The race for the top positions in the LCS continues unabated! After several teams slipped up on Friday, most favorites found their bearings. The lone exception is TL, who after a 1-2 week now trail rivals Cloud9 and Evil Geniuses.
Week seven brought us several big showdowns in the LCS. With only three weeks to go, the playoff race was in full swing.
A Friday of Upsets
After going 0-3 last week, Immortals had to take on Cloud9 for the first match of the weekend. Immortals had the initial advantage before Cloud9 took over the map. Despite a mountain soul and a Baron, however, Cloud9 were caught off-guard 41 minutes in. One decisive teamfight was all Immortals needed to win the game.
The game that followed showed FlyQuest taking on TSM. The favorites had the early lead and 20 minutes in punished an overextension to get two kills and a Baron. However, their hopes of an easy win were quickly shattered - four minutes later, FlyQuest caught them split and aced them. Before TSM could recover, they lost another teamfight - and with 5 players to one, it was FlyQuest who took the win.
Dignitas followed suit in this day of upsets with an impressive game against 100 Thieves. Two early kills gave them a good start and they used an impressive neutral objective control to dictate the tempo. Dig left no way back into the game for their opponents, got an early mountain soul and ended in a textbook manner.After three underdog wins, Team Liquid was keen on putting a stop to the streak - and they did just that against CLG. Two early kills on Nicolaj "Jensen" Jensen set TL’s lanes for success and just 14 minutes in, they were 7K gold ahead. The lead kept growing and eventually, CLG broke.Evil Geniuses looked fit to follow suit against Golden Guardians, especially after an early solo kill for Daniele "Jiizuke" di Mauro. However, the Guardians would hit back hard, winning several teamfights even after EG snuck a baron. It came down to a mountain soul fight where the underdogs won it all, ending a day of upsets by snapping EG’s impressive winning streak.
100 Thieves Win Saturday Rumble
Cloud9 was all business against Counter Logic Gaming in the first Saturday match, getting a double kill just 3 minutes in and an extended ace some 10 minutes later. CLG had no way to hit back and another ace 26 minutes in ended their resistance.
The much-awaited clash between Team Liquid and 100 Thieves promised to be even early on - until the Thieves seized their first big teamfight win, then it was all 100T all the time. 31 minutes in, TL pounced on Victor "FBI" Huang’s Varus - but all they got was a GA before they got collapsed on and routed, handing 100T the win.
After the previous game, TSM had to win against Immortals or they risked falling further behind from their rivals. The 2020 champions won several early fights and kept a sizable lead throughout much of the game, eventually getting a Baron after a great 5v4 engage. Immortals tried to fight back, but a second Baron sealed the deal.
Golden Guardians, meanwhile, looked to add another underdog win to their list in their game against Dignitas. Despite losing first blood, GG stayed close in gold and 17 minutes in secured three kills for their Sivir in a bloody 3-2 fight. Dignitas could only defend themselves - and a Baron and elder drake proved too much.
The day ended with a bout between FlyQuest and Evil Geniuses. This time, EG were ruthless. Jiizuke’s Ryze took off early on, boasting an impressive 3/0/2 at the 15-minute mark. The rest of the team followed suit to dismantle FlyQuest and bounce back from their Friday loss.
TSM Defeat TL… Again
CLG got a great start to their Sunday game against Immortals, with veteran Jason "WildTurtle" Tran getting two early kills. CLG kept extending their lead in a mostly bloodless game and looked set to win- when a 32-minute Baron steal took the wind out of their sails. Now it was Immortals who owned the map and CLG kept losing ground before getting routed in their base for a heartbreaking defeat.
RAES WITH THE STEAL! #LCS pic.twitter.com/r3EZsvksQi
— LCS (@LCSOfficial) July 18, 2021
After this warmup, it was time for the main event - Team Liquid versus TSM. Despite having the early gold lead, TL were unable to push their advantage. Instead, TSM secured the cloud soul and 28 minutes in got a kill that saw them start a baron 5v4 and then get four more kills in the contest. TL threw the dice at the elder drake, but lost three before they could secure it. TSM had to make do with an ace and the Nexus. I call not worth.
If Dignitas thought their 1-minute kill was going to signal an easy early game against Evil Geniuses, they were quickly disabused of the notion. EG outplayed them in fight after fight, getting a 7K gold lead just 12 minutes in. Jeong "Impact" Eon-young was godlike on Renekton. A few overreaches prevented a sub-20 minute win, but the outcome was never really in doubt.
The next game saw another early first blood, this time with 100T as the beneficiaries. FlyQuest would hit back, but a huge outplay by Felix "Abbedagge" Braun would turn it around. Soon the Thieves were rampaging through the map with several fed members. FlyQuest tried to fight back, but all they won was time - and after a great engage by 100T 34 minutes in, their time was out.
The weekend ended with a bout between Cloud9 and the recently resurgent Golden Guardians. The team clashed several times in the early game, with C9 coming out ahead after they punished several overextensions. Eventually, C9’s carries - backed by an amazing Thresh play by Philippe "Vulcan" Laflamme - were too much for GG to handle.
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The LCS continues next Friday with a showdown between summer sensation 100 Thieves and spring champions Cloud 9. Meanwhile, make sure you follow us onFacebook and Twitter for more gaming news and analysis!