MANILA, Philippines – There was no rest for the weary as Christian Standhardinger attended Gilas Pilipinas’ practice for the 2019 Southeast Asian Games merely hours after setting a PBA record in minutes played. 

In fact, he was one of the earliest to arrive on Thursday, November 28, showing no signs of fatigue despite seeing action for 61 minutes in a game that saw him and NorthPort upset NLEX in the PBA Governors’ Cup.

Standhardinger was a workhorse in that grueling 126-123 triple overtime win with 33 points, 23 rebounds, 7 assists, and 2 steals as the Batang Pier became only the fourth No. 8 team in PBA history to eliminate the top seed.

His 61:02 minutes of play now stand as a PBA record for locals, breaking the 61-minute mark set by Kerby Reymundo for Purefoods in 2006. 

Yet, that did not prevent Standhardinger from coming in earlier than Gilas Pilipinas’ 10 am calltime, already working with assistant coack Kirk Collier even before head coach Tim Cone arrived for practice. 

“He just wanted to keep going. Amazing. Amazing person at this point. We said in the room, in the lounge before the game, he can be a model for all of us in terms of work ethic,” Cone said of Standhardinger. 

“I just told him not to embarrass everybody. His work ethic is so good, he embarrasses me,” Cone added in jest. 

For Standhardinger, he would rather leave it all on the floor than regret as Gilas Pilipinas guns for a 13th straight gold medal and 18th overall. 

“We only have one shot. Coach said that we only have one shot and we only have a limited amount of practice. Of course I’m tired but there needs to be a sacrifice and I’m willing to take it.”

“I think we can get it, but if we don’t get it, I can look in the mirror and I know I did everything I could do in my power to accomplish what we need to accomplish for the country,” Standhardinger added. 

Also, the exhaustion brought by the arduous basketball grind will all be worth it if it means giving their compatriots something to be proud of, Standhardinger said. 

“There are a lot of hardworking Filipinos out there and if we can by playing hard and winning make their lives a little bit more enjoying, more entertaining, then we really owe it [to them],” he said. 

“We can affect so many lives just by playing hard.” – Rappler.com