Santos fined P25-K for hard foul, post-game shade at refs

Arwind Santos (Photo courtesy of PBA Media Bureau)

MANILA — Arwind Santos was slapped with a hefty fine for his actions during and after Game 3 of the PBA Philippine Cup semifinals between San Miguel and Ginebra on Tuesday night.

The Beerman will have to pay a total of PHP25,000 following the verdict by Commissioner Willie Marcial on Wednesday.

Santos was called out for a Flagrant Foul Penalty 1 while Japeth Aguilar went for a layup in the second quarter of the match, which was automatically merited with a PHP5,000 fine.

However, the lion’s share of the sanction was due to his statement after the game, something that Marcial found “detrimental to the league.”

“Parang may mga shadow yung mga players kanina. Parang yung lima, nagiging walo. Nahihirapan kaming bantayan [sila] kasi lima lang yung kalaban, pero nagiging walo,” Santos said, which seemed like a shade being thrown to the referees.

SMB holds a 2-1 lead against Ginebra in their best-of-seven series with Game 4 set on Thursday at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.