LCS has six-way tie for first place after TSM defeats Cloud9

Team SoloMid is at the top of the LCS, albeit with quite a bit of company.

The team entered into a six-way tie for first place after beating Cloud9, reasserting themselves over an opponent they toppled in the spring playoff semifinals. The outcome continued the trend for both teams’ summer season which has seen them perform well, but not flawlessly.

Both sides entered Sunday coming off wins on Saturday, with Cloud9 beating OpTic Gaming and TSM running through Clutch Gaming. That saw them jump into the rift with a spring in their step as they looked to close out the week 2-0.

Trades came early as both demonstrated a willingness to fight but neither side got the better of them in any profound way. With things getting tense early, Cloud9 took extra steps to protect jungler Dennis “Svenskeren” Johnsen by grouping around him and escorting him to camps.

The pressure got turned up when TSM top laner Sergen “Broken Blade” Çelik secured a solo kill over Eric “Licorice” Ritchie. This saw both teams get considerably more aggressive, with TSM getting the better of each exchange.

After growing a bit of an advantage, TSM took down the outer turret ring and gained control over the game. With things getting out of control, Cloud9 looked to turn the tide by grouping up and forcing five versus five team fights. This worked for a time as Cloud9 slowed down the pace of the game and cut into TSM’s lead a bit, but it put them into a position where any mistake would doom them.

The slip-up inevitably came, with TSM scoring an ace and Jesper “Zven” Svenningsen notching a quadra kill as a result. TSM sealed up the win not long after.

The outcome advanced both sides to a 4-2 record on the season, which has them tied for first place with OpTic Gaming, Golden Guardians, Team Liquid, and Counter Logic Gaming. That stalemate will be broken next week as TSM faces Golden Guardians and OpTic, while Cloud9 takes on 100 Thieves and Counter Logic Gaming.