THE unbeaten NLEX squad seems so overwhelming for Cebuana Lhuillier coach Boycie Zamar that he says they can only rely on “heart” to get through their PBA D-League Foundation Cup semifinal showdown starting on Thursday at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City.
Game One of the best-of-three semifinal series starts at 2 p.m.
“Given na ’yung NLEX. Kita mo naman. It’s a big challenge for us. Ang sa amin, puso na lang,” said Zamar.
“They are not winners. But at least, they are proving themselves every game,” he added.
The Road Warriors are made up of the core of NCAA champion San Beda plus stars from other schools including former two-time UAAP MVP Ray Parks and former Letran main man Kevin Alas.
The Gems won a do-or-die quarterfinal against Big Chill, giving them a boost in morale for the semifinals.
Cebuana Lhuillier overcame a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit in the final quarter to beat Big Chill, 67-60, on Tuesday.
While the Gems played two tough quarterfinal matches, the Road Warriors will come off a long break after securing an outright semifinal berth on May 8 when it completed a sweep of the nine-game eliminations.
In the second game, Jumbo Plastic Linoleum goes up against Blackwater Sports at 4 p.m.
The Giants finished the elimination round with a 6-3 win-loss slate to finish the eliminations in second place and grab the final outright semifinal slot.
The third-ranked Blackwater Sports, meanwhile, advanced to the semifinals with an easy 89-69 win over Café France in the quarters.
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph
NOTICE ON UNAUTHORIZED AND UNLAWFUL USE, PUBLICATION, AND/OR DISSEMINATION OF SPIN.PH CONTENT: Please be notified that any unauthorized and unlawful use, publication, and/or dissemination of Spin.ph’s content and/or materials is a direct violation of its legal and exclusive rights to the same, and shall be subject to appropriate legal action/s.
