Liquid and Cloud9 to clash in Mid-Season Showdown for GF spot

Jordan Marney

Jordan Marney

Team Liquid are now aware of who they will face off against in the UB final of the Mid-Season Showdown. They will face long time rivals Cloud9 in a repeat of the Lock-In Grand Finals.

LCS fans are in for a treat on April 3 as Cloud9 and Team Liquid lock horns in the Mid-Season Showdown. The winner will qualify for the grand-finals while the loser will get one last chance in the lower bracket.

Team Liquid show resilience in TSM victory

Team Liquid rolled up their sleeves and took care of business as they took down TSM 3-1. It was not as smooth and many fans would have liked though, TSM threw away a massive lead in game one of the series when they were in prime position to start the series 1-0.

Game one was a tale of two polar opposites as TL has been the best early game team in the league while TSM is known for its great shotcalling in the late game. 

Gam two came closer to expectations with Team Liquid taking the series to match point. Santorin was relentless in this match with a monstrous performance on Nidalee. TL's strong early game saw them race out to a 3k lead. While TSM were able to secure a baron, later on, it was not enough as Jensen on his niche Ahri pick was able to clean up for a nice quadra-kill.

It was Team Liquid’s turn to throw as TSM showed signs of life in the series. The game was relatively even with both sides trading blows. TL’s Jensen was monstrous on Sylas and was in a position to 1v5 the game. Equally, PowerOfEvil was keeping TSM afloat with a strong showing on Seraphine. In a crucial dragon fight, TSM were able to pick off TL which eventually resulted in a TSM win.

<em>Image courtesy of <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/lolesports/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener nofollow">LoL Esports Flickr</a></em>
Image courtesy of LoL Esports Flickr

Team Liquid close out strong in Mid-Season Showdown

The final game of the series followed a similar script to game three. Both sides were trading blows though it would be TL who would come out on top. These trades saw Huni pushed away from his tower as Jensen teased using his ultimate. TL pushed TSM further into their base until they could not leave. TL eventually pushed through for the victory and book their ticket to the winner's finals.

Cloud9 went for comfort as they swept 100 Thieves

In the less eventful of the two series, Cloud9 made a statement after breezing past 100 Thieves 3-0. Cloud9 never really got out of second gear and avoided showing their hand too early to the likes of Team Liquid and TSM. Cloud9 played compositions that were tricky to execute while giving 100T champions they ideally wanted to play.  Regardless of their apparent subtle flex by taking the harder route, Cloud9 got in and out without breaking a sweat or revealing too much of what they want to play moving forwards.

One of the biggest takeaways for Cloud9 this series was how well Fudge played in the top lane. The LCS rookie shone in his match up against Ssumday who is one of the best top laners in the league. Fudge was crucial in each game, finding strong flanks with champions such as Sion, Renekton and Sett. 

The Mid-Season Showdown will return next week with TSM taking on Evil Geniuses and Dignitas taking on 100 Thieves.