This article is part of our LoL Recap series.
Vici Gaming vs. OMG
OMG (3-4, 8-8 match record) took down Vici Gaming (2-5, 6-11) on Thursday with a 2-0 sweep to kick off Week 5, Day 1 of the League of Legends Pro League in Shanghai, China.
OMG surged in the early game thanks to jungler Chen "World6" Yu-Tian, who popped off on Lee Sin with kills throughout the early-mid game. OMG took a strong kill lead into the mid game, where their neutral objective control further snowballed their lead with two Mountain and two Infernal Drakes. OMG were firing on all cylinders late in the game, securing two Baron kills while mid laner Xie "Icon" Tian-Yu's Syndra dealt a game-high 36,600 damage to enemy champions in teamfights. Despite some late heroics from Vici Gaming, OMG would sweep through VG's base with a 4-for-0 late teamfight win, where World6's 4/4/13 KDA (kills/deaths/assists) for 81 percent kill participation gave OMG the 38-minute Game 1 win.
Game 2 had a nearly identical script to Game 1 as World6 got an early lead, this time on Graves, through aggressive counter-jungling and early kills. Vici Gaming made a successful play with a four-man dive in bottom lane at near seven minutes, but were routed by OMG's objective pressure. OMG picked up an Infernal Drake and a Mountain drake, which were perfect for AD carry Han "Smlz" Jin's Ziggs, who was a tower-demolishing machine in a frantic OMG rush. After taking a 2-for-0 teamfight at 25 minutes, OMG grouped as five in the middle lane to storm their way into Vici Gaming's base, taking two mid lane turrets, the mid inhibitor, and both nexus turrets with good uses of Smlz's Satchel Charges to go alongside his 3/1/6 KDA for 75 percent kill participation. Dominating Vici Gaming with apparent ease, OMG cruised to the 27-minute win to secure the 2-0 series sweep.
OMG next play vs. Game Talents on Friday at 2:00 AM EST, followed by a reeling Vici Gaming taking on Snake Esports also on Friday at 5:00 AM EST.
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Snake vs. NewBee
Snake Esports picked up a vital 2-1 series win over NewBee on Thursday to close out Week 5, Day 1 of the League of Legends Pro League in Shanghai, China.
Making his return to the LPL after a lengthy hiatus, NewBee mid laner Yu "Cool" Jia-Jun had a standout performance on LeBlanc in Game 1. As both teams traded kills and towers back and forth in the early game, Cool did a good job of controlling the mid lane while picking up enough kills to snowball in the mid game. After picking up several kills in an elongated 4-for-2 exchange at 19 minutes, Cool dealt massive damage in the late game, including a couple of kills in a 5-for-0 ace at the 25-minute mark en route to a 9/1/3 KDA (kills/deaths/assists). Picking up a Baron kill on the back of that fight, NewBee demolished Snake's defenses to take the first game in 31 minutes.
After shuffling its roster around, with Yang "kRYST4L" Fan moving from AD carry to support, Le "SofM" Quang-Duy moving from support to jungler and backup AD carry Oh "Ohq" Gyu-min getting the starting nod, Snake (3-4, 6-10 match record) was surprisingly strong in the early game. Mid laner Liu "Zz1tai" Zhi-Hao was a monster on Ekko, absorbing constant jungle pressure while the rest of Snake picked up kills and towers across the map. While Snake did experience a bit of a setback in the form of a NewBee (2-5, 7-11) jungle steal, Ohq's damage dealing Ezreal and Zz1tai's split-pushing Ekko gave Snake the wherewithal to fend off NewBee. After securing a late Baron at 35 minutes, Snake was able to use the buff to fully stabilize and pick up an unlikely 41-minute win to force Game 3.
Fielding the same starting lineup as in Game 2, Snake fired on all cylinders early on, with Ohq's Ezreal picking up first blood just before SofM's Kha'Zix secured a kill at five minutes. Controlling both sides of the jungle, SofM's early kills were snowballed into tower kills and a 3-for-1 teamfight win for Snake that catapulted it into a strong gold lead. SofM was solid throughout the match, finding picks off of Snake's map pressure and dominating the neutral objective game for an 8/0/4 KDA. After securing an Ocean Drake, a Mountain Drake and a 24-minute Baron kill, Snake Esports finally found the win it's been desperately seeking as they swept through a final 4-for-0 teamfight in NewBee's base to complete the 29-minute stomp and take a 2-1 series win.
NewBee has little time to rest as it takes on Group A leaders Royal Never Give Up on Friday at 11 p.m. ET. Snake Esports will face Vici Gaming on Saturday at 5 a.m. ET.
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I May vs. Vici Gaming
I May (4-3, 8-8 match record) staged a stunning comeback against QG Reapers (4-3, 10-8 match record) on Friday to kick off Week 5, Day 2 of the League of Legends Pro League in Shanghai, China.
QG Reapers started Game 1 on a high note as jungler Kim "Clid" Tae-min's Rengar picked up several early kills, snowballing his lanes. While I May held a firm grip on the Elemental Drakes, QG's teamfighting was simply too much for I May's team composition to handle, mostly due to mid laner Kim "Doinb" Tae-sang's Vladimir, who popped off in a big way. Dealing massive damage while routinely out-playing IM's initiation attempts with his Sanguine Pool, Doinb posted a game-high 33,300 damage alongside a 4/1/10 KDA (kills/deaths/assists) for 93 percent kill participation and MVP honors. Securing two Baron kills and an Elder Dragon in the late game, QG Reapers took a final 5-for-1 fight in I May's base to take Game 1 in 40 minutes.
A visibly rattled I May had their prayers to the LoL gods answered when Doinb blind-picked Akali mid, giving IM mid laner Kang "Athena" Ha-woon a counter pick with Zilean. With both teams even in gold in the mid game, I May took a massive 4-for-1 teamfight win in the mid lane during an extended siege, giving them complete control of the game. With QG unable to kill anyone thanks to Athena's great teamfighting and Chronoshifts, the Reapers were forced into a desperation Baron attempt at 23 minutes where Athena hit a massive four-man double Time Bomb to secure two kills and a Baron for I May. Posting a KDA of 5/1/10 for 94 percent kill participation, Athena led I May as they crushed QG Reapers with a 28-minute Game 2 win.
The series-deciding Game 3 was slow throughout the early and mid games, despite I May picking up early kill and elemental drake leads. QG Reapers took the lead at the 28-minute mark when Clid's Lee Sin stole a Mountain Drake before taking a 3-for-0 teamfight that gave QG the first Baron of the game, but couldn't capitalize. In a ridiculous beginning to the late game, both teams repeatedly skirmished and positioned around Baron in an unexpected fiesta, with QG securing three Barons and an Elder Dragon thanks to Clid stealing two Barons from under I May's nose. In the end, QG's poor late-game decision making was punished by I May's superior team composition, where AD carry Xie "Jinjiao" Jin-Shan's Jhin shined with a 5/3/12 KDA for 85 percent kill participation as I May outlasted QG Reapers to take home the series with a 58-minute Game 3 win.
I May have a little time to celebrate their win as they face Team WE on Sunday at 5:00 AM EST, while QG Reapers will look to rebound against LGD Gaming at 1:00 AM EST on Sunday.
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EDG vs. Invictus Gaming
In a candidate for League of Legends Pro League match of the week, EDward Gaming (6-2, 12-7 match record) squared off against Invictus Gaming (4-4, 11-8 match record) on Week 5, Day 2, where EDG left Shanghai, China with a 2-1 series win to close out Friday's action.
EDG picked up an early first blood at two minutes, beginning a strong run of play that included several early skirmish wins. Taking a 4-for-1 teamfight that led to two mid lane turrets at the 30-minute mark, EDG looked poised to run away with the game, but a 5-for-3 iG ace a few minutes later halted that momentum. Invictus capitalized on their advantage, securing two Baron kills and an Elder Dragon in addition to their three elemental drake buffs from earlier in the game. Despite these massive advantages, however, iG couldn't close out the game, allowing EDG to come back with an Elder Dragon kill of their own at 52 minutes. In a chaotic, hour-long fiesta, EDG took home the first win in just under 60 minutes.
After a back-and-forth early game in Game 2, Invictus took control on the back of mid laner Song "Rookie" Eui-jin's Jayce. Playing brilliantly, Rookie led Invictus as they played a more aggressive, decisive style than they showed in Game 1, picking up steam with a clean 4-for-0 teamfight at 19 minutes. While top laner Lee "Duke" Ho-seong created splitpushing pressure on his on-hit Kennen, the rest of iG routinely found picks to get ahead, dominating the neutral objective game with three elemental drakes and a 29-minute Baron kill to EDG's one elemental drake. With Rookie dealing a game-high 21,300 damage and earning a 6/1/9 KDA (kills/deaths/assists), Invictus easily swarmed into EDG's base, where AD carry Feng "Marge" Li picked up a quadra kill on Ezreal in a 5-for-1 ace to take Game 2 in 32 minutes.
Rookie continued his sublime form in Game 3 on Syndra, solo killing EDG's Lee "Scout" Ye-chan at six minutes. Invictus Gaming held an early lead thanks to strong rotational play, but EDG turned things around near the 25-minute mark with a pair of picks and a Baron kill to take control. EDG held strong in the mid-late game, holding a roughly 5,800 gold lead at 32 minutes, but couldn't get away from a tenacious iG defense despite securing four Barons over the course of the game. Invictus did everything they could to stall the game, winning hyper-late game teamfights in their base with their backs against the wall, but EDG jungler Zhao "Fireloli" Zhi-Ming's Rengar mercifully backdoored the open Nexus, finally finishing the second hour-long game of the series to give EDG a much-needed win.
EDward Gaming will return to action next week when they take on OMG on Thursday at 4:00 AM EST, while Invictus Gaming gear up for another tough fight in the form of QG Reapers when the two meet next week on Friday at 7:00 AM EST.
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NewBee vs. RNG
Royal Never Give Up made this series exciting before Game 1 even began with a surprising early Leona pick followed shortly by a Nocturne. Jungler Liu "Mlxg" Shi-Yu got off to a great start on the latter champion, outplaying Baek "Swift" Da-hoon's Graves to grab first blood before even hitting level six. Mlxg and the rest of RNG snowballed brilliantly off of this lead, pulling off gank after gank and taking skirmish after skirmish. RNG's chance at a perfect game ended when its bot lane was caught out at the 24-minute mark, but that didn't stop the team from finishing what was a stomp of a Game 1 in just under 30 minutes.
Game 2 saw an even earlier first blood for Royal, this time claimed by top laner Yan "LetMe" Jun-Ze's Renekton in a top lane gank before the five-minute mark. There was a short period of time in this game where Newbee looked like it would finally find its footing, but in the end this disaster was no more mitigated than the first. Newbee managed to find a few more kills when RNG overstepped, but could do nothing to win skirmishes or stop the members of Royal from taking whichever objectives it pleased. Ultimately, Game 2 ended in an even quicker 28-and-a-half minutes, completing the dominant sweep for RNG.
Still sitting alone at the top of the table, Royal will look to continue its success up against Team WE on Saturday, March 18 at 3 a.m ET. Meanwhile, Newbee looks to rebound against I May on Friday, March 17 at 5 a.m ET.
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Game Talents vs. OMG
In a long series of fiestas, Game Talents (3-5, 8-12 match record) took a 2-1 win over OMG (3-5, 8-10) on Saturday during Week 5, Day 3 of the League of Legends Pro League in Shanghai, China.
OMG kicked off Game 1 with a bang as jungler Chen "World6" Yu-Tian picked up first blood as Graves shortly before mid laner Xie "Icon" Tian-Yu secured a second kill as Syndra at six minutes. OMG snowballed in the early game, controlling the flow of the game well into the late game where OMG started a Baron attempt at 30 minutes. Game Talents jungler Liang "Xiaoyu" Jian then made a hero play as Kha'Zix, stealing the Baron buff at the cost of his life. With a newfound vigor, Game Talents came storming back, picking up an Elder Dragon alongside two Infernal Drakes as well as a second Baron at 37 minutes to crush OMG's defenses in an improbable 42-minute GT win.
In similar fashion to Game 1, Icon picked up an early kill in the mid lane for first blood as Ahri, solo-killing Bong "Republic" Geun-tae's Vladimir. After taking a 2-for-0 in the top lane to secure a tower kill, OMG looked poised to run away with the game, but a 3-for-0 cross map skirmish win for GT at 24 minutes complicated things considerably. In a tumultuous late game, AD carry Han "Smlz" Jin's Caitlyn carried OMG through difficult teamfights, dealing a massive 40,300 damage to enemy champions, including a triple kill in Game Talents' base to take Game 2 in 40 minutes to force Game 3.
The fiesta levels reached their peak early in Game 3, where a four-vs-four skirmish at Game Talents' raptor camp gave GT first blood early. With both teams finding minor kills in skirmishes and ganks throughout the mid game, Game Talents held a minor lead through superior objective control, although that wouldn't last long. Picking up a 2-for-1 trade at the 25-minute mark, OMG briefly dictated the pace of the game before GT came surging back with a clean ace at 32 minutes, largely due to GT top laner Kim "Gimgoon" Han-saem's Rumble putting in a big-time carry performance. Dealing a team-high 26,100 damage to enemy champions while posting an 11/1/5 KDA (kills/deaths/assists) for 73 percent kill participation, Gimgoon led unlikely underdogs GT to a 2-1 series win with a 44-minute Game 3 win.
OMG look to get back on track on Thursday when they'll face tough competition in EDward Gaming at 4:00 a.m ET, while Game Talents will take a lengthy break until next Sunday when they play vs I May at 2:00 a.m ET.
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Snake vs. Vici Gaming
Snake Esports outlasted a struggling Vici Gaming on Saturday to close out Week 5, Day 3 of the League of Legends Pro League in Shanghai, China.
Snake jungler Le "SofM" Quang Duy had a good performance in Game 1 on Rengar, picking up first blood at four minutes in the top lane, but Vici Gaming had similar luck picking up scattered kills. With both teams trading kills and towers back-and-forth throughout the mid game, Snake's lucky break came when SofM stole a Baron kill at 35 minutes, allowing a beleaguered Snake to staunch the bleeding heading into the late game. With a 5/4/2 KDA (kills/deaths/assists) line for 78 percent kill participation and MVP honors, SofM secured 3 Baron kills for Snake Esports (4-4, 8-10 match record) as it outlasted a visibly tilted Vici (3-5, 6-13) to take a 51-minute Game 1 win.
Vici flipped up its roster for Game 2, with Lee "Easyhoon" Ji-hoon moving to support on Nami and surrendering his mid-lane spot to backup Peng "Peng's" Yi-Bo Ekko. For the most part, both teams played passively to start the match, leading to a standstill going into the mid game. Things quickly ramped up for Snake, though, as a multi-man dive gave them two easy kills. From that point on, Snake were essentially in complete control, as they rotated around the map to abuse the role swaps. Support Yang "kRYST4L" Fan, in particular, impressed during the game, providing excellent utility en route to a 0/0/11 KDA for 100 percent kill participation as Snake took an easy 31-minute win.
Vici Gaming next faces LGD Gaming on March 18 at 12 a.m. ET, and Snake Esports will prepare for a tough series later that day against EDward Gaming at 6 a.m ET.
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Qiao Gu vs. LGD
QG Reapers (5-3, 12-8 match record) took a 2-0 sweep over LGD Gaming (2-6, 7-12) on Sunday to kick off Week 5, Day 4 of the League of Legends Pro League in Shanghai, China.
After a Tahm Kench bug forced a full remake of Game 1, LGD and QG traded advantages in the early game. QG Reapers struck first as top laner Kan "Kabe" Ho Man picked up first blood as Camille, snowballing into the mid game where he was the sole survivor of a bloody 5-for-4 ace at 16 minutes. QG couldn't hold onto their lead, however, slowly feeding kills one-by-one before LGD took a 2-for-0 fight and a Baron kill at the 25-minute mark. LGD sprung ahead with the buff, securing several towers, but overstayed in the bottom lane, taking a tower but losing four members. QG got themselves together late, partially due to mid laner Kim "Doinb" Tae-sang's Karma, who dealt a massive 24,900 damage while posting a 4/5/15 KDA (kills/deaths/assists). Grouping together and teamfighting well, QG took a close 5-for-3 ace to unlock a 32-minute Baron kill and a 35-minute win.
Game 2 was similar for QG Reapers as Kabe's Camille picked up first blood in the face of a 1-vs-2 gank at nine minutes. LGD took control after a five-man dive in the bottom lane, extending their gold lead by picking QG members throughout the mid game. Much like in Game 1, QG eventually found their footing in the late game, picking up a 4-for-0 and a Baron kill on the back of a triple kill from Doinb's Viktor (en route to dealing a game-high 33,100 damage). While LGD Gaming was able to grind out a decent defense of their base, Kabe and Doinb were simply too strong to handle, with Kabe finding a 1-vs-2 kill around 39 minutes in LGD's base while Doinb capped off an MVP performance with a 7/1/5 KDA for 86 percent kill participation in a 3.5 hour 2-0 sweep for QG Reapers.
LGD Gaming, who are in dire need of wins, gear up for a tough matchup against Team WE on Thursday at 7:00 a.m ET, while QG Reapers prepare to take on Invictus Gaming at 7:00 a.m ET on Friday.
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I May vs. WE
The final match of Week 5, Day 4 in the League of Legends Pro League saw a rematch of last season's Gauntlet for the third seed at the 2016 World Championship. This time, Team WE (6-2, 13-6 match record) took down I May (4-4, 8-10) to close out Sunday's action in Shanghai, China.
Team WE took control of Game 1 early on, taking a couple of towers and kills before 15 minutes and giving the Rift Herald buff to mid laner Su "xiye" Han-Wei's Karma. Going on a mid-game rampage, WE barreled down the bottom lane to take five kills, two turrets and the inhibitor as they were firmly in control. Not willing to roll over and die, I May came firing back with a 5-for-1 ace in the top lane on the back of mid laner Kang "Athena" Ha-woon's quadrakill on Vladimir. The next 10 minutes were filled with fiestas as Team WE struggled to push further into I May's defenses despite securing two Baron kills. I May threatened to make the comeback a reality by winning consecutive teamfights in the bottom lane 4-for-1 with an exposed Nexus, even taking a late gold lead, but heroics from AD carry Jin "Mystic" Seong-jun's Ezreal, who dealt a game-high 91,600 damage and earned a 13/4/6 KDA (kills/deaths/assists) for 86 percent kill participation, stopped I May from finishing the Nexus as WE finally finished the game in 49 stress-fueled minutes.
After a heart-stopping Game 1, the magic seemed to disappear; the spark of fight left in I May fizzled out as subs took to the field against a kill-hungry Team WE. Diving two turrets in mid to give xiye's Jayce first blood at nine minutes, Team WE were extremely clean in the early game, winning skirmishes with consistent ease. After a fight in the middle lane went 4-for-1 in WE's favor, there was nothing I May could do to stop Team WE, who were powered by xiye's massive poke damage. Pushing through the bottom lane while taking kills, WE sieged incredibly well to crack open IM's base, where xiye earned some of his game-high 17,400 damage and flawless 6/0/3 KDA.
Team WE continue to march down the warpath with a matchup against a struggling LGD Gaming on Thursday at 7:00 a.m ET, while I May will look to shake off this loss against NewBee on Friday at 4:00 a.m ET.
