The 2020 LCS Spring Split will enter week two of the season this Saturday, February 1, where we will see four exciting matches featuring top North American League of Legends teams.
Counter Logic Gaming vs 100 Thieves
Saturday, February 1 – 14:00 PST
CLG entered 2020 LCS Spring Split regarded as one of the top four teams by many analysts, but based on what they have shown in week one, we have hard time convincing ourselves they will even make it to the playoffs. While their loss to Dignitas was not shocking, considering how strong DIG looked like in the opening week, we were surprised at how poorly CLG played in game two, when they got crushed by FlyQuest.
What exactly went wrong in this team is anyone’s guess, but we can say for certain that if CLG don’t improve ASAP, they will be finishing the split among the bottom four.
100 Thieves on the other side have been regarded as a mediocre team and they did not disappoint. They defeated Golden Guardians on day one and lost to EG on Thursday. Although they suffered a loss against EG, 100T played well, but were simply no match for the Italian stallion Daniele “Jiizuke” di Mauro and his LeBlanc.
The betting odds on this match suggest it will be a close one and we believe that is fair. While CLG have a lot more quality on the paper, they severely underperformed in week one, which leads us to believe they will match up nicely with 100T. All in all, we expect a close match which should easily pass the 30-minute mark. We might not see a 60+ minute game, but a 40-minute one is not entirely out of the question, which is why we will side with an over 22.5 kills bet.
Prediction: Over 22.5 kills – 1.847 Pinnacle
Prediction: 100 Thieves to win – 2.00 Pinnacle
Dignitas vs Team Liquid
Saturday, February 1 – 15:00 PST
One of the most anticipated fixtures of the week will see Team Liquid lock horns with Dignitas in what promises to be an exciting bout between the new boys in town and the (former) alpha dogs of LCS. This match will answer the question of whether Dignitas are a top-two team in the league or not.
We will see exciting fights in all three lanes this game, namely in the mid lane where we will see Nicolaj “Jensen” Jensen clash with Henrik “Froggen” Hansen and in the bottom lane, where Yiliang “Doublelift” Peng will reunite with Zaqueri “aphromoo” Black, only this time the duo will stand on the opposite side of the Rift.
Heading into this match, Team Liquid will (still) be without Mads “Broxah” Brock-Pedersen which is a huge disadvantage and should put them in an unenviable position. While Jonathan “Grig” Armao failed to look like a top-tier jungler, he is still solid enough to help his team produce an upset. We are, however, a bit concerned with the bottom lane, where TL have a significant advantage over DIG on the paper, however, if Johnson “Johnsun” Nguyen can continue playing at the same pace, Liquid will struggle to walk away from this match with a win.
This will be the toughest match for DIG so far, however, if everything falls into place, they should edge past TL and secure their third win of the season.
Prediction: Dignitas to win – 2.5 Pinnacle
Prediction: Over 20.5 kills – 1.83 Pinnacle
Cloud9 vs Immortals
Saturday, February 1 – 16:00 PST
Cloud9 are entering this match as heavy favorites and there are no arguments to be made against that. Jesper “Zven” Svenningsen and co. looked incredibly strong in week one where they decimated Team Liquid and Golden Guardians.
While it’s way too early to call out which teams will finish the split as top-three, Could9 are without a doubt a strong contender for that spot, or even a title, if they manage to continue playing at the same pace. Immortals on the other side are looking very mediocre. Their only win came against TSM and even that win was very iffy to say the least. Neither TSM nor Immortals managed to show anything noteworthy in that bout, which is why we don’t rank Immortals’ win over TSM too highly.
There is no going around the fact C9 are a couple of levels above Immortals, which is why we don’t expect any surprise results here. Expect a short match, with C9 pocketing a win in under 30 minutes.
Prediction: Cloud9 – 5.5 kills – 1.854 Pinnacle
Prediction: Under 22.5 kills – 1.84 Pinnacle
Golden Guardians vs Evil Geniuses
Saturday, February 1 – 17:00 PST
Evil Genuises are entering this match with a 1-1 record after they lost to DIG and defeated 100T in week one. GGS on the other side are 0-2, following two defeats against 100T and Cloud9.
If we take into consideration how these two teams played in week one, it’s safe to say Evil Genuises are the stronger team and the odds fairly reflect that. Their main player Jiizuke was simply phenomenal and if he can repeat his performance this Saturday, Greyson “Goldenglue” Gilmer will have a hard time laning against him.
All in all, EG have a significant advantage over their adversaries here and while we considered a chance this might be a close and long fixture, EG are simply too strong in our eyes for GGS to hold off their advances for too long. Expect a dominant win from EG.
Prediction: Evil Genuises -5.5 kills – 1.854 PInnacle
BEST BET: C9 – 5.5 kills – 1.854 Pinnacle
