Cervantes, Heruela help Big Chill retake solo lead

MANILA, Philippines – Back after a long layoff, Big Chill picked up where it left off with a 94-91 win over Boracay Rum to reclaim the top spot in the 2014 PBA D-League Aspirants Cup Monday at the JCSGO Gym in Cubao.

Former Barangay Ginebra reserve Reil Cervantes scored 28 points on four-of-seven shooting from behind-the-arc to go along with six rebounds for the Superchargers, who are already assured of an outright semifinals slot.

Stocky guard Brian Heruela had quite of a performance anew with a double-double – tallying 10 points and 10 assists as he also keyed in Big Chill’s league-best 11-1 record with a game left in its elimination round schedule.

The Superchargers haven’t played a game in over a month and it showed as the Waves jumped at them with an early lead before recovering just in the time to eke out a win behind big plays from Cervantes and Heruela, who scored all of his points in the second half.

Heruela made back-to-back baskets in the 43 seconds that countered Boracay Rum’s shots in between before forcing a steal in the waning seconds that proved to be as crucial in sealing the win.

With the victory, Big Chill gained a half-game lead over idle defending champion NLEX for first place in the standings.

Far Eastern U forward Mac Belo had 20 points while Fil-Italian playmaker Chris Banchero posted 17 points for the Waves, who finished the conference with a 6-7 mark.

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