PBA: Arwind Santos explains outburst vs Ranidel de Ocampo in heated SMB-TNT semis clash

In the 2:15 mark of the second quarter in the highly physical semifinal game between San Miguel Beer and Talk 'n Text, Arwind Santos threw down a two-handed dunk off a Beermen fastbreak play. On his way down, however, his fall was undercut by Texter big man Ranidel de Ocampo.

Things became heated up as Santos lost his cool and pushed the forward before they were separated. De Ocampo was assessed with a flagrant foul penalty one and had to sit on the bench for three minutes. The Beermen went on with their explosion to take Game 1 of the best-of-seven series, 109-86.

"Lahat naman tayong nagtatrabaho dito sa PBA magkakaibigan tayo pagkatapos e," Santos told reporters when asked about the altercation after the game. "Pero pagdating ng game eto 'yung trabaho namin minsan nakakalimutan natin 'yun."

He and De Ocampo were former teammates in the defunct Air21 franchise for two years before they were traded to TNT and SMB.

"'Yung nangyari kanina na muntik akong bumagsak, career ko 'yung nakataya dun saka buhay ko 'yung nakataya dun e," said Santos, who scored 21 points behind an 8-of-12 shooting clip. "Para sa 'kin hindi ko dapat ikatuwa 'yun."

De Ocampo, meanwhile, said he should not have been called for a foul as he was only transitioning to their offense when Santos fell on his shoulder.

"Dapat walang tawag 'yun e kasi papunta ako sa bola e," said De Ocampo, who topscored the Texters with 20 points. "Quick inbound kami e, so nakabitin siya, bumagsak siya sa akin. Wala naman akong balak na sahurin siya e."

He said, however, that there is no bad blood between them as they understand that whatever happens on the court is part of the game.

"Okay naman kami ni Arwind. 'Yung sa court, sa court lang 'yun. Wala naman kaming samaan ng loob," he said. - RAF, GMA News