Even if Arwind Santos and Marcio Lassiter got ejected in their match versus TNT Katropa Saturday night, San Miguel Beermen head coach Leo Austria still tipped his hat to the two league veterans for showing grit.
Lassiter got kicked out late in the first half after a spat with Terrence Romeo, and Santos followed suit after a skirmish with Tony Semerad with 7:36 left in the payoff period, which saw the scramble on the floor.
“Salute ako sa kanila because they showed na they’re out there to win games,” proudly said the reigning, three-time PBA Coach of the Year.
“To the point na lagi silang makikipag-rambulan doon for the team.”
And their grit somehow rubbed into their teammates as the Beermen managed to come out victorious over their rivals in the heated affair, 99-94, thanks mainly to import Renaldo Balkman, who poured in 43 points, 15 rebounds, and six blocks.
Of the confrontations that had taken place, the second one between Santos and Semerad had been the worst. After the two got separated, the coaches of both teams almost also got into it as they apparently traded verbal jabs.
But for Austria, he believes that it had actually been the game’s turning point.
As the calls have been made that led to the ejection of both Santos and Semerad, free throws had then been awarded to both squads. Kelly Williams missed both of his shots, while Chris Ross calmly sank his own charities.
It gave SMB a two-point lead, and those shots by Ross sparked a 14-5 scoring spree that propelled the Beermen to a nine-point lead, 97-88, approaching the three-minute mark. It is, indeed, the huge turning point of the match.
“We’re fortunate at that time dahil nag-miss yung kanilang free throws, sa amin, pumasok, and I think that’s one of the turning points.”
