This article is part of our LoL Recap series.
Jin Air Green Wings made quick work of the ROX Tigers in the final match of Week 1, Day 3 of League of Legends Champions Korea, taking a 2-0 win on Friday in Seoul, South Korea.
Game 1's pick phase saw some unusual selections as ROX jungler Yoon "SeongHwan" Seong-hwan locked in Olaf and Jin Air Green Wings top laner Jeon "ikssu" Ik-soo picked up Sejuani. JAG's strong top half of the map showed its teamfighting potential early on, securing first blood for Jin Air and giving it a tempo advantage. Throughout the first 20 minutes, JAG (1-1, 3-2 match record) rotated around the map better, but ROX (0-1, 0-2 match record) remained in the game thanks to fed AD carry Gwon "Sangyoon" Sang-yun's Twitch. A teamfight at the 26-minute mark nearly turned into an ace in the favor of JAG, forcing ROX to hide in its base. After some stout defense from ROX, JAG took down the Baron and Elder Dragon, then marched into ROX's base to destroy the Nexus and go up 1-0 in the series.
After a pretty standard Game 1, both teams threw conventional team compositions out the window as JAG locked in the new champion duo of Xayah for AD carry Park "Teddy" Jin-seong and Rakan for support No "SnowFLower" Hoi-jong while ROX gave support Kim "Key" Han-gi his signature Brand. Despite the exciting draft phase, the early game saw few kills and towers fall within the first 20 minutes, mostly due to unbalanced laning matchups. At the 25-minute mark, JAG's teamfighting composition proved to be stronger than ROX's, leading to a 3-for-0 teamfight in favor of JAG that gave it complete map control. One quick teamfight later and JAG knocked down its second Nexus of the day, effortlessly sweeping ROX to close out the day of action.
ROX Tigers has a chance to break even tomorrow in its match against Samsung Galaxy at 8 a.m ET, while Jin Air Green Wings takes on LCK newcomer Ever8 Winners on Wednesday, June 7 at 5 a.m ET.
It wasn't clean by any means, but Longzhu Gaming remained undefeated by taking down bbq Olivers on Thursday with a 2-1 series win on Week 1, Day 3 of the League of Legends Champions Korea in Seoul, South Korea --------------------------------------------------------------------- Longzhu looked to impress in Game 1 as mid laner Gwak "Bdd" Bo-seong blind-picked Zed, showing off LZ's confidence after picking up a 2-0 victory over powerhouse KT Rolster on Tuesday. By playing with that confidence, Longzhu Gaming (2-0, 4-1 match record) secured first blood and first tower gold off of a well-timed gank, snowballing ahead. bbq Olivers (0-1, 1-2 match record) slowed the game down after falling early, but a series of cheeky plays by Longzhu led to two kills and a free Mountain Drake after the 20-minute mark. Longzhu looked unstoppable with its pick composition firing on all cylinders, taking a 5-for-2 teamfight victory and a Baron kill at 30 minutes before making quick work of the bbq base to go up 1-0 in the series. Game 2 was a much tougher affair for Longzhu after a dominating Game 1, due to bbq being more proactive. The Olivers' oddball teamfighting composition worked surprisingly well early on,leading to a bbq lead before 20 minutes. Longzhu tried to claw back into the game during a mid-game lull, but a top lane teamfight led to a 4-for-0 victory for bbq which it turned into a free Baron kill. A desperate engage by Longzhu to pull back into the game near the 31-minute mark was turned by bbq AD carry Jang "Ghost" Yong-jun's Kalista, who led bbq with a 5/0/2 KDA (kills/deaths/assists) as the Olivers evened out the series at 1-1. In the early stages of Game 3, Longzhu earned a modest gold lead through farm advantages and kills. Longzhu jungler Moon "Cuzz" Woo-chan's Zac is what really set Longzhu up for success, as the often-banned jungle pick offered tons of utility, crowd control, and tankiness for the team. After Longzhu really pulled ahead of the game by winning a 3-for-0 teamfight 25-minutes into the game, Longzhu began methodically cracking open bbq's base as its strong early game comp scaled well into the late game. Smelling blood in the water, Cuzz picked out two bbq members in the mid lane at 37 minutes, guiding his team to a 2-1 series victory. Longzhu continues its win streak on Wednesday, June 7 at 8 a.m ET in a highly anticipated match against SK Telecom, while bbq Olivers will face SKT this Sunday at 8 a.m ET ------------------------------------------------------------------------ A perfect game by Afreeca Freecs and a fantastic bounce back by KT Rolster set the stage for an action-packed 2-1 victory for KT that kicked off the Week 1, Day 4 League of Legends Champions Korea action in Seoul, South Korea.
Afreeca Freecs (1-1, 3-3 match record) looked to stretch KT Rolster top laner Song "Smeb" Kyung-ho's champion pool by throwing four bans in his direction. The top lane eventually became the focus for Afreeca, but it was jungler Lee "Spirit" Da-yoon's Elise who propelled the Freecs ahead early on by giving consistent pressure and first tower to top laner Jang "MaRin" Gyeong-hwan's Jarvan IV. The game calmed down, and was mostly illustrated by Afreeca rotating to knock down towers and finding some occasional kills while KT (1-1, 2-3 match record) simply looked lost. After breaking into the KT base, Afreeca took down Baron at the 37-minute mark and earned a 4-for-0 teamfight en route to going up 1-0 in the series with a perfect game.
Instead of rolling over and dying, KT came out revitalized in Game 2, most namely through support Cho "Mata" Se-hyeong's Thresh by forcing engage after engage to put its bottom lane ahead. A five-man dive in the bot lane led to an ace for KT to further solidify its lead. KT proactively moved around the map to pressure the Freecs all around, with a 27-minute Baron allowing KT to push into the Afreeca base. After effectively utilizing its pick team composition to relentlessly pressure Afreeca on the back of the numerous advantages all around the map, KT locked up the 29-minute win to force a decisive Game 3.
The first 10 minutes of the deciding match were action-packed, with Afreeca barely coming out on top in the early game. As the game continued, Afreeca seemed a little stronger at every point. The game blew wide open after a sneaky Baron attempt from Afreeca went south and was stolen by a surging KT Rolster. Re-energized by the Baron buff, KT stormed into the Afreeca base, quickly knocking down towers that eventually destroyed the Nexus to pick up a 2-1 series victory for KT.
Afreeca Freecs will return to the Rift to face Samsung Galaxy on Tuesday, June 6 at 4 a.m ET, and KT Rolster will play the very next game against ROX Tigers at 7 a.m ET.
------------------------------------------------------------------------ Although ROX Tigers upset Samsung Galaxy in Game 1, Samsung bounced back in the next two games Saturday to close out the series and remain undefeated through Week 1, Day 4 of the League of Legends Champions Korea in Seoul, South Korea.
The first game of the series started off with ROX support Kim "Key" Han-gi locking in Blitzcrank. He was as terrifying in Game 1 as he was in solo queue, it seemed. The game was mostly ROX (0-2, 1-4 match record) being more proactive and playing around the map better to find multiple picks throughout the first 20 minutes. After slaying Baron at 24 minutes, ROX forced a teamfight in the mid lane to break into the Samsung Galaxy (2-0, 4-1 match record) base. A beautiful flash-hook combo by Key simultaneously ignited the crowd and broke the spirits of of Samsung, and put ROX in the position to effortlessly put away Samsung and go up 1-0 in the series.
Game 2 was a much scrappier affair in the first 20 minutes, with neither team afraid to take dragon trades or skirmishes. Samsung mid laner Lee "Crown" Min-ho's Syndra was the staple for his team early on, with his strong performance keeping the gold even at the 20-minute mark. An odd flank attempt by ROX paved the way for Samsung to force a 3-for-1 teamfight that also netted it free Baron. The game then settled into another lull before it was broken wide open when Samsung took another Baron at the 35-minute mark and destroyed the ROX base to force a Game 3.
The third game of the series was Samsung's best early game of the day, with the team getting a 7,000-gold lead at 20 minutes. A teamfight in the mid lane at the 21-minute mark ended in a 3-for-0 in favor of Samsung, with a Baron to top things off. With its newfound Baron buff, Samsung razed two inhibitors and heavily pressured the ROX base. Samsung gave ROX no chance of coming back after quickly committing to a teamfight, wiping four members of ROX to clear the way to its Nexus to take a 2-1 series victory.
Samsung Galaxy will next take on Afreeca Freecs on Tuesday, June 6 at at 5 a.m ET, and ROX will play next on the same day against KT Rolster at 8 a.m ET.
------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ever8 opened the final day of Week 1 in the League of Legends Champions Korea with a commanding 2-0 sweep of MVP on Sunday in Seoul, South Korea.
MVP (1-1, 2-3 match record) took a teamfight-focused composition into Game 1, wasting no time putting that composition to the test by attempting to invade Ever8's jungle in level one shenanigans. What it seemed to forget, however, was that the Olaf of Ever8 jungler Kim "Malrang" Geun-seung and Syndra of mid laner Park "Cepted" Wi-rim are two of the best level one champions in the game. Ever8 (1-1, 3-2 match record) capitalized by securing two kills in this opening skirmish to set the tone for the game. By the time 10 minutes had passed, Cepted, who finished with a stellar 8/2/2 KDA (kills/deaths/assists), had picked up a total three kills to allow Ever8 to easily control the game from then on. It took some time, but Ever8 finally went for a pick in the late-game and picked up a 25-minute Baron kill. That was all it needed to fully take control over the game before locking up the win in 34 minutes.
Maintaining momentum from Game 1, Ever8 jumped out of the gate with a another big lead from the early moments of Game 2. It started with another strong draft, with highlights of Cepted's Cassiopeia and Ha "Comeback" Seung-chan's Galio support pick. Ever8 top laner Kwon "Helper" Young-jae's Rumble got the ball rolling with a solo kill on MVP top laner Kang "ADD" Gun-mo's Kennen just four minutes in before he roamed down to the bottom lane to help his team pick up two more kills. From this point on, Cepted once again took over the mid lane to give his team another huge advantage with flashy outplays. Needing just a single pick to lock up the Baron at 26 minutes, Ever8 easily coasted to the 28-minute win while managing to give up no kills, just one tower and a Cloud Drake. Cepted earned his second MVP of the night with his 4/0/7 performance in this breezy win.
Ever8 will look to continue its momentum against the Jin Air Green Wings on Wednesday at 4 a.m. ET, while MVP will hit the stage on Thursday to take on Samsung Galaxy on Thursday at 4 a.m.
------------------------------------------------------------------------- Despite a shaky showing early in Game 2, SK Telecom T1 managed to pick up a 2-0 victory over bbq Olivers in Seoul, South Korea to close out Week 1 of League of Legends Champions Korea on Sunday.
In one of the most one-sided games to ever take place in the LCK, SKT (1-1, 2-2 match record) drafted a high-risk, high-reward composition filled with three carry champions. The most unorthodox of the picks by far was the signature Lucian in the top lane for Heo "Huni" Seung-hoon, who made it work to his advantage for an early first blood. That first blood kicked off a massive snowball for SKT that resulted in four kills, five towers and a 9,000-gold lead by 20 minutes. SKT did what few teams can, and executed this risky composition to absolute perfection. It finished the win in just under 25 minutes, and only gave up two kills and no objectives to the hapless bbq Olivers. While the carries got all the attention, Lee "Wolf" Jae-wan's performance on Thresh was especially noteworthy, picking up MVP honors as his Death Sentences enabled his carries to freely dole out buckets of damage.
With SKT drafting a team filled with lots of engage options, it was a wonder that bbq (0-2, 1-4 match record) actually took over the game in terms of kills early on. While SKT picked up a couple early kills, it pushed too far into bbq territory, and bbq punished this with a massive quadra kill from mid laner Kang "Tempt" Myung-gu and his Corki. From then on, bbq focused on picking up kills all across the map, but SKT managed to stay ahead through its unmatched objective control. Whenever bbq picked up a kill, SKT traded with an objective. That's not to say that SKT shied from teamfights, however, as a key fight around the Baron pit gave SKT complete control of the game. When things looked dire in the fight, Bae "Bang" Jun-sik's Ashe came up with a kill that flipped the fight on its head and allowed SKT to secure the Baron and make its final push for the win. By the end of its 31-minute win, SKT was still down in kills but owned a 9-to-1 advantage in towers and a 3-to-1 advantage in dragons, closing out the 2-0 sweep through objective domination.
SKT will get back into it on Wednesday vs. the new-look Longzhu Gaming at 7 a.m. ET, while bbq next takes to the Rift on Thursday at 7 a.m. in a matchup with the Afreeca Freecs.
