Week five of the second split of the LCO for 2022 begins today, but this week is unlike any other — for the first (and only) time this season, it’s an LCO Super Week.
12 games over three action-packed days lie ahead, and this week could make or break the season for all eight of the league’s teams.
We also come into this week with four teams absolutely neck and neck, as Dire Wolves, Order, Peace and Pentanet all find themselves at 5-3 in a tie for second place.
Coming into today’s play, all four of these teams will be looking to break this tie; however, none of these teams will be able to determine their fate in this pack beyond their own, as all four teams will face opponents from outside it.
This week begins with the winless Gravitas taking on the Dire Wolves, who look to get back into the winner’s column after a loss to Peace last Tuesday.
A rejuvenated Peace looks to keep their three gaming winning streak going as they take on Kanga. Pentanet looks to keep up the pace with the rest of pack as they take on Mammoth.
But game of the day honours undoubtedly go to today’s final contest, as the fourth member of this four-way tango in Order takes on the team everyone is looking to beat, The Chiefs.
Taylor’s Game of the Week — Order (5-3) v The Chiefs (8-0)
Order comes into this week finding themselves on a winning streak. They have won their last three contests and find themselves settling back into the form that led them to the Split 1 title after what has been a mixed start to this current split.
Sure, these three wins did come against Kanga, Mammoth, and Gravitas — the LCO’s current cellar-dwellers — but these teams are no pushovers and still need to be respected as they can and will put up a fight.
Last week showed that this team can play well together and all members of the team know their roles.
Veteran Brandon “BioPanther” Alexander continues to be the solid rock in the top lane he has been in his long, storied League of Legends career. Jeong “Goodo” Min-Jae continues to show why he was the perfect replacement for the departed Shane “Kevy” Allen, as he becomes one of the league’s most versatile junglers.
Ronald “Kisee” Vo keeps on shining as one of the league’s best mid laners, especially mechanically, and the dynamic duo of Nathan “Puma” Puma and Ian “Corporal” Pearse keep proving that are always a threat in the bottom lane, either as the strongside of the lane or the weakside.
But Order will have to put their best foot forward though if they want to be able to defeat their opponent today, The Chiefs.
Currently one of, if not the fastest teams in Pro League of Legends this split, the team is on another level. Last week saw them break the record for the fastest games in the LCO, and potentially even the world, this week, posting a 22:25 victory on Monday against Kanga, before improving to a 21:53 victory the next night against Mammoth.
On top of being quick, these games were also near perfect. Mammoth only got the chance to get a handful of kills and a pair of objectives, whilst Kanga was given even less, with no objectives obtained and only a single kill the entire game.
Despite Order’s return to form, I expect the Chiefs to win this game easily like they have every other game this split. Order should put up more of a fight then they did in their week one meeting, in which the leagues undefeated titans rolled over the Split 1 champs in 22:43, but they will need to play perfectly if they want to get the upset victory.
The Chiefs thrive on taking their opponent’s little mistakes and snowballing them into victory, whilst also minimising the impact of any mistakes they make. If Order slips up anywhere, this game should very quickly slip out of their grasp and The Chiefs will run away with it.
Taylor’s Week 5 Day 1 Predictions
Dire Wolves def. Gravitas
Peace def. Kanga
Pentanet def. Mammoth
The Chiefs def. Order
The LCO Split 2 resumes tonight at 6pm AEST, with game of the day Order v The Chiefs set to kick off at 9pm AEST. Catch up on all the split details in our ultimate coverage hub.
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