MANILA, Philippines — The La Salle Green Archers' Schonny Winston was playing the season of his career in UAAP Season 85 before a calf injury sidelined him in the second half of the season.
An MVP race frontrunner end of the first round of eliminations, Winston saw his performance dip as he missed four straight games for the Archers.
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While he made a seconds-long cameo against the NU Bulldogs on Wednesday, Winston hasn't been able to contribute for his side's bid for the last spot in the Final Four.
As the final stretch of eliminations looms, Winston's mind is as far from the MVP award as possible.
"It's just whatever it takes to win. The MVP is something like, on the side that will come along. But really, it's all about winning and help the team win," said Winston after the game on Wednesday.
"That's my main priority: the Final Four and the championship game," he added.
Of note, that for Winston to be eligible for MVP, and even for a Mythical Five citation, he needs to at least appear in the Archers' remaining games because a candidate needs to play in at least 10 games in the season to be considered for an accolade.
As coach Derrick Pumaren keeps Winston on a day-by-day basis, the Filipino-American scorer hopes to be back sooner rather than later.
"When I'm out there, it felt good. That's all I can say. We'll just take it day-by-day and gradually just incorporate more and more. That's the process," he said.
Winston will look to contribute when he's healthy in the Archers' penultimate elimination game against the already eliminated UE Red Warriors on Saturday, November 26.