Incoming: Round 2 of the LCK Summer Split!
A well-deserved break is en route for the teams of League Champions Korea (LCK). With Round One of the Summer Split coming to a close, which teams have hit the Rift like an Explosive Cask and which have fizzled out?
The Undefeated
SKTelecom T1
The Spring Split Champions have been on an exceptional winning streak, keeping an undefeated set score of 9-0 to end the round in 1st Place. Though they dropped one game in their sets to lower-ranked teams Samsung and Anarchy, SKT was able to secure decisive 2-0 victories against other LCK powerhouses like CJ Entus.
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SKT has shown how multi-faceted they are -- it's apparent they never stop evolving. They've been able to pull out different champions like Lee "Faker" Sang-hyuk's infamous Irelia and Master Yi along with Jang "MaRin" Gyeong-hwan's top Nunu and Morgana.
Support Lee "Wolf" Jae-wan had some insane set-ups for his team, with the most notable game being in Week 4 Game 2 against CJ Entus. Playing as Annie, he was able to cripple Kang "Ambition" Chan-yong's early game on Nidalee and ensure SKT's ability to gain a lead off of that unfortunate misstep. Though Wolf has really stepped up his personal plays, his inconsistency at MSI has become a spot of concern for the otherwise sturdy team. Opponents have also focused down mid laner Lee "Easyhoon" Ji-hoon in games, like Samsung did in Week 3 Game 2.
But because SKT is so fluid and adaptive, it seems these small problems won't even matter in the long run. Going into Round 2 undefeated, the Playoffs are just within reach for SKT.
Neck and Neck - The Middle of the Pack
One upset can turn everything upside-down.
KOO Tigers
Reeling from their 2nd Place finish in the Spring Playoffs, the KOO Tigers had a lackluster start to their Summer Split. Losing matches against teams like Najin e-mFire and Jin Air, their fall from the top spot was undoubtedly a tough pill to swallow. But their chance for redemption seems to be in close sight, as they've rebounded with a five-match win streak and a Pentakill for Top laner Jung "Smeb" Kyung-ho with pocket-pick Riven.
Some things for the KOO Tigers to reflect on going into Round 2: Consistency issues for AD Carry Kim "PraY" Jong-in and veteran jungler Lee "hojin" Ho-jin. Though the former has recovered from his early misplays and positional mistakes, hojin hasn't been able to play crucial jungle picks as well as KOO's other jungler, Kim "Wisdom" Tae-wan. Hojin has one loss each with Rek'Sai and Gragas, compared to Wisdom who is 1-0 with Rek'Sai and 5-2 with Gragas. Will KOO give hojin's experience another chance or continue fielding Wisdom?
Jin Air Green Wings
Great plays, especially by jungler Lee "Chaser" Sang-hyun, have helped Jin Air worm their way up the pecking order. Chaser's had two insane games as Nidalee and Rek'Sai. Jin Air's crowning glory this round is being able to deny CJ Entus and their flanking composition the fights that they wanted -- done with a lot of smart warding by all members of the team -- resulting in a triumphant victory in their Week 5 Game 1 match.
Jin Air is a team that likes to play as a pack, taking time to ramp up their power and plays. Unfortunately for them, other teams were able to take advantage of their defensive early game strategies to keep them in check. Still, as hard-engage strategies have fallen by the wayside, Jin Air seems to have found a stronger foothold, being able to play their distinct style that involves Chaser's creative jungle pathing. Round 2 will be a testament to whether they can soar above the rest to the top of the standings.
Najin e-mFire
Despite losing a set in Week 1 to rookie team Anarchy, Najin e-mFire has proven they're still a strong contender for a top spot. They defeated heavily favored CJ Entus in their Week 5 match, with veteran jungler Jo "Watch" Jae-gul wrecking things with Lee Sin. With a loss to Jin Air, then a win over KT Rolster, it's clear that Najin e-mFire have their work cut out for them if they want to continue winning all their matches.
Consistency is key, and Najin needs to keep it in mind while preparing for the next round. It's also back to the drawing board for picks and bans. Watch was forced onto an Evelynn pick and Chaser's Rek'Sai was really instrumental in crippling Watch's ability to impact the game, yet Game 2 saw a repeat of those problematic Jungle picks. Sticking with the same pick/ban strategy after a loss is probably not something they want to continue doing, especially since it was also a failure the second time.
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CJ Entus
CJ Entus started off Summer securing victories in their sets despite dropping the first game. Fans dubbed this the "Rage Meta," where the first loss would sufficiently jumpstart the team into doing better. Mid laner Shin "CoCo" Jin-young has been putting up great numbers -- particularly on Cassiopeia -- with a 14.67 KDA. Unfortunately for CJ, their slow climb up the ladder was dashed first by SKT where they were outmaneuvered by their opponent's extraordinary game control abilities. Then they were defeated by the Jin Air Green Wings and a fearsome jungle Nidalee. Though they have seem to have recovered from the back-to-back losses, the way back up will be more difficult than usual.
Heading into the second round, CJ needs to adapt faster when faced with unexpected situations. Game 2 against SKT showed them falling apart at the seams despite best efforts to stave off the damage caused by the focus in mid lane. In Week 5 against Jin Air, Park "Shy" Sang-myun's Hecarim and Kang "Ambition" Chan-young's Eve failed to execute a flank strategy and left the team floundering. CJ has been diversifying their champion picks, with Shy pulling out Shen and Hong "MadLife" Min-gi opting for Bard in the Week 6 set against Longzhu IM. It's a step in the right direction, but they'll need to keep it up going into Round 2.
KT Rolster
KT seems to be faltering after two consecutive defeats in Week 6. Their Week 2 win against the Jin Air Green Wings certainly helped them early in the season, with players like Kim "Nagne" Sang-moon and No "Arrow" Dong-hyun going 11/0/18 and 14/1/17 respectively in their two games. But with their latest defeats against teams like KOO, Najin, and SKT, they've almost lost that early advantage.
Sivir has been the goddess of victory for KT Rolster this split, with Arrow having a 9.38 KDA and 7W-3L history on the pick. But what happens when they aren't able to get the glaive-wielding warrior princess? It's been a mixed bag of results, with a 4W-7L record overall on the other ADCs he's chosen this season. Priority on this champion ultimately will make or break KT. With the addition of ex-SKT support Lee "Piccaboo" Jong-beom, KT certainly has the ability to develop some new strategies that can make up for their dependence on Sivir.
The Bottom Four
Anarchy
Hey, Son "Mickey" Young-min! It's no wonder that the rookie mid laner's amassed quite a large following, as his agile plays on assassin champs like Zed and LeBlanc have been crucial in leading his team to victory. Anarchy have shown moments of brilliance, holding their own against powerhouse teams like SKT, but those flashes have not translated themselves into a consistent stream of victories.
Anarchy needs to refine their ability to abuse leads and close out games. Though Mickey is able to make great plays to force a reaction from opposing teams, the rest of Anarchy needs to coordinate better if they hope to become a more formidable threat.
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Samsung Galaxy
Being one of the two teams that are able to say that they won against SKT is certainly an achievement.
The addition of Lee "Crown" Min-ho has been a godsend, with the aggressive laner assassinating Emperor Hoon's Cassiopeia with Fizz during said victory. Like Anarchy, Samsung had some standout games, including the Week 2 Game 1 against the KOO Tigers where Jang "Luna" Kyung-ho played an exceptional Bard. Samsung has some great ideas, and the Twisted Fate pick into Luna's Bard certainly shows how innovative they are. But since they lack experience, they haven't quite hit those harmonizing notes the way they would like to.
As a team playing in a competitive region like the LCK, Samsung needs to quickly develop synergy to challenge the veterans. Members of Samsung have sworn to improve themselves going into Round 2. If the new roster of players continue to put out strong plays such as Crown's impressive LeBlanc game against Jin Air in Week 3, they may become a formidable LCK team. There's hope looming in the horizon for this team reborn after the disastrous effects of the Korean Exodus of 2014.
Longzhu Incredible Miracle [[{"fid":"17234","view_mode":"full","fields":{"format":"full","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":"","field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":""},"tagName":"IMG","src":"http%3A//admin.prod.lolesports.com/s3/files/styles/full_width_scale/public/i11300356517.jpg%3Fitok%3DdHEYk3yN","type":"media","attributes":{"class":"media-element file-full","style":"width: 350px; height: 305px; margin: 10px; float: right;"}}]]
Longzhu IM might be part of the bottom bracket, but they're continuing their fight with a seemingly bottomless supply of Elixirs of Iron. Longzhu unexpectedly managed to make the Week 6 Game 1 victory for the KOO Tigers harder, thanks to mid laner Kim "Frozen" Tae-il's Varus homing arrows and top laner Jung "Apple" Chul-woo's Rumble Equalizers (R). It just goes to show that these so-called "bottom tier" teams are not teams to be taken lightly.
As we head into Round 2, IM's fighting spirit is ever apparent. Sure, they lag behind other teams in individual mechanical plays, as well as aspects of map control and overall flow of the game -- but they're putting up a damn good fight. They'll have to work on refining these problem points if they don't want to continue being an "easy win" team.
Sbenu SonicBoom
Standing in last place with a 0-9 score is Sbenu. AD Carry Shin "Nuclear" Jung-hyun has been a stable player throughout it all, showing incredible consistency despite his team's shortcomings. He is the only member on his team with a positive KDA overall -- 54/48/64 in 19 games -- aside from sub ADC Kim "dan" Seung-hoo, who stands at 1/0/2 for one game played. Mid laner Oh "SaSin" Seung-ju has showcased quite a diverse champion pool, playing 11 different champions so far in Summer. He's found success on Kassadin, showing an impressive 5/1/6 score in Sbenu's Week 4 match against Longzhu IM.
Despite minor successes, the season's been a pretty tough one for Sbenu SonicBoom. But playing against all of the superstars of the LCK is a valuable learning experience. Hopefully they will be able to soak up all of the experience of Round 1 and apply it to becoming an improved team going into the second half of the Split.
The Season of Uncertainty
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A perfect Round 1 means that SKT, as the reigning Spring Champions, are able to stand at the top once more. Will any team be able to take them down? Challengers will need to prepare and bring their top form to stand a chance in Round 2 of the 2015 LCK Summer Split.
Round 2 resumes July 1st, right here on Lolesports.
