Sidelined for months, Santos glad to be back for SMB

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Inactive for three and a half months, Arwind Santos savored every moment of his return for San Miguel on Sunday.

“Na-miss ko nga eh. Passion ko na yung basketball kaya nakakamiss pag nawawala ako sa paglalaro,” Santos said.

Santos gave the Beermen all he could and had nine points on 3-of-5 shooting from threes on top of five rebounds before fouling out midway in the fourth period.

The 2013 PBA MVP shared that he’s still recuperating from his left knee injury, but knowing that his coach Leo Austria needed him badly on the court, he had no second thoughts in coming back.

“The day before the game lang ako sumabay ng ensayo, pero yung professionalism as a player na kahit di ka nakakasabay sa practice, dapat alam mo kung paano mo ihahanda ang sarili mo, dapat di ka magpabaya,” he said.

“Pinakita ko naman sa practice na kayang kaya ko na at kailangan akong gamitin.”

Despite his absence in the crucial moments of the game, his San Miguel teammates still fought through and escaped with a 111-105 double overtime victory against Ginebra.

Santos vowed to have a better outing the next time the Beermen hit the court as he feels that he is well on his way to full-recovery soon.

“Di pa ako 100-percent, pero konting konti na lang,” he said. “Ang goal ko naman makatulong at maka-contribute sa team. Nafi-feel ko na tuloy-tuloy na ito.”