This article is part of our LoL Recap series.
KT Rolster vs. ROX
The first game of the LCK Spring Split started off right where the Summer Split left off, with a rematch between the ROX Tigers and KT Rolster in South Korea. This time around, KT would win handily on the back of some strong, team-oriented play.
The first game of the series was a slow slugfest that felt like a heavyweight boxing match. ROX landed the first punch, courtesy of Hangi "Key" Kim. KT weathered the early aggression with a nice three-kill teamfight near the 18-minute mark to give the team a 3K gold lead it would never relinquish.
It looked as though ROX was just waiting for that one teamfight that would bring it back into the game, but the moment never came. Not only did KT's overall team cohesion keep it ahead at every turn, Hyuk-kyu "Deft" Kim's Ezreal was an absolute monster that cut through ROX like a hot knife through butter. He ended with a 5/1/4 KDA (kills/death/assists) to help secure the win.
Game 2 started out similar to the first, as both teams spent a lot of time farming before jumping into teamfights. Despite momentum seemingly flipping back and forth, KT clung to a narrow lead throughout much of the early portion of the game. As the contest continued on, the lead began to grow before finally busting wide open near the 30-minute mark. A premature Baron play turned into disaster for ROX as the team lost three members, the Baron and a Cloud Drake, effectively ending the game. From that point on, KT would play a methodical game, picking up objectives left and right before finishing things up in just under 45 minutes.
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Longzhu vs. Samsung
Longzhu's run during the 2017 LCK Spring Split got off to a smashing start before it all came crashing down against Samsung Galaxy.
Yong-jun "Fly" Song kicked off Game 1 with a first blood, a precursor to the destruction by Longzhu. While there were many reasons behind the 33-minute trouncing in which it dominated all aspects of the game, the biggest factor in the win ended up being Jong-In "PraY" Kim's performance on Jhin. Samsung could not find any answer for the ADC as he marched toward a 10/1/10 KDA (kill/death/assist ratio).
To say the second game didn't go as planned for Longzhu might be an understatement, as the loss likely won't be replicated in the LCK, LCS or LPL very often. Not only did Longzhu get dominated in kills 16 to 5, it lost 11 towers while only claiming a single one for itself.
This came as the result of letting Camille slip through the first ban phase, which made her an insta-lock for Sungjin "CuVee" Lee in the top lane. CuVee then took the champion onto the Rift and almost singlehandedly won Samsung the game. He was all over the map, shutting down Longzhu on the way to an impressive 7/2/3 KDA, a major reason for the quick, 34-minute win that tied up the series.
The final game was Samsung's almost from the start, as Minseung "Haru" Kang stole the Blue buff from Dong-woo "Crash" Lee. This gave Samsung a gold lead they would never relinquish. While Longzhu would try and make a game out of it by taking the second and third Baron, Samsung had already pushed into its base by quite a bit. Longzhu merely delayed the inevitable before Samsung finally closed out the 2-1 series with a win in 41 minutes.
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SKT vs. Jin Air
SK Telecom T1's World Championship defense got off to a strong start with a crushing sweep over the Jin Air Green Wings on the second day of the 2017 LCK Spring Season.
The first game of the series began as a bit of a slugfest, with both teams jockeying for position in the first half. Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok got SKT on the board early with a first blood just four minutes in to give his team a slight gold lead. The teams would then trade gold leads before SKT began to slowly choke the life out of JAG. Accumulating three Barons throughout the game, SKT was just too strong for JAG to deal with in the late game.
The start of the second game was the complete opposite of the first, with Faker on the receiving end of a first blood this time around. This allowed JAG to have the upper hand throughout the early part of the game. However, a three-for-none teamfight win by SKT seemed to flip the momentum as the world champions began to dominate the map. Faker owned the mid lane, Han "Peanut" Wang-ho controlled the map via the jungle, Seung-hoon "Huni" Heo tanked a ton of damage from the front line and Bae "Bang" Jun-sik won the bottom lane with his Ziggs pick. All of this added up to a quick win that saw SKT dismantle all 11 of JAG's towers without losing any of its own.
For all the domination seen by SKT in the final game of the series, the biggest welcomed surprise of the day was Huni shrugging off rumors that he couldn't play tank champions. He excelled in both games on Maokai and Poppy respectively, posting a series KDA (kill/death/assist ratio) of 5/2/24.
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bbq Olivers vs. MVP
Just like Tuesday, the second series of the day in the 2017 LCK Spring Split went the distance in a close 2-1 series.
Outside of a short period in the mid-game following a bbq teamfight win around the dragon pit, MVP was in the driver's seat for most of the first game. A later Baron would be the final boost needed for MVP to push ahead for the victory. MVP's top laner Kang "ADD" Gun-Mo used his tankiness and overall strong mechanical play on Sion to amass a 5/1/8 KDA (kill/death/assist ratio) and propel his team to a win.
Game 2 of this series was a complete 180 from the first one, and was seemingly won in the pick-ban phase. LeBlanc made it through the first ban stage and was instantly locked up by bbq. Kang "Tempt" Myung-Gu used the champion to get first blood early in the game, and it was pretty much curtains from that point. Bbq Olivers had a gold lead from that moment on, and ended up knocking down 11 towers while only losing one. Tempt was the linchpin in the victory, finishing with a ridiculous 10/0/2 KDA that set the tone.
Tempt wasn't content to dominate just one game, as he decided to also go off in Game 3 to the tune of a 15/3/7 KDA. This time he was on Taliyah instead of LeBlanc, but his impact was no less subdued. He picked up first blood near the eight-minute mark and never looked back. His Weaver's Walls were always perfectly placed and zoned off MVP to give bbq the edge in teamfights in a 33-minute win to clinch the series.
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ROX vs. Kongdoo
Despite losing the first game of the series, The ROX Tigers were able to record its first win of the split by defeating Kongdoo Monster on Thursday.
In Game 1, jungler Son "Punch" Min-hyeok got Kongdoo started with a first blood on Elise only five minutes into the game. While ROX rallied from there to earn a slight gold lead, Kongdoo's methodical, slow-paced game chipped at its opposition's resolve before snowballing late into into a win at just under 42 minutes. Kongdoo's AD Carry Jin-sol "SSol" Seo was the MVP of the game, tallying a 6/0/6 KDA (kills/deaths/assists) on Jhin and downing four towers in the big win.
Whereas the first game was very much a slow burn, the second was a powder keg that exploded about 12 minutes in. Kongdoo looked poised to coast to a 2-0 victory after Punch got three kills on ROX's mid laner Sun "Mickey" Young-min within the first 10 minutes. But the Tigers' ADC, Gwon "Sangyoon" Sang-yun, kicked off an extended teamfight with a nice Enchanted Crystal Arrow that locked down Kongdoo and netted four kills to the Monster's zero. From then on, ROX completely dominated on its way to a 32-minute victory; ROX amassed 20 kills to only five deaths.
Game 3 started as an even tug-of-war. Each team opted to farm for the majority of the early game until 11 minutes in where there was a quick teamfight that ended up being a two-for-two. Momentum swung back and forth between the two teams before ROX used a 4-for-0 teamfight to lock up the Baron, take a gold lead, and march to a 38-minute victory.
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Afreeca vs. Sasmsung
Afreeca started off the third day of the LCK with a somewhat surprising 2-1 win over Samsung Galaxy. Game 1 was won almost single-handedly in the top lane; Jang "MaRin" Gyeong-Hwan on Kennen took first blood and the first tower early on, leading to a 4K gold lead after just 12 minutes.
Not content to own his lane, MaRin began to roam around the map and impact other lanes as well. Afreeca finished with an advantage in kills (13-4), towers (10-1), inhibitors (3-0) and Barons (2-0). MaRin would lead the way with a 7/1/0 KDA (kills/deaths/assists) in the 30-minute dismantling.
Unfazed by the trouncing it received in Game 1, Samsung bounced back in Game 2. Mid laner Lee "Crown" Min-ho in particular turned it around on Taliyah, starting with his first blood which came in a 1-vs-2 situation. No member would stand out individually, but a strong team-oriented strategy from Samsung was just enough to lock up the win after a methodical 41 minute game.
The final game of the series was a bit of a roller coaster ride for both teams, as each enjoyed some success at different moments of the contest. Despite claiming a Baron around the 23-minute mark, Samsung had little chance to utilize it as Afreeca stormed in to take a big four-for-zero teamfight. Jungler Lee "Spirit" Da-yoon's Olaf was Afreeca's X-factor in Game 3, running rampant on the map to the tune of a 2/0/9 KDA. His presence in teamfights was just what Afreeca needed to lock up a 2-1 series win to start the split 1-0 overall.
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Newbee vs. WE
While it took a bit longer to get there than expected, Team WE locked up its first series win of China's League of Legends Pro League Spring Split with a 2-1 victory over Newbee.
The opening 20 minutes of this game were incredibly slow-paced, with neither team gaining much of an advantage. But WE gained ground after knocking down the first tower and winning the subsequent first major teamfight. Parlaying the initial gold advantage into multiple teamfight wins, WE never relinquished their stranglehold on the lead. WE's Jin "Mystic" Seong-jun was the hero of this game, always finding himself in the right place at the right time en route to a 6/1/5 KDA (kills/deaths/assists).
Game 2 belonged to Newbee from the get-go. Newbee's Baek "Swift" Dae-Hoon's Kha'Zix got two quick kills on WE's Ke "957" Chang-yu's Maokai before 10 minutes had passed, completely setting the tone of the match. While WE's Xiang "Condi" Ren-Jie did pull off a huge Baron steal at the 28-minute mark, erasing most of the 7,000 gold lead Newbee had amassed, the comeback would eventually fall short after WE was aced in a teamfight around the Elder Dragon, ending the contest in under 40 minutes.
Despite an ugly Game 2 performance, WE rebounded well enough to claim a series win. Condi started off the game with the first blood in the top lane on Newbee's Bao "V" Bo. In addition to first blood, WE also took down the first tower, giving the team enough staying power to snowball into a gold lead. It would then win the first big teamfight as a 4-for-3, only exacerbating the lead further. As a result, WE claimed what amounted to a fairly quick and easy win to secure their first series victory of the 2017 Spring Split.
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KT Rolster vs. bbq
KT Rolster was on a roll in their second matchup in Week 1 of the League Champions Korea Spring Split, as they dispatched bbq Olivers in a quick 2-0 series sweep on Saturday.
In Game 1, KT Rolster built a lead through their middle and bottom lanes before they rotated around the map and knocked down turrets. Bbq Olivers did grab two Dragon buffs, but that would be the only objectives they were able to secure as KT Rolster was systematic in its map pressure.
A teleport flank by KT's Song "Smeb" Kyung-ho's Maokai caught bbq Olivers out of position, resulting in a demoralizing teamfight loss. That was the beginning of the end for bbq Olivers as the teamfight cost them middle lane Tier 2 and 3 turrets, as well as a Baron buff. The buff was all KT Rolster needed before pushing in the bottom lane for the win.
KT Rolster continued to show its macro dominance in Game 2 as it didn't lose a turret or give up any neutral objectives. While Smeb wasn't able to draw first blood with Jayce until almost 20 minutes into the contest, the pace picked up significantly from there. Game 2 didn't have many teamfights, thanks largely to the fact that bbq Olivers struggled to put up much of an offense, finishing with just one kill compared to KT Rolster's five. Smeb had the majority of those kills as he finished with a 4/0/0 KDA, netting series MVP honors.
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Longzhu vs. Jin Air Green Wings
League of Legends team Longzhu Gaming came back after dropping Game 1 to Jin Air Green Wings to earn its first victory of the 2017 League Champions Korea Spring Split on Saturday.
While plenty of damage was traded out during the opening portion of Game 1, first blood came near the 19-minute mark when JAGW's No "SnowFlower" Hoei-jong's Miss Fortune blew away Kang "GorillA" Beom-hyeon's Zyra with a Bullet Time.
JAGW began to build a lead in kills, turrets and gold as they methodically pushed Longzhu Gaming into their corner of the map. After Jin Air Green Wings broke open Longzhu's base, they were able to secure a Baron buff and an Elder Dragon before pushing to a win.
Longzhu's Lee "Crash" Dong-woo's Rengar got the action started early in Game 2, as he punished JAGW's Um "UmTi" Sung-hyeon's Lee Sin for trying to invade, taking him down for first blood 3½ minutes in. There was a lull in the ensuing action that lasted until about the 20-minute mark, when multiple skirmishes broke out in the bottom lane. Longzhu Gaming got the better of the battles as Song "Fly" Young-jun's Corki scored a triple kill before helping push down JAGW's Tier 1 and 2 turrets in the bottom lane. Playing slow and steady, Longzhu didn't push in for the Nexus until all the opponents' inhibitors had been destroyed, tying the series at 1-1.
Despite losing out on first blood, Longzhu slowly started to build a lead in Game 3, using expert rotations to secure a handful of objectives, including five dragon buffs. However, Longzhu overstayed its welcome during a midgame siege, allowing JAGW to mount a comeback. Trading middle lane inhibitor kills, the teams dueled over Baron and an Elder Dragon before Longzhu finally wrestled away control. A final push near the 67-minute mark finally ended the marathon series, giving Longzhu its first win of the 2017 Spring Split.
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MVP vs. AF
In a surprising turn of events, MVP's lesser-known roster was able to take down the star-studded unit of Afreeca Freecs 2-1 during Sunday's action in the South Korean LCK.
Game 1 started out relatively slow and consisted of a few inconsequential kills. The match finally exploded with MVP's pick onto Jang "MaRin" Gyeong-hwan in the top lane, which allowed them to take Baron, albeit at the cost of three members. Luckily for MVP, An "Ian" Jun-hyeong, whose Corki had been dealing out huge damage all game, had kept the buff. It was his damage and MVP's excellent teamfight coordination that allowed MVP to dominate the rest of the game. Ian earned a massive 10/0/5 KDA (kills/deaths/assists).
The second game of the series was even slower than the first. Only four kills had occurred prior to the first real teamfight at roughly 30-and-a-half minutes. In that time, however, Lee "Kuro" Seo-haeng's Cassiopeia had become massively strong, and it showed as Afreeca took the first fight 3-0 and secured the Baron. At that point, all of the small advantages that AF had been building up skyrocketed, and MVP were left with no chance whatsoever of getting back into the game.
In contrast, Game 3 started out explosively, with Kang "ADD" Geon-mo's Camille blowing Kuro's Flash on Katarina in the mid lane before the two-minute mark, and then walking top, where his jungler Kim "Beyond" Kyu-seok would donate him first blood. Further ganks would put top lane back in the favor of MaRin's Kennen, but Afreeca would lose the rest of the map in the meantime. Through superior map pressure, MVP were able to gradually suffocate Afreeca out of the game, with only a minor hiccup in the form of a lost teamfight along the way.
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SKT vs. Kongdoo
After their decisive victory over Jin Air on Wednesday, SK Telecom T1 looked to seize control of the LoL Champions Korea with a win over newcomers Kongdoo Monster. Kongdoo Monster made a few plays throughout the series, but the SKT juggernaut rolled through them in two decisive matches for the series sweep.
While Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok would eventually dominate Game 1 on Corki, it was Heo "Huni" Seung-hoon's Poppy that would put SKT ahead early, picking up a solo kill for first blood. Huni would snowball his lead by ganking mid, getting Faker ahead en route to earning a 5/1/11 KDA (kills/deaths/assists) for 80 percent kill participation. While Kongdoo tried to recover, its players, particularly Kim "Roach" Kang-hee's Maokai, kept getting caught out of position, giving SK Telecom an insurmountable gold lead. After diving Kongdoo Monster under their tower and winning a dominant 4-for-0 teamfight, SKT took Baron and made their way into Kongdoo Monster's base. In a clean 5-for-0 ace, SKT broke through Kongdoo Monster's defenses to take Game 1.
Game 2 started with several skirmishes resulting in near deaths, but it wasn't until nine minutes when Faker's Katarina would get killed for first blood by Lee "Edge" Ho-seong's Cassiopeia. SK Telecom would storm back, picking up two kills in mid lane before winning a crucial 4-for-1 teamfight in the bottom lane. Faker went off on Katarina, often times attracting multiple Kongdoo Monsters to deal with him while earning a 7/2/6 KDA (kills/deaths/assists) for 81 percent kill participation. Huni excelled on Gangplank as well, dealing a game-high 18,500 damage to enemy champions while split-pushing. After an early Baron, SKT would sweep through Kongdoo Monster's base.
