LOL LCS Spring Week 5 – Day 3 Betting Previews and Predictions
Golden Guardians vs 100 Thieves
Sunday, March 6 – 12:00 PST
100 Thieves enter this match off a three-game losing streak, albeit with losses coming against TSM, Cloud9 and Evil Geniuses. Even though 100T deserve some slack for losing against the top LCS teams, there is no hiding this squad are just not playing too well of late and at times look like they’re completely off-sync.
What exactly is going on in the team is anyone’s guess and we will likely never know what went wrong. That said, I have to say 100T looked better with Tanner “Damonte” Damonte on the team.
Golden Guardians, on the other side, are showing some improvement, but they’re still a team that lacks the quality to compete against most – if not all – other teams in the league. They should look better in Summer, but for now, GG are not a team you would trust with your money.
Interestingly enough, GG won this match a couple of weeks back, which should give them a metal edge against objectively stronger 100T, but even with that, I don’t see GG winning again. In theory, this should be a complete stomp by 100T, but since they’re playing very weird LoL of late, I’ll rather trust my gut and skip this one.
No Prediction
Dignitas vs Evil Geniuses
Sunday, March 6 – 13:00 PST
As talked about before, Evil Geniuses are a team you don’t want to bet on when they’re priced as the favorites and I will not make an exception to that rule here. That’s not necessarily because they got humiliated by Immortals yesterday, but rather because this team is just too volatile for me to trust them to defeat weaker sides.
Dignitas, on the other side, are polar opposite. They might not have as many big names on the team, but they’re very consistent and are currently playing at the same level as EG.
I can imagine Dignitas winning here, but I like the kill totals more. The line is set at 26.5 which is good enough for me, considering the teams that will be involved in a match. EG average 28.5 kills in their games, whereas Dignitas’ averages sit just under 26. A smaller bet on Dignitas is worth considering as well.
Prediction: Over 26.5 kills – 1.925 Pinnacle
TSM vs Cloud9
Sunday, March 6 – 14:00 PST
Last time out, TSM lost this bout, however, they were not nearly as good at the time as they are now, so it’s fair to expect a much better showing from them here. Cloud9 enter this match off a loss against Team Liquid, which might lead you to believe they’ve lost their momentum are more vulnerable to losing again tonight, but I don’t believe that will be the case.
Although TSM are definitely looking much improved, they’re still a tier below Cloud9 and Team Liquid. They are definitely the third-best team in the league, but I need to see a bit more from them before I can put them next to TL and C9. I’m taking Cloud9 for this one.
Prediction: Cloud9 to win – 1.609 Pinnacle
Counter Logic Gaming vs Team Liquid
Sunday, March 6 – 14:00 PST
Counter Logic Gaming were in a good spot to win against FlyQuest yesterday, however, they blundered the early game and eventually suffered a painful loss. Regardless of that defeat, CLG are still a team I have high expectations for and I expect them to become even better once the Summer Split rolls around.
The question we have to ask ourselves here is whether CLG are good enough to defeat Team Liquid and the answer is probably not. TL are in my eyes the best team in the league and enter this match off a very solid performance against Cloud9, which proves they’re definitely strong enough to defeat CLG as well.
That said, Team Liquid haven’t been too effective against the spread this season and that likely won’t change anytime soon. TL have managed to cover the spread in only 1/3 of their games this season, which is largely because they’re not a high kill total team.
Last time out, Team Liquid won this match with a very convincing 18-2 in kills, but we have to consider CLG are a much stronger team now. My approach to betting on games with Liquid involved this season is to take the underdogs with a kill handicap as long as the underdogs are at least a somewhat solid team.
Prediction: Counter Logic Gaming +8.5 kills – 1.952 Pinnacle
Immortals vs FlyQuest
Sunday, March 6 – 15:00 PST
I am not a big fan of either of the two teams, since they’re very inconsistent, unpredictable and are just not playing well. That said, both sides won their fixtures yesterday, with FlyQuest taking down CLG and Immortals causing an upset against Evil Geniuses.
While I must say both teams played well, I’ve seen enough games to say they likely won’t continue playing as good going forward. If we were to compare these two sides, there is not a lot to separate them quality-wise, which makes a bet on the underdogs far more appealing.
If I had to pick a side I would take the plus money on Immortals, but I like the kill totals better. As seen this season, most of the fixtures between bottom-table teams tend to be very long and bloody which is largely because these teams don’t know how to snowball their leads and close out the game properly – and that is exactly what I expect to see here.
Prediction: Over 23.5 kills – 1.877 Pinnacle
Optional: Immortals to win – 2.18 Pinnacle
