OGN Playoff Preview – SKT T1 K
Samsung Galaxy Ozone versus SKT T1 K is hands down the most anticipated match so far in this season of OGN. This will be the first time these two Korean legends have faced off since SKT swept Ozone in the Grand Finals of Champions Winter 2013-2014. Despite entering this season as the undisputed best team in the world, T1 K scraped their way past the group stages. Meanwhile, Ozone has demolished their group, not dropping a single game. Ozone’s current performance is almost reminiscent of T1 K’s perfect season. It wouldn't be unreasonable to say whoever wins this match could win the entire season.
Unexpected Turbulence
After sweeping the World Championship finals and following up with a perfect season of Champions right after, SKT K had truly ascended to god status. SKT entered this season having not dropped a game in the past six months. But for the first time in the team’s history, they were forced to make a roster change. PoohManDu, the team’s captain and shotcaller, cited medical reasons for his departure from the team. It should be stressed that PoohManDu was much more than just a support player to the team, he was a leader and contributed towards the development of the team's strategy. This was apparent in the way the team played with their new support player, Casper. Not only did he fail to match the mechanical skill of PoohManDu, it was evident that an in-game leadership and shot-calling role was vacant for SKT K.
From the very first match, SKT K looked different. A 1:1 result versus their sister team wasn't expected, but it was not viewed as the downfall of K. Their next match went as expected, 2:0 to ametur team Prime Optimus. After that was the KT Arrows. The KT organization as a whole had been struggling with adapting to roster changes, and were failing to put up results akin to those in previous seasons of Champions. A 2:0 victory over the Arrow by K’s sister team help paint the picture of how weak KT A was, and how K should roll through them.
This match had surprises from the very start. PoohManDu had returned to the starting lineup of SKT K, seemingly out of nowhere. The SKT organization must have been confident in his ability, as losing this match 0:2 would almost likely mean failing to advance to the playoffs. In the first match, the team looked confused. Bengi’s Evelynn had an extremely negative impact on the team in the early phases. From there, the Arrows continued to snowball their enormous kill lead into towers and, eventually, the nexus. The second game was almost complete domination from the Arrows, ending the game 23-9 in kills and 10-:3 in towers. PhooManDu’s returned resulted in a combined score of 1/13/8 with Thresh and Morgana. Meanwhile, Bengi’s Evelynn had virtually no positive impact for K, ending with a collective score of 1/10/8.
SKT K just advanced to the playoffs after defeating their sister team in a best of one tiebreaker. For the first time in more than half a year, the reigning World Champions will be the clear underdog in this match-up versus Samsung Galaxy Ozone.
Players To Watch
PoohManDu
PoohManDu will need to catch up quickly if he intends of facing off versus Mata. His performance versus the KT Arrows begs the question of why the SKT organization added him back to the starting roster. The team dynamic may have changed significantly in Pooh’s absence, causing more than just mechanical problems in game.
Bengi
Of all the players on SKT K, Bengi has struggled the most this season. His major strength used to be his synergy with Faker and early-game pressure, but in recent games, his presence as a whole has been lacking. Especially in this matchup, where DanDy is the best in the world at distracting and causing problems for the other jungler, Bengi will need to perform at his best.
Faker
There are a few players in the world that can carry their entire team themselves, and Faker is one of them. If all else fails, you can almost always depend on Faker to go even or win his lane. But PawN is also one of the few to beat Faker one-on-one in lane. This match-up will be extremely important in who has mid-game pressure.
Things To Take Away
Samsung Galaxy Ozone is the only team in the world to have a winning record over SKT K. Overall, Ozone is at the best they've ever been and are clear contenders for the best team in the world. This will be one of the closest matches of competitive LoL we have seen so far this year. Don’t miss it.
Final Prediction: Samsung Galaxy Ozone 3:2 SK Telecom T1K
Image Credit: Riot Games, OnGameNet,Inven
