Jeremiah, Caleb pound foes

Caleb’s Edison Castro goes up for a reverse layup against two Ezekiel defenders during the first half of their game in the 4th Genesis Cup last Friday at the Gilbert C. Ada Gymnasium. (Roselyn B. Monroyo)

Jeremiah and Caleb posted lopsided wins in the 4th Genesis Cup Christian Churches Inter-Color Basketball League last Friday night at the Gilbert C. Ada Gymnasium.

In the curtain-raiser, Jeremiah capped its regular season campaign with a bang after routing Joshua, 83-67, while in the second match, Caleb also cruised its way past Ezekiel, 94-53.

Caleb used a 20-3 scoring barrage in the first five minutes of the match to put the game away early against the erratic Ezekiel. With the win, Caleb moved up to second place in the team standings, dislodging Isaiah (5-2) as the former improved to a 5-1 record, just two wins behind regular season top finisher Daniel (7-0). Caleb was scheduled to play its final game last night against Joshua and results of that match along with the Gideon-Ezekiel tiff will determine the playoff pairings for the six other teams.

Daniel is already paired against the last-ranked and winless Samuel (0-7), while the other playoff match-ups will have the No. 2 team taking on the No. 7 squad, No. 3 versus No. 6, and No. 4 against No. 5. Gideon is in third place with its 3-3 mark, while Joshua and Ezekiel have similar 2-4 slates.

Ezekiel absorbed another loss, as it scored only one field goal against Caleb in the first five minutes of the match off Noel Conti’s triple. Caleb, on the other hand, drew a bundle from Michael Cabanas, who fired 13 points in the first half and got a lot of support from his teammates to give their squad a 40-28 halftime edge.

Caleb never looked back with Cabanas still having the hot hands, adding 17 more markers in the second half. Saipan Southern High School standout Nathan Borromeo also showed up in the second half, chipping in 13 to finish with 19. Cabanas ended up with 30 points, while Joseph Gatdula was the third Caleb player to net double figures with his 10. Mike Surima paced Ezekiel with his 22 points.

In the first game, Ramsa Tenepere and Jay Nunag teamed up in towing Jeremiah to the 16-point win. Tenepere scored 28 and Nunag added 23 as they led Jeremiah’s second-half breakaway.

Jeremiah was ahead by only 2 after the first half, 43-41, when Tenepere and Nunag alternately hit multiple baskets in the second half and lifted their squad to back-to-back victories after barging into the win column late last month with a 67-56 triumph over Samuel. Tenepere exploded for 19 points in the second half, more than doubling his first-half output (9). Nunag had twin digits in both halves with his 12 and 11. Mark Rabago also hit double figures, registering 14 in the first half, 12 of them came from the 3-point area.

Darwin Gonzalez led Joshua’s losing cause with his 22 points. He was the only Joshua player to knock in more than two field goals in the second half.

First Game
Jeremiah 83 – Tenepere 28, Nunag 33, Rabago 14, Cabaoas 6, Lizardo 4, Deang 2, Casuncad 2, Formales 2, Lansangan 2.

Joshua 67 – Gonzales 22, Isip 16, Eugenio 12, Dequito 7, Calub 6, Abe 4.

Scoring by halves: 43-41, 83-67.

Second Game
Caleb 94 – Cabanas 30, Borromeo 19, Gatdula 10, Ocanada 9, Morales 8, Sacdalan 6, Castro 4, Huddleston 4, Bacani 2.

Ezekiel 53 – Surima 22, Conti 12, Irog 8, Velasquez 6, Alcantara 3, Lizardo 2.

Scoring by halves: 40-28, 94-53.