NA LCS Week 11 Preview
Riot·4/2/2014, 7:18:49 PM·0 votes·1,508 views
This is it. As the North American LCS spring split enters its final week of regular season play, the top teams duke it out for the number one spot while teams in the bottom half of the bracket fight to survive in the race to the playoffs. Cloud 9 and Team SoloMid are currently tied in first place with records of 20-4, and Week 11 will determine which of these adversaries will sit at the throne.
The competition is also tight for fifth place and downward as Team Curse, Team Coast, Evil Geniuses, and XDG Gaming make their final push for a spot in the playoffs and to avoid relegation.
If CLG wants to replicate such a performance, they will again have to channel all of their efforts into focusing Sneaky and possibly banning out Lucian. Last week, Sneaky tore apart the competition with his Lucian plays, earning himself the rightful title as MVP. But if there's anybody that will give him a run for his money, it's none other than fan favorite Yiliang "Doublelift" Peng.
Without a doubt, Team Coast's success relies heavily on solo laners Darshan "ZionSpartan" Upadhyaha and Danny "Shiphtur" Le, who have proven themselves as the core of Coast. Whenever ZionSpartan and Shiphtur hard carry, it almost always ensures a victory. But when either of these players performs less than average, than the entire team struggles. It's a hefty burden for ZionSpartan and Shiphtur to bear, but they share it together and are perfectly capable of rising to the challenge.
While TSM often outshines their opponents in lane phase, they will need to stay alert and react quickly to C9's rotations, which are some of the strongest in the league. While rotations are crucial to the flow of the game, the outcome of the match will come down to team fights in the late game, which both teams greatly excel at.
If EG and XDG want to avoid relegation and maybe even clinch a spot in the spring split playoffs, they will need to do a better job of closing out games. Both teams have proven they are able to get ahead in the lane phase, but as the mid to late game rolls out, EG and XDG have often thrown seemingly sure victories with poor team fights or ill-timed objectives.
If there's a time to step up, it's Week 11 as Super Week's results could be the difference between staying in the NA LCS or being relegated.
Be sure to tune into the final Super Week of the 2014 Spring Split on April 4th at 12:00PM PST.
Tickets are still available for purchase.
For more information on the NA LCS, including schedules, team standings, and other news, check out lolesports.com.
Counter Logic Gaming vs. Cloud 9
When: Friday, 4/4, 12:00 p.m. PST / 22:00 CET Last week, Counter Logic Gaming defied the odds by ending Team SoloMid's six-game winning streak, subsequently opening a window for Cloud 9 to claw their way into first place. C9 has already defeated CLG twice this season, but back in Week 5, they met crushing defeat as CLG completely shut down Zachary "Sneaky" Scuderi.
If CLG wants to replicate such a performance, they will again have to channel all of their efforts into focusing Sneaky and possibly banning out Lucian. Last week, Sneaky tore apart the competition with his Lucian plays, earning himself the rightful title as MVP. But if there's anybody that will give him a run for his money, it's none other than fan favorite Yiliang "Doublelift" Peng.
Curse vs. Team Coast
When: Friday, 4/4, 12:00 p.m. PST / 22:00 CET Throughout the course of the spring split, Curse and Team Coast have fought long and hard to rise up from the middle of the pack. At present, both teams are engaged in fisticuffs at fifth place with records of 9-15. They have met a total of three times this season with Team Coast coming out on top with two victories and a loss. Team Curse's inconsistency is rooted in mid laner, Joedat "Voyboy" Esfahani, who has struggled to find his stride in the mid lane but has greatly improved since the start of the split. Though Voyboy has carried with AP champions such as Lulu and LeBlanc in the past, he is still prone to random lapses, which may be due to his limited champion pool and his lack of experience in the mid lane.
Without a doubt, Team Coast's success relies heavily on solo laners Darshan "ZionSpartan" Upadhyaha and Danny "Shiphtur" Le, who have proven themselves as the core of Coast. Whenever ZionSpartan and Shiphtur hard carry, it almost always ensures a victory. But when either of these players performs less than average, than the entire team struggles. It's a hefty burden for ZionSpartan and Shiphtur to bear, but they share it together and are perfectly capable of rising to the challenge.
Team SoloMid vs. Cloud 9
When: Saturday, 4/5, 12:00 p.m. PST / 22:00 CET This is the matchup we've all been waiting for -- the final battle of the regular season between the top dogs of the North American LCS. The current record between these rivals is 2-1 in favor of defending regional champions Cloud 9, but it's anyone's game.
While TSM often outshines their opponents in lane phase, they will need to stay alert and react quickly to C9's rotations, which are some of the strongest in the league. While rotations are crucial to the flow of the game, the outcome of the match will come down to team fights in the late game, which both teams greatly excel at.
XDG Gaming vs. Evil Geniuses
When: Sunday, 4/6, 12:00 p.m. PST / 22:00 CET The spring split has been turbulent for Evil Geniuses and XDG Gaming as they sit at the very bottom of the bracket with matching win records of 6-18. Though both teams boast the skill and talent to be among the best in the league, neither has been able to cinch victories consistently throughout the season. The record currently stands 2-1 in favor of XDG Gaming, who was once considered a world-class team.
If EG and XDG want to avoid relegation and maybe even clinch a spot in the spring split playoffs, they will need to do a better job of closing out games. Both teams have proven they are able to get ahead in the lane phase, but as the mid to late game rolls out, EG and XDG have often thrown seemingly sure victories with poor team fights or ill-timed objectives.
If there's a time to step up, it's Week 11 as Super Week's results could be the difference between staying in the NA LCS or being relegated.
Be sure to tune into the final Super Week of the 2014 Spring Split on April 4th at 12:00PM PST.
Tickets are still available for purchase.
For more information on the NA LCS, including schedules, team standings, and other news, check out lolesports.com.
