T1 overcomes Damwon Gaming to kick off 2020 LCK Spring Split

T1 opened the 2020 LCK Spring season with a victory over Damwon Gaming.

The LCK is back and it started with a bang as T1 met Damwon in the first series of the split. T1 arrived at the LoL Park with a new look, new roster, and new coaching staff. On the other side, Damwon kept the same roster and added new coaches. Interestingly, both coaches were actually working against their former teams.

The series gave fans the first glimpse at the LCK’s meta in 2020. While North America and Europe are experimenting with picks like Soraka in the top lane, the Korean teams kept it almost standard.

Sett was present in the three games of the series. The junglers only played Gragas and Lee Sin. In the mid lane, Rumble and Ornn made an appearance. In the bottom lane, the duos went for Aphelios or Miss Fortune with engaging supports like Thresh and Leona.

T1 finds the results against all odds

In game one of the series, T1 was overeager when it came to the team fights. Throughout the game, T1 jumped into fights without a clear plan. That attitude cost them neutral objectives around the map, and eventually the game.

Game two proceeded in a similar fashion with Damwon making the early moves across the map. T1 found its moments to reclaim some territory and swing the momentum back in their favor. Damwon continued to scale through the mid game and T1 fell significantly behind, but one key moment put a stop to Damwon’s scaling.

In a bloody team fight, T1 secured three kills and closed the gold difference between the teams.

With the two teams even, the game came down to one extended team fight in the mid lane. Damwon had just claimed the baron buff and T1 traded the objective for the Cloud Soul. The teams clashed in the mid lane and T1 had the upper hand. T1 knew how to position itself better in the fight and how to split the enemies. T1 pushed for the win and the teams headed to a deciding game three.

Damwon drafted a scaling composition with Kayle in the top lane. T1 opted for a lane swap pitting Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok on Tristana against Jang “Nuguri” Ha-gwon. This time around, T1 was making the moves on the map. T1 had a good read on the pathing of jungler Kim “Canyon” Geon-bu and knew where to strike.

Despite mistakes from support Lee “Effort” Sang-ho, T1 managed to amass a significant advantage in the early game. Damwon wanted to drag the game as much as possible, but T1 wouldn’t allow it. During the late game, the game hit a crucial point with Damwon in control. One team fight would change the outcome of the game.

T1 caught Damwon as they tried to enter the river and killed two enemies. The numbers advantage was enough for T1 and the team secured both the elder dragon and the baron buff. The final push was smooth for T1 and Damwon couldn’t do anything to stop them from taking the nexus.

T1 will return to the stage on Friday to face Hanwha Life Esports. Damwon is playing APK Prince on Saturday.