NRG continued their dominance and Complexity returned to top form in this weeks North American Pro league matches. Elsewhere TSM Hal got his team back in a fighting position in the standings.
ALGS week 3 saw the top 40 teams in North America do battle once more. Standout stars ESA came into Week 3 in first position, and teams like Complexity, Liquid and TSM were looking to bounce back from poor showings in the first two weeks.
This was the final week before the first break of the season and although it is still early days, points in this stage could make the difference later on. Here's a round-up of the biggest talking points from ALGS Pro League NA Week 3.
NRG's Blistering Start
Saturday's Pro League saw NRG, who have bounced back from an incredibly underwhelming opening week, build on their second place finish last weekend with a storming victory. They made a blistering start, winning both game one and game two with a combined 22 kills. Just the opening two games from NRG would have secured them a top five finish in the final leaderboard.
Complexity bounce back from sluggish start to Pro League
Complexity returned to form on Sunday boosting their chances of playoff qualification with an impressive win. The Autumn Circuit Playoff winning team had made a sluggish start to the Pro League, but secured two first place finishes to top the leaderboard ahead of Sentinels.
Complexity reacted to their sluggish start by changing their legend selection. Moving from Wraith, Valkyrie, Gibraltar to the current meta pick of Valkyrie, Caustic Gibraltar. This change seems to have paid off, and Complexity have catapulted themselves into contention to qualify for the playoffs in January.
ImperialHal redeems TSM in third week of ALGS
TSM, who have been underwhelming so far in Pro League, were saved by a late revival led by ImperialHal. Back on Wraith, Hal provided one of the biggest clutches seen across the entire Pro League.
This was a much needed boost to TSM, who were at risk of falling away from the playoff qualification spots. However in true champion style, they recovered to finish strong. A whopping 75% of their total points this week came in the last two games. TSM now sit just inside the playoff places, giving them a strong position moving into the second half of the pro league.
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Liquid, 100 Thieves, Torrent continue to struggle
Several top teams continued to struggle this weekend. 100 Thieves, the reigning Apex Champions, failed to register any points this week and are languishing down the bottom of the leaderboard. On Twitter, 100 Thieves' Vein vowed to change their playstyle and come back harder after the three week break.
Liquid, who chose to use Fuse and not Gibraltar, also failed to register any points this week. Liquid have failed to reach the heights of early 2021, and it appears the departure of TSM Albralelie is being sorely felt.
Torrent, who have only recorded two points in three weeks, are currently sat in the relegation zone. Having secured a 7th place finish in the Apex Championship, Torrent will be expecting much better showings in the second half of the league.
SSG, C9, SEN remain in the playoff places after ALGS Week 3
Despite not earning a single point this week following a dissapointing performance, Cloud 9 maintained their playoff position thanks to a strong opening two weeks. They are joined by Spacestation Gaming and Sentinels who both recorded strong showings.
Meanwhile, Sentinels put their poor week 2 behind them, finishing second on Sunday. Spacestation continued their consistent performances, adding a solid 5 points onto their total. They have a very respectable 9 point buffer keeping them inside the playoff places.
Consistent ESA keep first place
Elsewhere Esports Arena maintained their dominance in North America with another consistent showing in ALGS Week 3. The newly formed team have risten straight to the top and are looking unstoppable. Despite not winning a gameweek, they have posted two second places and a third place.
If they can maintain this consistency, they will head into the Playoffs as one of the favourites. Some of their dominance is credited to looting Lava City and Big Maude. Defending two drop spots is no mean feat in a competitive region.
The Standings
Time is running out
For those teams at the bottom of the standings, time is running out to turn around their fortunes. However, teams have the benefit of a small break in the pro league, to allow for the Apex Season 11 update (to read what is changing, see here).
There are just 3 weeks left of pro league, and the next installment reaches us on November 21st and 22nd. Remember, only the top 10 teams qualify for the playoffs in January, and the bottom 8 teams will have to fight for their place in the pro league season 2.
