TLDR: V1 IN. OPTC+SEN NEED 1 WIN. RISE, KNIGHTS, NRG NEED 2 AND ROUND DIFFERENTIAL
After 3 Upset packed weeks for Group B, we seem to be left with more questions than answers. While Group A (minus 100 Thieves) has been pretty straight forward, the same cannot be said for Group B. From V1 Starting at 3-0 to Rise going 1-2 after beating OpTic Gaming, it's no surprise that every team can still make the playoffs.
Already Qualified:
Barring the heat death of the universe or nuclear fallout, this team will be in the playoffs.
Version1:
V1 has been arguably the most dominant team of the entire VCT stage. They haven’t dropped a single map in 8 matches, which included 2-0 wins against Rise and Knights. This streak ended after a 2-1 win against NRG. V1 has seemingly righted the ship after a disappointing VCT 2021 S3 and LCQ campaign. The addition of Zander has seemed to make all the difference. However, V1 still has to play the next best teams in the group, OpTic Gaming and Sentinels. These match results will help place just how good this elusive roster is.
Playoffs Likely:
These teams only need one win to qualify.
OpTic Gaming:
After what I can only think of as a warm up game for OpTic, (previously Envy) in which they fell 1-2 against Rise, OpTic has been nothing short of dominant in the past two weeks. They’ve got a 2-0 win vs NRG and pulled off the 2-1 thriller win against Sentinels, in what will probably be the best game in the group. All OpTic Gaming need to do to qualify is win either of their next two games against V1 or Knights.
Sentinels:
Sentinels have seemed to slip a little from their past dominance of the NA region, after two 2-1 wins against Knights and NRG, in which Sentinels looked more like the team that lost to KRU in champions than the team that won in Reykjavik. Sentinels then lost 1-2 against OpTic, which included a 13-2 loss on Bind. This, paired with the departure of their head coach, Rawkus, due to contract complications with FaZe, and Sentinels, for the first time, are in a position where a LAN berth dosent feel like a guarantee. Sentinels can start to remove those concerns with a playoff berth, which to achieve they will need a win against either an upset heavy Rise, or currently undefeated V1.
Self Sufficient:
These teams can qualify without needing other teams to lose.
Rise:
After a very good end to the 2021 VCT season, in which Rise were a single match from a champions berth, Rise started off their group stage with a bang, taking down OpTic in a 2-1 upset. Since that major win, they have seemed to take a step back, losing 2-0 against V1 and Knights. For Rise to qualify without help, they would need to beat an angry Sentinels team and a hungary NRG team as well as keep their point differential over the knights (-18 vs -22)
Knights:
After a 2021 season with no closed VCT qualifier appearances, Knights decided that changes were in order. They added ban from Luminosity, skuba from Pioneers and Gangsta from now disbanded Immortals. These changes have worked, and gave Knights their first closed qualifiers berth. Entering with low expectations, Knights have played better than expected. After an embarrassing loss against V1, and a promising 2-1 loss against Sentinels, the Knights got their first, and currently only win, a 2-0 against a disappointing Rise team. To qualify without any help, Knights would need to beat a desperate NRG team, and an OpTic team that is not looking to repeat the upset they suffered vs Rise.
NEEDS HELP:
Can technically qualify without assistance, but would really appreciate the help.
NRG:
NRG finished the VCT 2021 with an open qualifiers loss against Resonate, a team that many of you may not have even heard of. In the off season, NRG showed much more promise after getting 2nd place in the NSG summer championship and the Knights VALORAMPAGE. The addition of hazed from TSM has helped with this success. So far this Group Stage NRG has had easily the most difficult schedule, having to play Sentinels, OpTic, and Version1, in which NRG have accrued 2 maps and 0 matches. Despite sitting at 0-3, there is still hope for a promising NRG roster, with matches against 1-2 Knights and 1-2 Rise, as well as a very competitive round differential (-19 vs Rise -18 and Knights -22). All NRG needs to do is beat Knights and Rise by enough to make up the round difference, and they will be in the playoffs, and honestly, I think they will do it.
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