Burger King's Richard Yee (right) and Coca-Cola's Larry Rodriguez battle for the rebound during PBA action last Wednesday at the Araneta Coliseum. (Photo by KJ ROSALES)

Mark Yee is not contented of just being a defensive player. So on Wednesday night, the gangling 6-foot-3 forward proved he can do offensive chores, too.

And he was very effective playing his new role.

Like a grizzled veteran, Yee weaved a magical one-man show in the fourth period, making 17 of his team-high 19 points to help Burger King snap a three-game losing run with a 106-97 come-from-behind win over the listless Coca-Cola Tigers in the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup at the Araneta Coliseum.

Yee, now on his second year in the league, capped his fourth quarter explosion with a booming trey to shatter a 93-all count which turned out to be the push the Whoppers needed to finally get out of the slump.

His 19-point performance was his new career-best, erasing his previous high of 17 points which he established during Game 2 of the Fiesta Cup quarterfinals against Sta. Lucia Realty. He was 3-of-3 from the three-point area in the fourth period, and a perfect 6-of-6 from the foul line.

Third-year guard Ronjay Buenafe also collected 19 points, and his own triple gave Burger King the lead for good, 99-96, with 1:52 left. Coca-Cola center DEnnis Espino tied the count at 96-all with a completed three-point play off a foul from Richard Yee.

The win improved BK's win-loss record to 2-5, tying Barako Bull for seventh in the team standings. Burger King coach Yeng Guiao said the win was a huge one after dropping their last three games. The two teams will collide on Friday at the Big Dome.

"Ang hirap mag-break out sa slump., I hope this win will get us out of the slump," Guiao said. "This is just one win, our confidence was so low. Ang gusto lang namin maibalik 'yung kumpiyansa. That is what we need to break our losing streak."

"I hope it will be a steping stone to get our old form back after the Japeth (Aguilar) incident, after the Wynne (Arboleda) incident. We felt that it has affected us somehow," Guiao added.

Burger King made the 6-foot-9 Aguilar as this year's No. 1 pick in the Rookie Draft but he was later shipped to Talk 'N Text, believing his heart is not with the team as he openly expressed his desire to play for the national team.

Aguilar, however, is now playing for the Smart-Gilas national team.

Arboleda, a battle-tested guard, was suspended for the rest of the season without pay for mauling a fan in a game against Smart-Gilas.

Down by five entering the fourth quarter, 70-75, the Whoppers tightened their defense particularly on Alex Cabagnot (20 points) and Espino (15 points). That paid off handsomely.

A 14-9 run with Yee accounting for seven points knotted the score at 84-all, with 7:46 to play.

Burger King, which got 15 points and 10 rebounds from Beau Belga, controlled the boards, 48-43, and scored 27 points off Cokes's 20 turnovers.

The Tigers, who played minus the injured Asi Taulava (sprained right ankle), fell to 1-5.

"We hope that this win will ease out some of that moral-sapping incident. We're not giving up this conference. We're trying to get out of the cellar, then we'll try and see after that. We still need to improve our defense," said Guiao.

The scores:
BURGER KING 106 — Yee M. 19, Buenafe, 19, David 17, Belga 15, Quiñahan 9, Matias 7, Sharma 7, Lanete 5, Yee R. 5, Billones 2, Williams 1, Aban 0.
COCA-COLA 97 — Cabagnot 20, Espino 15, Cruz 12, Rodriguez 11, Gonzales 11, Bono 6, Ross 2, Rizada 1, Calimag 1, Macapagal 0.
Quarters: 29-20, 46-45, 70-75, 106-97