Daniel hands Isaiah first loss in 3rd Genesis Cup

Daniel snapped Isaiah’s two-game winning run in the 3rd CIM-FCC Inter-Color Basketball League-Genesis Cup after eking out a 66-62 victory Friday night at the CIM-FCC Basketball Court in Gualo Rai.

It was a come-from-behind win for Daniel, who was behind by eight points going into the last four minutes of the game, 46-54.

A 20-8 windup anchored by Sonny Ranola, Elmer Esdrelon, and Darwin Barbo helped Daniel nail its second win in as many games and foil Isaiah’s bid for a third straight triumph.

After Isaiah took a 54-46 lead, with 4:08 remaining on the clock, Ranola drilled a long jumper and then a triple off an Isaiah error to move Daniel within three, 51-54, with less than four minutes left in the second half.

Isaiah missed several shots in the ensuing plays and committed a couple of turnovers allowing Daniel to complete its comeback with Ranola scoring five more points, Esdrelon also adding five, and Barbo chipping in four.

The four-point victory put Daniel on top of the leaderboard, half a game ahead of Isaiah.

Daniel won its debut match against Jeremiah, 94-77, getting an early revenge over its foe. Jeremiah pulled of a 105-94 upset over Daniel in last season’s championship game. Daniel was last year’s pennant champion.

Four players finished in double figures for Daniel with Ranola leading the way with 18 points. Esdrelon, Brendon Talania, and Barbo contributed 11 apiece.

James Wabinga fired 22 points for Isaiah, who notched its first two wins against Ezekiel.

Dindo Pablo added 13, while Bart Demapan scored 11.

Wabinga had an explosive first half, scoring 18 points to give Isaiah a 33-31 halftime lead. He was the lone player to score in double figures in the first half, as Daniels highest scorer—Ranola—had only eight markers.

But Wabinga went cold in the second half, as he was held to four points. Pablo took his place, connecting on three triples in the second half, but it was not enough against the decisive 20-8 windup of Daniel.

Daniel had five players making more than two field goals in the fourth period with Ranola still on target, hitting eight points.

Daniel 66 – Ranola 18, Esdrelon 11, D. Barbo 11, Talania 11, G. Barbo 8, Lauron 6.

Isaiah 62 – Wabinga 22, Pablo 13, Demapan 11, Tamayo 7, Pantaleon 7, Dayrit 2.

Scoring by halves: 31-33, 66-62.