Santos fired up for semis

MANILA, Philippines — San Miguel Beer forward Arwind Santos said yesterday turning 40 last June was no big deal and with glowing stats in the ongoing PBA Philippine Cup, his goal is to inspire everyone, especially the youth, to stay fit no matter what age.

In the elims this conference, the Spiderman averaged 13.3 points (third highest in six years), 8.1 rebounds (second highest in six years), 1.9 assists (tying his career high), 1.8 blocks (career high) and 34.8 minutes (second highest in six years). He also shot 47.9 percent from the field (best in 10 years), 61.9 percent from two-point distance (second in league).

Santos said he’s pumped up to play against top-seed TNT in the best-of-7 semis in Bacolor. Last Sunday, TNT tripped San Miguel, 89-88, to draw first blood in the series with Santos compiling 12 points, nine rebounds, two assists and a block in 33:52 minutes.

“’Di ko masabi kung matatapos ng short or long,” he said. “Basta manalo kami at makarating sa finals. Kumpleto ang TNT, may experience at talent kaya sabi ni Boss Al (San Miguel Corp. sports director Alfrancis Chua) sa Zoom meeting namin last Friday, ang mindset ay huwag kami magpabaya at pukpok palagi. Malaking tiwala nina Boss RSA (San Miguel Corp. president Ramon S. Ang) at Boss Al sa amin kaya dapat bigay namin ang lahat.”

Santos said matching up with Troy Rosario at the four spot is a challenge. “Sa national team, tres ang laro ko kasi may naturalized pero sa PBA, kwatro ako,” he said. “Sa frontline, kami nina June Mar (Fajardo), Mo (Tautuaa) at Bambam (Gamalinda) nagpapalitan. Alam ko ang laro ni Troy, basta I’ll do my part. Tutok ako sa kaniya pero ready din ako sa lahat. Pag may emergency switch, dapat kaya ko rin tapatan sina Jayson (Castro), Mikey (Williams) at RR (Pogoy). Depensa ang nagpapatakbo sa opensa namin.”

Santos said he’s dedicating this campaign to Fajardo. “Wala si June Mar noong ‘di kami nakapasok sa semis sa Clark bubble,” he said. “Nawala ang kaniyang ina (last August), naranasan ko na ‘yan (his mother died in 2016) kaya alam ko kung ganoo kasakit mawalaan ng magulang. Ang buong team nagkakaisa. Sina CJ (Perez) at Terrence (Romeo), accept nila ang role to come off the bench. Kung anong diskarte ni coach Leo (Austria) at sa kinabubuti ng team, gagawin namin para maka-contribute.”

Santos said nothing has changed since he turned 40 except his age. “Walang pagbabago, mabilis pa rin,” he said with a laugh. “Ang importante ay willing to fight, puso. Kailangan alaga ang katawan, everyday workout. ‘Di pwedeng lamya-lamya sa court at matamlay. ‘Di pwede to rely only on skills. Kung wala sa kondisyon, ‘di mo magagawa ang kailangan mong gawin sa court. Swerte ako at OK ang aking metabolism, walang bawal na pagkain at ‘di ako tumataba. Kung minsan, hating-gabi, gigising ako at kung gutom, kakain ako ng kanin, kamatis at tuyo pero one cup of rice lang.”