Cloud9 vs. 100 Thieves: 2022 LCS Lock In betting analysis

The 2022 LCS Lock In tournament kicks off its second week with a battle for first place in group A between Cloud9 and 100 Thieves. 

Two North American giants will clash when C9 looks to defend its flawless start at the LCS Lock In. Challenging the team will be the defending LCS champion 100 Thieves, already having won two games so far this tournament but also falling short against FlyQuest in what came as a surprise to many. 

Bouncing back against C9 will be important for 100 Thieves. Not only because it will put them at the top of group A, but also because the team is a clear favorite to make a deep run in the Lock In. As a team that didn’t make changes in the offseason, 100 Thieves should have a big advantage while other squads are trying to build up synergy. 

To try and stop the tournament favorite from making a deep run, C9 will enter Summoner’s Rift with a lot of confidence despite playing with a mixed roster of Academy and LCS players. Due to travel restrictions, C9 wasn’t able to field its full roster in the first week, but that didn’t stop the team from going 3-0. 

Even though C9 is coming into the match with a lot of momentum, they are yet to prove themselves against one of the big teams in the region. Beating FlyQuest, Golden Guardians, and TSM is great, but 100 Thieves will likely be a different beast. 

Luckily for C9, 100 Thieves already showcased inconsistency in its loss against FlyQuest. If a game like that one repeats itself, then C9 will have a good shot at winning. If 100 Thieves has fixed those mistakes, then they should be able to control C9 on the map. 

The difference in synergy is the big key here. Even with all of its main roster players, C9 would have lost a lot of valuable practice time and should need some weeks to get fully settled. As this match takes place very soon, a loss for 100 Thieves may be seen as unacceptable.

Cloud9 vs. 100 Thieves rosters

Cloud9 roster: 

• Top – Park “Summit” Woo-tae / Darshan “Darshan” Upadhyaya 
• Jungle – Robert “Blaber” Huang
• Mid – Ibrahim “Fudge” Allami
• Bot – Kim “Berserker” Min-cheol / Jesper “Zven” Svenningsen
• Support – Jonah “Isles” Rosario

100 Thieves roster:

• Top – Kim “Ssumday” Chan-ho / Milan “Tenacity” Oleksij
• Jungle – Can “Closer” Celik
• Mid – Felix “Abbedagge” Braun
• Bot – Ian “FBI” Huang
• Support – Choi “huhi” Jae-hyun

Odds favor 100 Thieves to top Cloud9 at LCS Lock In

Even though C9 is currently the team with the best record, it is 100 Thieves who will go in as the bookmaker’s favorite in this match. A lot of it has to do with the 100 Thieves roster, which hasn’t been changed a lot since last season. C9 on the other hand is going through some shaky weeks due to the travel restrictions affecting its new Korean players. Because of this, 100 Thieves should be the team to dictate this match and come out with a win.

If 100 Thieves comes out with a victory, odds of 1.52 can be had in the process. If C9 manages to make the upset, the odds will be higher at 2.37. Putting money on C9 will be risky in this one, but could be worth it if they continue to ride the momentum.

The match between 100 Thieves and Cloud9 in the LCS Lock In takes place on Friday, January 21.