while SLR, which got 20 points from Nelbert Omolon, made 31-of-93 or 33.3 percent. Sta. Lucia controlled the boards, 55-49. Smart Philippine Cup Finals MVP Dennis Espino missed the game due to a sore throat. Wilson had 19 with 14 boards while Smart Philippine Cup conference MVP Kelly Williams had 12 on 5-of-19 shooting. Reyes went 0-of-6 from the field in 27 minutes of action but had five rebounds and six assists for the Realtors, who suffered their worst defeat in the conference and worst since a 114-79 loss also to Red Bull on March 23, 2007 in last year’s tourney. (WG) The scores: Red Bull 105 – Najorda 19, Parada 17, Baguio 16, Cruz 12, Alvarez 8, Robinson 7, Duncil 6, Hrabak 6, Pennisi 6, Ybanez 4, Sharma 4, Bugia 0, Adriano 0. Sta. Lucia 78 – Omolon 20, Wilson 19, Williams 12, Miranda 8, Aquino 7, Daa 5, Yeo 5, Mendoza 2, Mamaclay 0, Coronel 0, Reyes 0, Gonzales 0. Quarterscores: 18-14; 42-25; 72-50; 105-78. | 
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