The 2022 LCS Spring Split finals weekend is right around the corner, starting with the lower-bracket final between Team Liquid and Evil Geniuses.
The two teams will be fighting for the last spot in the grand final, where 100 Thieves is already waiting. This matchup between Liquid vs EG will be a rematch from the first round of the upper bracket, where the two teams played out an extremely close series. It was ultimately Liquid who won after five intense games, but now EG is hoping to get revenge when it really matters.
Liquid vs EG: A closer look
EG is coming off a big win against Cloud9 last week, where the team didn’t drop a single game. The aftermath of the match put a lot of focus on how C9 underperformed, but the level of play EG showed shouldn’t be forgotten or underestimated when they go up against Team Liquid.
For Liquid, last week was a bit different as it lost out to 100 Thieves in the upper bracket. Liquid had the lead 2-0 in the match before 100 Thieves turned up the pace and completed the reverse sweep for the first spot in the grand final. This might leave Liquid in a shaky spot mentally going into this match, as the loss against 100 Thieves was a tough one.
Even though Liquid is the obvious favorite on paper based on head-to-head statistics throughout the split, the difference in momentum going into this match could have an impact on the end result. Team Liquid will have to reset its mental state before going into this match while EG needs to keep playing off of its momentum, which can be seen as easier than Liquid’s mental reset.
Eyes on the bot lane when Team Liquid takes on Evil Geniuses
One of the most important matchups of this series will be down in the bot lane, where both carries have been crucial for their respective teams in most wins. EG bot laner Kyle “Danny” Sakamaki showed up huge when it mattered against C9 last week, with a total of 23 kills throughout the three games.
Danny has already shown that he is in playoffs form while Liquid’s bot laner Steven “Hans Sama” Liv will have to relocate the shape he had earlier this split. His stats in the three losses against 100 Thieves weren’t something to write home about, which ultimately played a big part in why Liquid lost that series.
If Hans Sama can bounce back for this match, then he and support Jo “CoreJJ” Yong-in will give the EG bot lane a hard time. At this point, everyone has seen what Liquid’s bot lane can do when at its best. Now it will all be a question of finding that form on the day that matters.
If that doesn’t happen for Team Liquid, then it’s likely that we will once again see a close series between the two teams and possibly have EG come out on top this time around.
Team Liquid vs. Evil Geniuses rosters
Team Liquid roster:
- Top – Gabriël “Bwipo” Rau
- Jungle – Lucas “Santorin” Larsen
- Mid – Søren “Bjergsen” Bjerg
- Bot – Steven “Hans Sama” Liv
- Support – Jo “CoreJJ” Yong-in
Evil Geniuses roster:
- Top – Jeong “Impact” Eon-young
- Jungle – Kacper “Inspired” Sloma
- Mid – Joseph “jojopyun” Pyun
- Bot – Kyle “Danny” Sakamaki
- Support – Philippe “Vulcan” Laflamme
Evil Geniuses takes the underdog role against Team Liquid
Based on the head-to-head statistics of this season, there’s no doubt that Liquid has gotten the better of EG. This can be seen in the teams’ matches in the LCS Lock In final, the spring regular split, and the recent playoffs series.
On the other hand, EG has proven to be more competitive against Liquid for each match and this deciding best-of-five could be the time where EG finally gets the better of them. The odds currently reflect Liquid’s status as the favorites, but we believe that this match will be closer than expected and by no means a walk in the park for Liquid. We think that Team Liquid will ultimately win because of its experience and individual skill, but it will take five games to get there.
A flat-out win for Liquid will grant odds of 1.45 while a win for EG gives odds at 2.55. While we think Liquid will win in the end, giving EG a +1.5 also seems like a very good option.
The match between Team Liquid vs EG will kick off on Saturday, April 23.
