MANILA, Philippines – Veteran San Miguel Beer guard Chris Ross was supposed to sit out his team's PBA Philippine Cup semifinal game against Barangay Ginebra on Thursday, after he suffered an injury to his right thigh in Game 3 of the series.

Ross did not play in the second half of that game last Tuesday, which Ginebra won, 95-87. But he was determined not to let his team down in Game 4, even as he admitted that he was "banged up all over" his right thigh.

"I knew I couldn't sit out this game," said Ross. "so any kind of spark that I gave, I just tried to do it for my team."

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Ross wound up playing just 8 minutes and 45 seconds in Game 4. He did not start, and played the bulk of his minutes in the second quarter. But he did enough to give the Beermen a lift, so much that they did not even need to risk playing him in the second half.

The 2-time Finals MVP scored all 11 of his points in the second, making all 4 of his shots including 3 3-pointers. He was instrumental in giving the Beermen a comfortable 58-41 lead at the half, and they were never threatened the rest of the way.

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"I think I played less than 10 minutes, that was enough to give my team the energy that they needed," said Ross.

"I just wanna win. I don't care what it is. I don't care if I play one minute, I don't care if I play 48 minutes. I don't care if I start, I don't care if I come off the bench, I don't care if I coach. I just wanna win, whatever it takes for my team to win, that's what I'm about."

Ross said that he wanted to play in the second half, too, but with the game well in hand, he agreed to sit it out. The defensive-minded guard was already icing his thigh midway through the fourth period, when his teammates built a 95-71 lead.

San Miguel won 102-81, moving a game away from a return trip to the Philippine Cup finals. Ross had nothing but praise for his teammates, especially for Matt Ganuelas-Rosser who started in his stead and finished with a team-high 9 assists.

"Matt did an amazing job in my position today," said Ross.

Still, Ross' willingness to play through pain earned praise from his coach, who was amazed at the veteran guard's "warrior" mentality.

"He wants to help the team even though we didn't want him to play," SMB coach Leo Austria said of Ross. "Sabi niya, I want to be part of the team, kahit kaunting minutes.

"Good thing nakapag-contribute pa siya sa offense."

Ross will get another day to rest and recover before San Miguel guns for the clincher against Ginebra on Saturday.

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