Piltover Pokes versus Literal Monkeys: The streamed matchup of the week sees the Piltover Pokes up 1-0 coming in.
Piltover Pokes: There’s little doubt that the Pokes will have many Gold players in the audience hoping for an upset. Nikolai K being given Jarvan IV in the first game was a substantial factor in their victory but they were also able to get very powerful lanes in the botlane (Caitlyn and Morgana) along with a counterpick toplane versus Chinese Spy. We will see if they can continue their winning ways. They were a team that has been counted out many times and proven their critics wrong time and time again. The path to the quarterfinals is two games away.
Literal Monkeys: This is their chance to shine in the spotlight and the benefits of having a week to reload. This team has won all their series for good reason and I think, given the time to adjust the strategy, they should be successful. They likely gave too many weapons to the Pokes in Game One which made it hard for them to gain a substantial advantage in any lane. The combination of Ornn and Aurelion Sol could have bolstered them for a strong late game presence – but things simply got out of hand before that. This is a talented team who rightfully had the first seed. What they have done has worked in the past and Antion had a good showing in Game One. I don’t think this series is over in two games tonight.
TDS Knights versus Conduit Esports Ghost – This series is currently 1-0 for the side of Conduit Esports Ghost.
Conduit Esports Ghost – Good teams find a way to win close games and this was the case in Game One for Conduit as both the kills and the gold were close. Ypsi, unfazed by having their Thresh taken from them, enabled the rest of their team to be successful. They had the more effective teamfight composition and executed it exceptionally well. Black Eyed Peas also was able to get one of their most effective champions. Given how close this series is, coming in with a minor lead could be massive. Game One was forty minutes – if that trend continues, this could be the latest series of the night too.
TDS Knights – I think TDS Knights can hold their high after Game One knowing full well they can beat Conduit Esports Ghost as they were taken to forty minutes. The TDS botlane did exceptional in Game One and I would not be surprised if that continues to be an area where they continue to focus their attention tonight. We cannot count out the fact that this team did not have their typical toplaner in Wimbels present for Game One so, if he returns, that could also change the makeup and identity of this series. If they simply win Game Two, it’s a best of three and that is that. If they lose, then it’s just time to throw caution to the wind.
CB Hydra versus !rawr – CB Hydra leads this series 1-0 over !rawr presently.
CB Hydra – CB Hydra continued their winning ways in Game One versus !rawr with their typical exceptional champion pick selections and diverse pool. Swapping Rivered into the botlane and creating a combination with 7 r u x with Seraphine and Karma that is a nightmare to kill. While it may sound like a copout to say that CB Hydra needs to simply stay the course, that truly makes the most sense to me as it is entirely possible that !rawr returns this series with a new lineup. Many members of this lineup have also played versus Doki and the crew in the last week multiple times so they will be ready for whatever may be thrown at them by !rawr.
!rawr – Will Doki make any changes? Is this the return of Moowy? Many questions are still present when it comes to !rawr as they continue their series. For me, the intriguing factor is if they can find a way to crack the botlane of CB Hydra or at least make it easier for them to gain advantages down there. Archer and IslamicSamurai did exceptional work in scaling and getting themselves in a position to carry but, while Archer did the most damage in the game, the shields and lifesteal present throughout CB Hydra’s roster made securing kills and removing their team difficult. This team’s future will depend on adaptations as always – make the right ones and we have a series on our hands.
Completed Series
Mythical Esports Hydra versus TE Genesis – TE Genesis wins 3-0. The slight roleswap of Right3ous and JayJ paid dividends in this series from the very start. Game One was a decisive victory that created a snowball throughout the series. While many people considered this to be a closer series, for it to be the only sweep last week was likely not something many people called. I do not even think that Mythical Esports Hydra had a bad idea coming in – rather, they just ran into a team composition that was well-equipped to handle them. The fact that TE Genesis was able to secure the same toplane and jungle in Game Two was something that continued to plague Mythical Esports Hydra as it made it easier for them to isolate or force iEnders to be careful as a Jarvan ult was always not too far away. They adjusted and, while the following two games had brighter chances for them than the first one, TE Genesis just continued to execute what they wanted to do. Dr. Mundo goes where he pleases and, in the case of TE Genesis, that takes them to the next round against DZG Arcadia.
DZG Arcadia versus Clinical – DZG Arcadia wins 3-1. Adjusting as a series continues is integral in the playoffs and especially in best of five situations. Clinical came out guns blazing and took advantage of DZG’s team composition in the first game. Tsuki’s Sylas did have the benefit of a Swain ult but the Swain on the side of Clinical also plays so well into what DZG Arcadia presented in Game One. It was an uncharacteristic stumble by them that was corrected in the following three games. Tsuki returned to his dominant ways and BaegopaQC was able to mitigate the impact that Bunnykiller96 had on their Gwen and Camille. The aggression that they showed on toplane was kept to a minimum and DZG Arcadia swept each game soon after. While Clinical made some very good plays like putting Type 2 on Braum to curtail Ornn ults, it came at the cost of lane presence which DZG Arcadia took advantage of. Full credit to both teams and we will see how DZG Arcadia deals with TE Genesis, one of the hottest teams in the League right now, next week.
CB Shield versus Going Ghost – CB Shield wins 3-1. I think that Going Ghost simply matched up against a very good team at the wrong time. They did not simply roll over and made a series of it in Game Three through a strong team composition. Kreutz had an exceptional series versus Cyclone as well. That being said, CB Shield is a team that features champion oceans in nearly every role and so they were able to craft strong team compositions game in and game out which eventually became too much for Going Ghost to handle. They get a bye week this week as they await the winner of !rawr and CB Hydra. A fight between sister teams may be close or else they will have to get revenge on Doki. The most important thing I want to highlight with CB Shield is that they trusted their plan and champions immediately after losing a game – bringing back the Milio and Wukong in Game Four after dropping a game to Going Ghost. There’s confidence and trust in one another in this roster.
Conduit Esports Goblins versus TE Phantasm – Conduit Esports Goblins wins 3-1. The story of the meta junglers flows throughout this series as champions like Vi and Wukong were present for three of the four games in this series. The passive leads that Conduit Esports Goblins gained in their victories were steady and methodical which translated to victories. Game Four, while the draft wasn’t necessarily bad for TE Phantasm, things just did not work out for them as Flour Power tried to get something working. Another strong showing by Conduit Esports Goblins again demonstrates why they were the favorites coming into this series according to most people. On the side of TE Phantasm, FoxStepbro had a mostly strong showing on the roles asked of them and the team on the whole, while not the result they wanted, can definitely keep their head high. Flour Power, as well, was a menace on the Wukong and kept TE Phantasm in many games. For Conduit Esports Goblins, they face Clown Gaming It in a little while with a likely ticket to semifinals on the way. Things are proceeding exactly how they hoped and were expecting.
TD Unknown versus Clown Gaming It – Clown Gaming It wins 3-2. Clown Gaming It will face Conduit Esports Goblins in the next round.
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