PBA D-League: Cebuana battles Boracay; Cafe France, PC Gilmore clash

Cebuana Lhuillier seeks a win over Boracay Rum in a crucial match-up for the Gems Monday in the PBA D-League Aspirants Cup at the San Juan Gym.

The Gems go up against the Waves at 4 p.m. hoping to sustain their winning form and grab the momentary lead in the team standings.

Cebuana Lhuillier is tied with Freego Jeans for the lead in the team standings with a 6-1 record and remains in contention for one of the two outright semifinal berths with the conference now in its home stretch.

A win by the Gems will put pressure on the Jeans Makers heading into their match-up against the NLEX Road Warriors on Tuesday. The Road Warriors, in spite of their third place standing, are very much in contention for the outright semifinal slots with a 4-1 win-loss card.

The Waves, however, are no pushovers for the Gems as they are aching to bounce back from a loss to Big Chill last week.

“My concern is that they are a very good fast breaking team. They frustrate teams with their tenacity on defense,” said Cebuana Lhuillier coach Luigi Trillo.

Cebuana Lhuillier got a big lift after Yousef Taha, a Fil-Palestinian center for the Mapua Cardinals, received a clearance from the Bureau of Immigration to play in the league.

In the first game, Café France (2-3) tries to stay in the playoff picture against PC Gilmore (0-5) at 2 p.m.

A win by the Bakers will tie them with Blackwater in the standings and put them in a position for a quarterfinal seat.

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