C9 continued to show they are the best in the LCS this weekend with wins over EG and GG. Their win against Evil Geniuses came first, in what could have been a close match with EG looking strong this split so far as well. EG were 3-0 coming into this match, but Cloud9's playstyle proved too much. As for the Golden Guardians-Cloud9 match, there was much less surprise, but still a common thread.
While any number one team needs to be strong at a variety of things such as split pushing and team fighting, the biggest note from these two games was Cloud9's early gold lead. Not just early game dominance, but early game dominance. In the game against Evil Geniuses, Cloud9 was ahead by over one thousand gold at the 4:45 mark. Similarly, against Golden Guardians, they jumped to an eight hundred gold lead at the same time.
We all know how dominant Blaber can be with his jungle clears early in the game. He currently holds the three fastest times for Level 6 on jungler this split. When he is able to get ahead so early, and his team is able to provide early pressure elsewhere on the map, it creates an advantage that is so hard for other teams to dig out of against a team of Cloud9's quality.
Looking ahead for Cloud9 should be an optimistic venture for fans as Evil Geniuses are arguably the second best team in the LCS. The LCS is currently loaded for second place with four teams tying at 3-1, but Evil Geniuses has shown lots of potential. Specifically, I've always been a big fan of Kumo, and I thought he played alright despite his team losing so convincingly. At the 13 minute mark, he even held a considerable lead over his counterpart, Licorice, after taking down Nisqy. Blaber, of course, came in and ruined the day for EG despite getting the early pickoff. Evil Geniuses weren't granted the opportunity to get back in the game.
That lockdown style should bode well for C9 as they face another test this weekend against Team Liquid who are 3-1 just like EG. Team Liquid, although 3-1, just lost to EG in their last game and before that beat Golden Guardians and 100 Thieves who are both towards the bottom of the table. I think the situation for Team Liquid is solid, as they have the pieces to be a top tier team, but have yet to prove to me they can compete with the likes of Cloud9. Team Liquid need to take a two-fold approach to this game, as Cloud9 can basically separate the game into two halves. The first half, the early game, is so important when trying not to lose to Cloud9. Team Liquid will need to scrap for those 15 minutes and simply try to stay in the game, and then still play the second half of the game where Cloud9 have shown they are good enough to win any week.
I will be specifically watching Blaber's jungle, as he has consistently shown the ability to be a top jungler over the past few splits, but the mid matchup could be key as these teams try to control the pace of the game. We saw Nisqy get caught around the 13th minute on a top lane roam, and taking advantage of opportunities like that could be the difference maker if teams start to figure out C9's play.
Thank you so much for reading. For more esports content, check out the rest of the site and my YouTube channel! I can't wait for the games this weekend.
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