PBA: Misfiring Santos remains optimistic despite 0-3 hole

LUCENA CITY – Arwind Santos believes that just like the first two games, San Miguel tried its earnest to compete against Alaska in the 2016 Smart Bro PBA Philippine Cup Finals.

Unfortunately, Santos’ shots just didn’t find their mark.

“My shots were not going in. Our place was there and I also practiced everything,” he said in Filipino.

Firing a horrid 2-of-11 shooting from threes, Santos only had nine points and nine rebounds in the losing effort for San Miguel, 82-75 on Friday. But the 2013 PBA MVP refused to blame the team’s unfamiliarity with the Quezon Convention Center.

“We had practices here. If you look at my shots, they were straight but the release was just strong,” he said. “Sometimes it happens. My heart is there to attempt the shot, but they were just not connecting.”

Santos took exception of his final trey, where he muffed an attempt from the left wing which could’ve tied the game at 78 in the final minute.

“That’s really my shot,” he said, while adding, “It’s better to take a shot than commit a turnover.”

The reed-thin forward also noted that it wasn’t just him, but also the whole team which who has to fare better from the field to avoid a sweep on Sunday.

“If you look at it, my shots are not the only one that were not felling.We also have shots near the basket that didn’t connect,” he said on the Beermen’s 27-of-71 shooting from the field which basically spelled their demise.

Down 0-3 in the series, Santos remained optimistic of San Miguel’s chances and thinks that the improbable can still be done.

“We still have one life left,” he said. “This is not over. Even if the chance is small, at least there’s still a chance. We’ll know if we still have heart in the next game.”