LEO Austria knows all too well that had Christian Standhardinger not been with San Miguel, he's definitely a guy who's worthy to play heavy minutes.
"If we do not have June Mar (Fajardo), he will get 40 minutes," he said.
But that's what it entails being a part of such a loaded roster like the Beermen.
"Yun din ang hirap ng marami kang stars, only five players can play on the court and you have to balance their minutes," said Austria.
As much as Standhardinger was hardly a factor in the championship series, he just bid his time and on Wednesday, showed his worth, hounding TNT import Terrence Jones in San Miguel's amazing 16-point fightback to score the 99-94 Game Five win.
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During that stretch, Jones was limited to just three points as he missed all four of his shots and accounted for three of the KaTropa's nine turnovers in the payoff period.
"Ever since naman, yun ang kanyang asset to our team," Austria said of Standhardinger, who also held Jones scoreless for the final 2:21.
The Fil-German's defense was the highlight of the night, outshining his lean 4-point, 3-rebound performance.
"Coach Leo puts me in and I try to give my best. Today it wasn't about scoring because we have many great scorers. It's about playing defense and I tried to do just that," said the top pick of the 2017 PBA Rookie Draft.
That alone is the reason why Austria has no one else to thank for this Game Five victory than Standhardinger.
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"He's the only big man who could pressure Jones in the backcourt for him to give up the ball. He gave us the chance we needed," the decorated mentor said.
San Miguel shoots for the crown on Game Six on Friday.(RL)
