READY FOR FINAL PUSH
Although San Miguel Beer’s plays predominantly revolve around young center June Mar Fajardo, there’s no doubt that veteran forward Arwind Santos still has a place in the team’s offense under coach Leo Austria.
After struggling during the first half of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup elimination, the 6-foot-4 Santos managed to regain his confidence in playing a major role in the Beermen’s resurgence as of late.
Displaying his usual quiet, but effective effort, the former Far Eastern University banged in 22 points, going four-of-five from beyod the three-point arc, while adding 13 rebounds to lead San Miguel to a morale-boosting 102-91 win over Barako Bull, just before the All-Star break.
Santos sustained his solid game after the All-Stars, firing 18 points and conniving with import Arizona Reid and Fajardo in a strong second-half surge to power San Miguel to a high-scoring 129-114 victory over Rain or Shine on March 13.
“Dikit-dikit din kasi ang mga teams sa standings, kahit nga Blackwater puwede pa pumasok sa quarterfinals kung magtatatalo yung ibang teams sa itaas. So kami, may tsansa pa naman,” said Santos, who earned his first Accel-PBA Press Corps. Player of the Week for the period of March 3-15, beating out teammate June Mar Fajardo and NLEX’s Asi Taulava and Nino Canaleta.
Although the team won for just the third time in nine games, Santos remains hopeful that the Beermen, the new Philippine Cup champions, can hurdle their last two elimination-round assignments and hopefully, book a playoff seat.
“Basta naman mag-stay together lang kami, gaya ng laging sinasabi ni coach. Kahit paano, may konting liwanag pa,” he added.
San Miguel continues its fight for a playoff spot when it faces powerhouse Talk ‘N Text on Wednesday, before closing its single-round elimination against GlobalPort next week. (RD)
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