MANILA, Philippines—Jumbo Plastic, finally getting its rhythm, fired on all cylinders and blasted Cebuana Lhuillier, 90-71, Thursday in the 2013 PBA D-League Foundation Cup at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City.
The Giants pulled away in the third quarter then erected a 25-point lead with seven minutes left in the game for their second straight after a horrendous start this conference.
“Pag ganito nilalaro, posible manalo ulit. Meron parin naman malalakas na team na natatalo, kaya baka makaabot pa kami,” said Joel Dualan, who took over head coach Steven Tiu.
Jumbo Plastic faces Big Chill next.
Five players from Jumbo Plastic wound up in double digits as Jett Vidal scored 12 of his game-high 18 points in the third quarter.
Macky Acosta added 15 points including three of the Giants’ eight triples while Aljon Mariano scattered 14 points, including the basket which gave them their biggest edge.
The win, which improved the Giants record to 3-5, bolstered their flickering quarterfinals hopes as they move just a game behind the Gems, which has a 4-4 card.
Cebuana Lhuillier got beaten in the rebounding and assists department while failing to knock down its triples, going just 2-of-17.
Raymond Aguilar finished with 15 points while the rest of the Gems were held to single digits including key scorers like Alvin Padilla and James Martinez.