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Evil Geniuses face 100 Thieves this Thursday in a rematch of the 2022 summer season’s semifinals.
Evil Geniuses are in third place on LCS 2023 Spring standings with a 10-5 win-loss record. They’re heading into this match off the back of a loss to Cloud9.
100 Thieves haven’t been their usual selves this season. They’ve got a 7-8 win-loss record this season but won their last match against Golden Guardians.
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Pick: Evil Geniuses to win.
Evil Geniuses and 100 Thieves are LCS heavyweights, but neither of them have been living up to that billing this season. Evil Geniuses have been doing a bit better in third place but have already lost five matches this season. Cloud9 and FlyQuest have, undoubtedly, had a better season than Evil Geniuses this season.
100 Thieves, on the other hand, look like they’re having serious issues. They’ve already lost eight matches this season, which is very uncharacteristic of them. Of course, teams are allowed to have dips in form, but this doesn’t look like a dip any longer.
100 Thieves need the win more badly than Evil Geniuses, but they’ve also given themselves a lot to do as the regular season edges closer to the finish line. As motivated as they will be, they’ll also feel a lot of pressure.
This game is always quite hard to call, and all these factors don’t make it any easier. The two sides have had some titanic battles recently, including last season’s LCS Summer semifinal, which 100 Thieves won 3-2. The two sides also faced off in the LCS Spring finals, which Evil Geniuses won 3-0.
When the two sides faced each other earlier this season, Evil Geniuses came out on top. Evil Genius are the favorites in this match – the odds would’ve been a lot closer just a month back, but that’s how quickly things can change in the LCS. 100 Thieves have got too many issues at the moment, and Evil Geniuses are the last team you want to face when things are tough. It’s hard to see past an Evil Geniuses win in this one.
The loss to Cloud9 last week was a reality check for Evil Geniuses. It looked like they’d gone back to winning ways after winning two matches on the trot, but it looks like they’re quite a way from the standards of previous seasons.
It seems like they’re still recovering from Team Liquid’s pounding in the Lock In final last season. It’s difficult to pinpoint why there has been this slight drop-off in output this season – this, of course, is a big deal in the LCS, where the smallest of margins can make a difference.
The team is the same as last season’s as well. One reason for the drop-off could be the team’s tactics this season. Jojopyun, their mid-laner and chief offensive weapon, has been targeted quite heavily by the opposition this year. He’s averaged 4.07 kills per game this season but also averaged 3.43 deaths per game, which is on the higher side. By aggressively targeting him, his impact has been minimized, which has a ripple effect on the rest of the side.
Evil Geniuses need to find a solution quickly because more teams will deploy this strategy in the playoffs.
100 Thieves put in one of their best performances of the season last week against Golden Guardians, and the win couldn’t have come against a better opponent and at a better time. Golden Guardians have been in top form this season. They had a 9-5 win-loss record before the match against 100 Thieves, and this was just the sort of preparation that 100 Thieves needed before the big game against Evil Geniuses.
100 Thieves had won just one match in their last eight before the win against Golden Guardians, and it looked like there was no turning things around. Even the best teams can run out of solutions at times, and it looked like they couldn’t come out of this rut before the win. That’s all changed now; they’ll go into the match against Evil Geniuses with a lot of belief, but they’ll know that it won’t be easy.
The players need to start playing to their potential. Even the reliable Bjergsen hasn’t been his usual self this season. He has averaged 2.57 kills, 2.07 deaths, and 5.21 assists per game this season, but he and his teammates need to forget all that and focus on the next game for now. History shows that they are more than capable of beating Evil Geniuses.
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Teams: Evil Geniuses vs 100 Thieves
Location: North America
Time: Thursday, March 16
How to watch: LCS Twitch Channel
AUTHOR
Nikhil Kalro
633 Articles
With an interest in strategy and mathematics, applying that to sports writing was the natural progression. A writer at night and the founder of a gaming company, Nikhil’s previous experience includes working with ESPN for five years. His specialization includes soccer, basketball, tennis, and esports betting. Email: [email protected]
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