The KeSPA Cup Playoffs Wrap Up a Stellar 2019 for League of Legends
Early January is a great time for League of Legends fans, with both the Demacia Cup and the KeSPA Cup underway.
The Chinese esports tournament has revealed its winners at the beginning of the week, but the best South Korean teams are in the race for a share of the ₩144 million. There are eight teams still standing and not surprisingly, all of them come from the LCK which featured 10 out of 20 participants. CK 2019 Summer and KeG Championship teams were swept away and have failed to reach the playoffs.
Sandbox Gaming and Griffin Play the First Quarterfinal
Sandbox Gaming has suffered a late-season meltdown in the domestic championship and failed to meet the high expectations. They are once again credited with the first chance to advance to the semifinals, as reflected by the odds of 11/20 offered by Buff.bet. Griffin had the opportunity to showcase their quality at the League of Legends Worlds and have stunned G2 Esports in the group stage.
In this quarterfinal, they are only given the second chance and excellent esports odds of 7/5, so they are worth considering for a win.
Battle Tested Afreeca Freecs Take on Hanwha Life
Afreeca Freecs and Hanwha Life didn’t enjoy the luxury of playing directly in the quarterfinals, but had to go through qualifiers to reach the playoffs. Both have enjoyed relatively easy competition, but only Afreeca Freecs were able to sweep their opponents in both series. Hanwha Life had a more difficult task in the decisive match, where they barely defeated their LCK rivals KT Rolsters.
This will be a contested series, with Hanwha having a slight edge at odds of 3/4, compared to 1/1 for Afreeca at ArcaneBet.
Gen.G Seek to Extend Invincible Run against T1
Gen.G have emerged as the main favorites to win the upcoming LCK Spring Split. They have the perfect opportunity to prove their quality against the best South Korean League of Legends team of all time. SK Telekom1 has rebranded as T1 and is waiting in the quarterfinals, after securing direct passage to the playoffs.
Gen.G made short work of Team Dynamics in the KeSPA Cup qualifiers and are credited with the first chance and odds of 9/20 at Rivalry. Faker’s squad is surely worth considering at odds of 8/5.
DragonX Brace for Epic Semifinal versus Damwon
Spear Gaming were the only team from a lower division to eliminate an LCK squad, but they were eventually swept by DragonX. The latter were overwhelming favorites in that series, but the tables have turned and they start with the second chance and odds of 9/5 against Damwon Gaming. Their opponents are priced at 2/5 by Betway esports and they bring a wealth of experience to justify their favourite status.
This quarterfinal is likely to go the distance and we expect a narrow margin victory for Damwon Gaming.
Image courtesy of KeSPA
