NA LCS Finals Recap
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The top two NA teams came together to fight over the #1 spot, and Cloud 9 showed impeccable rotations, an impressive ability to suppress and counter any lead TSM took, and an inexorably dominant strategy with even the slightest edge.
It would be easy to give the MVP award to anybody on Cloud 9, but the award has to go to Hai.
Yes, Balls played well with sacrificial but inexorable Jax and Trundle play. But in 2 of his 3 games, he started to get fed by well-timed Hai ganks.
Yes, Meteos exerted ridiculous pressure, showed off an innovative Elise build, and didn't die throughout the series. But he was matched against TheOddOne, arguably the weak link on TSM.
Yes, Sneaky had exceptional positioning and aggressive burst, but he could only do so because any threats to him were immediately bursted down by Hai's LeBlanc, any risk he had of dying was nullified by Hai's Lulu shields, and initiation was all led by Hai's Twisted Fate.
Yes, LemonNation followed up on initiation after initiation.
But Hai did it all. He picked up early kills. He roamed. He outfarmed Bjergsen. And above all, he did that despite being the most undervalued player on Cloud 9, playing against the season MVP of Bjergsen. If you asked most analysts who the best mid in North America is, they'd say Bjergsen. And it's hard to argue with his performance. But Hai proved time and time again that he can go toe-to-toe with the best and come out ahead, holding Bjergsen to a .67 KDA, one tenth of his KDA for the season, while himself going 12-0-32.
EG stormed into the 2013 Spring Split with dominant performances in the qualifying tournament. But they were unable to put their genius to wark, and only barely staved off last place. They go to relegation, to face the best Challenger teams in North America, and fight for their spot in the LCS.
Coast has been heralded for its solo laners, but they were left holding little this season, as they lost in the season and then in the playoffs again and again, with most of their victories coming against EG and XDG. Shiphtur and ZionSpartan showed signs of greatness, but were unable to be everything for their teams.
Dignitas started off hot, leading some to surmise that this was their season. Unfortunately, they slumped after their first two weeks, leading to Scarra's replacement by Goldenglue at the end of the season. Scarra would come back for the playoffs, helping Dignitas to avoid relegation with a 2-1 victory over Coast.
Curse only looked better and better as the season went on, with Quas becoming a force to be reckoned with, and Cop continuing to excel. But their team suffered from continual roster swaps, finally settling on Bunnyfufuu, after trying out Zekent and Saintvicious for supports. They looked stronger at the end of the season, but still have a ways to improve.
CLG had a rough start, with their jungler not being able to make the first 9 games of the split. But since his return, they have shaped themselves into one of the top 3 teams in North America, nearly taking TSM down in the semi-finals, but for a mistake that TSM capitalized on. Look to see them compete for the #2 spot next season!
TSM was considered the dominant NA team for some time. The team had been vaulted into the top spot by the addition of Bjergsen, a top-tier mid laner in his own right, but come playoffs they were shut down effectively by Cloud 9, who took small leads and never gave them up.
Cloud 9 vs TSM
Game 1 Game 1 was not a good sign for TSM. They did everything right, forcing the 2v2, and picking smartly to account for Balls' dominance, picking up Lee Sin and Xin Zhao for extreme early game strength. They abused Bjergsen's early lead over Hai to force a Dragon for the team. But 11 minutes into the game, the gold was exactly even. Balls was up 20 cs. Meteos was up 10 cs. Sneaky was up about 10 cs. And then Cloud 9 showed why their mid game is the most feared in North America. They snowballed quickly to 3 kills. Hai challenged Bjergsen and won, picking up a kill 1v1. Cloud 9 used the momentum to pick up a Dragon, and from there, the game was out of control. Cloud 9 took control over the path from mid lane to Baron, and whenever TSM positioned to protect one, Cloud 9 took gains elsewhere, taking tower after tower mid while completely dominating Baron ward control. They repeatedly threatened Baron and then caught TSM mid-rotation for kills, using their power plays to push again and again, eventually picking up the mid inhibitor. Dyrus did manage to catch Sneaky out of position with a teleport Dragon kick, but it was the only kill TSM would pick up en route to an 18-1, 39 minute victory. Game 2 Game 2 gave hope to TSM fans everywhere, with an awkward pick by Balls, taking Jax into an already-picked Renekton. But Hai shut Dyrus down with an 8 minute roam top, netting first blood for Balls' Jax, and giving Cloud 9 their first gold lead of the game. TSM responded by roaming onto Dragon, but Cloud 9 picked up 2 kills and a healthy amount of damage on top tower. It was starting to look like a repeat of game 1, but Bjergsen roamed top, picking up two consecutive kills on Balls and taking down top tower. However, this only delayed the inevitable, as Cloud 9 continued to rotate for objective after objective. TSM actually seemed the tiniest bit ahead of Cloud 9, but the tiniest bit of a lead against a 4-2 Jax kept feeling slimmer and slimmer. In the end, it was Cloud 9's continued dominance of mid lane, as in game 2, which allowed them to win. TSM continued to take objectives elsewhere, but Cloud 9 constantly returned to push mid. TSM thought they had a chance to Baron, as Meteos had been forced back, but the remaining 4 members of Cloud 9 outfought them at Baron, picking up 4 kills, Baron, and mid inhibitor. From there, it was a slow, methodical, and unstoppable 21-4 victory from Cloud 9. Game 3 Game 3 was – technically speaking – almost a perfect game. 19:30 passed with entirely even gold, and not a single kill, despite 5 towers and a Dragon. A roam top by Hai and LemonNation barely picked up first blood on Dyrus, but the gold remained consistently even throughout the game. 25 minutes into the game, TSM tried to rotate onto Dragon, but a brilliant Spell Shield onto Twisted Fate allowed him to ult into the Dragon pit, forcing a retreat from TSM. Dyrus, however, went straight into the middle of TSM, leaving him separated from his team by the threat of a Jax stun from Balls, and by the time TSM could respond, Dyrus was dead. Cloud 9 picked up the Dragon, and the first appreciable gold lead (3.5k). Once again, Cloud 9 abused the pathway between Baron and mid, heavily ward-clearing, pushing mid, balling back to Baron, and forcing fights in transition, where the spell shield from Morgana could protect them and allow for risk-free Twisted Fate initiations. Balls died starting the fight, but a huge Morgana ultimate from LemonNation allowed Cloud 9 to take down everybody but Dyrus, pushing in for the inhibitor and falling back for a free Baron. Any attempt by TSM to respond was shut down immediately by a pick initiated by Hai's twisted Fate, and with Baron Buff, C9 pushed down bot and then top lane, down to the inhibitor. They pushed in to win with another commanding lead: 15-1.MVP: Hai
It would be easy to give the MVP award to anybody on Cloud 9, but the award has to go to Hai.
Yes, Balls played well with sacrificial but inexorable Jax and Trundle play. But in 2 of his 3 games, he started to get fed by well-timed Hai ganks.
Yes, Meteos exerted ridiculous pressure, showed off an innovative Elise build, and didn't die throughout the series. But he was matched against TheOddOne, arguably the weak link on TSM.
Yes, Sneaky had exceptional positioning and aggressive burst, but he could only do so because any threats to him were immediately bursted down by Hai's LeBlanc, any risk he had of dying was nullified by Hai's Lulu shields, and initiation was all led by Hai's Twisted Fate.
Yes, LemonNation followed up on initiation after initiation.
But Hai did it all. He picked up early kills. He roamed. He outfarmed Bjergsen. And above all, he did that despite being the most undervalued player on Cloud 9, playing against the season MVP of Bjergsen. If you asked most analysts who the best mid in North America is, they'd say Bjergsen. And it's hard to argue with his performance. But Hai proved time and time again that he can go toe-to-toe with the best and come out ahead, holding Bjergsen to a .67 KDA, one tenth of his KDA for the season, while himself going 12-0-32.
Season Summary
Cloud 9 may be the repeat champions of North America, but looking back, what are the stories of North America? XDG came into the 2014 Spring Split the #2 team, but a series of roster changes brought them to their knees, losing game after game on their way to last place. A mid-season roster shuffle didn't help much, and while they beat C9 and TSM in the last few weeks of the season, they finished in last place.
EG stormed into the 2013 Spring Split with dominant performances in the qualifying tournament. But they were unable to put their genius to wark, and only barely staved off last place. They go to relegation, to face the best Challenger teams in North America, and fight for their spot in the LCS.
Coast has been heralded for its solo laners, but they were left holding little this season, as they lost in the season and then in the playoffs again and again, with most of their victories coming against EG and XDG. Shiphtur and ZionSpartan showed signs of greatness, but were unable to be everything for their teams.
Dignitas started off hot, leading some to surmise that this was their season. Unfortunately, they slumped after their first two weeks, leading to Scarra's replacement by Goldenglue at the end of the season. Scarra would come back for the playoffs, helping Dignitas to avoid relegation with a 2-1 victory over Coast.
Curse only looked better and better as the season went on, with Quas becoming a force to be reckoned with, and Cop continuing to excel. But their team suffered from continual roster swaps, finally settling on Bunnyfufuu, after trying out Zekent and Saintvicious for supports. They looked stronger at the end of the season, but still have a ways to improve.
CLG had a rough start, with their jungler not being able to make the first 9 games of the split. But since his return, they have shaped themselves into one of the top 3 teams in North America, nearly taking TSM down in the semi-finals, but for a mistake that TSM capitalized on. Look to see them compete for the #2 spot next season!
TSM was considered the dominant NA team for some time. The team had been vaulted into the top spot by the addition of Bjergsen, a top-tier mid laner in his own right, but come playoffs they were shut down effectively by Cloud 9, who took small leads and never gave them up.
that I know and love.
Just gg
