The final week of group stages is upon us. Every match is “do or die”, you either make it to playoffs and secure at least $500, or you get eliminated. This is where the pressure mounts and players need to prove that they have what it takes to move on to the next stage. It has been a surprise seeing some of these teams in the position of potential elimination. While the EU region does not have a clear favorite for the title, NA has seen a lot of instability and a more clear picture of who is in the forefront of the race, with the skill gap being a lot more apparent between Triumph and the rest. The winners of these bouts will be going into playoffs as the lower seeds and will need to bring their A game in order to proceed in playoffs.
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Nemiga
[16:4 vs Bpro;
16:9 vs KOVA;
16:11 vs CR4ZY]PACT
[16:9 vs Singularity;
16:6 vs Izako Boars;
19:16 vs AGF]SKADE [10:16 vs Espada;
16:7 vs Apeks;
16:10 vs LDLC;
16:8 vs AGF]Espada [16:10 vs SKADE;
14:16 vs AGF;
16:11 vs FATE-;
16:11 vs CR4ZY]Kova [16:8 vs FATE-;
9:16 vs Nemiga;
16:12 vs ARG;
16:12 vs BIG Omen Academy]
CLEANTmix [6:16 vs Izako Boars; 10:16 vs Fate; 4:16 vs Apeks]Bpro [4:16 vs Nemiga; 3:16 vs BIG Omen Academy; FFL vs Singularity]Singularity [9:16 vs PACT; 12:16 vs ARG; FFW vs MKBpro; 6:16 vs LDLC]FATE [8:16 vs Kova; 16:10 vs CLEANTmix; 11:16 vs Espada; 11:16 vs Apeks]Izako Boars [16:6 vs CLEANTmix; 6:16 vs PACT; 11:16 vs BIG Omen Academy; 10:16 vs ARG]
Decider matches (2-2 Pool)
1) AGF vs Apeks
Apeks really have been coming together well towards the later rounds of the group stage. That being said, both of wins were against teams that are now eliminated and the losses to the now qualified SKADE and to LDLC, which tells us that they still struggle against tougher competition. AGF seemed to have a lot more composure against the tougher opponents on their way here. They lost to PACT in OT, defeated Espada, however we’ve only really seen them play well on Overpass. Apeks are really good on that map, too, they hold a stronger overall map pool to AGF and have Dennis ‘dennis’ Edman, who is incredibly experienced under pressure and can take over matches like this by himself. On paper, this match should go in the Norwegians’ favor.
2) BIG OMEN Academy vs LDLC OL
School is in session for the BIG Academy, as their young up-and-comers take on the overwhelmingly more experienced LDLC. There is so much pedigree inside the French powerhouse that its an understatement to call BIG OMEN Academy an underdog here. If BIG don’t succumb to the pressure, they could take it to double digits, but its unlikely that this is an upset that they can pull off. The addition of Alexandre ‘bodyy’ Pianaro and Aurélien ‘afroo’ Drapier for LDLC make it that much harder for the Academy.
3) CR4ZY vs Team ARG
CR4ZY had the unfortunate draw of playing against other CIS teams back to back after securing an early 2-0 lead in the group stage. They were showing world-class positioning, rotations and protocols in the early games, but it felt like the other CIS teams were very uncomfortable opponents for coach Ivan ‘Johnta’ Shevtsov’s team. They play against the Argentinian squad of Jonathan ‘JonY BoY’ Muñoz. ARG have been going through a rough patch, as they’ve just parted ways with their organization of 10 months, x6tence. ARG may be eager to prove themselves as they may be looking for a new home, to them, this win comes with a great cash bonus and a spot in playoffs. They’ve already upset Izako Boars in the last round, but may have met their match in CR4ZY, who have a very strong stuctured playstyle thanks to their coach. If CR4ZY aren’t having a bad game, I can see them giving double digits away to their opponents but ultimately walking away with a playoff spot.
Triumph [16:12 vs Yeah Gaming; 16:12 vs RBG; 16:2 vs Chaos EC]Recon 5 [16:9 vs TeamOne; 16:7 vs Morning Light; 19:16 vs Thunder Logic]Yeah Gaming [12:16 vs Triumph; 16:13 vs NE Whalers; 16:13 vs TeamOne; 16:7 vs Levitate]CHAOS EC [16:3 vs Warriors; FFW vs BigFrames; 2:16 vs Triumph; 16:6 vs Swe Canadians]RBG [16:12 vs Levitate; 12:16 vs Triumph; 16:12 vs Polar Ace; 16:12 vs Thunder Logic]
Keep the comms up [FF vs BIG Frames; 2:16 vs Under21; 10:16 vs New England Whalers]Infinity [ 6:16 vs Morning Light; 8:16 vs Polar Ace; 13:16 vs Warriors International]Big Frames [FFW vs Keep the comms up; FFL vs Chaos; 1:16 vs Levitate; FFL vs TeamOne]Polar Ace [10:16 vs Swe Canadians; 16:8 vs InFinity; 12:16 vs RBG; 4:16 vs NE Whalers]Morning Light [16:6 vs InFinity; 7:16 vs Recon5; 14:16 vs Swe Canadians; FFL vs Warriors]
1) New England Whalers vs TeamOne Esports
New England whalers showed us two dominant performances in rounds 3 and 4, if they keep this performance up, its hard to see how TeamOne can outlast them in this matchup. TeamOne have been hurting without a permanent 5th player after the departure of Alencar ‘trk’ Rossato to MIBR with Mario ‘malbsMd’ Samayoa as their stable stand in. They’ve come off a FFW against Big Frames in the league, their recent win in the CS_Summit 6 makes me question my original view on this matchup, but both maps were decided in overtime. Whoever does enough work to fix their mistakes from those matches will come out ahead. Whalers have some heavy hitters like Ben ‘ben1337’ Smith and Josh ‘PwnAlone’ Pigue and can take off an arm if you give them an inch. This is looking to be a very entertaining match and heartbreaking for either team that gets eliminated here.
2) Warriors International vs Thunder Logic
Warriors have just swapped out their long tenured IGL Wyatt ‘Top^’ Beakler for Michael ‘Swisher’ Schmid, they’ve been in high spirits since and could very well perform above their usual level just from being in their “honeymoon period”. Swisher is a great addition to any team, he’s been subbing in for prominent teams in North America and has been receiving much praise from his peers. Thunder Logic is a division lower than Warriors in ESEA, but that is misleading, they are the stronger team here. They’ve yet to reach their peak and are in contention to join MDL next season.
3) Swedish Canadians vs Levitate
The Canadians have been missing their Swede recently, with Christopher ‘Swahn’ Swahn playing in his stead. Adam ‘Wolfy’ Andersson has been an integral part of the team’s success and its tough to see them taking on Levitate without him. Levitate have been putting up good numbers against teams of a similar caliber to Swedish Canadians and can take this if they avoid maps like Mirage and Overpass. Expect a sweep for Levitate if the veto lands on Dust 2.
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