MANILA, Philippines—Cebuana Lhuillier found its groove late to come away with a 79-66 victory over Big Chill on a rainy Thursday afternoon for a 1-0 edge in their PBA D-League Foundation Cup semifinals series at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig.
The Gems went on a 9-2 run capped by a steal and breakaway slam by Vic Manuel that gave them a 60-51 gap to open up the fourth quarter.
Cebuana trailed, 33-39, at one point in the second quarter.
The Gems had a lift when Alex Mallari, one of the Superchargers’ key players, got ejected after getting his second technical foul with still 4:09 left in the third quarter.
Chris Exciminiano shot 16 points to go along with four rebounds and three assists as the Gems will now look to close things out on Tuesday when both teams meet again in Game 2 at the San Juan Gym.