East vs. West hole worsens at MSI 2023 regardless of C9’s hyper-aggressive early recreation vs. Bilibili Gaming

After one other fast day in London, the proverbial hole between Japanese and Western groups on the 2023 Mid-Season Invitational has widened even additional after Cloud9’s comparatively lopsided collection towards China’s Bilibili Gaming as we speak.

The LPL followers in attendance on the Copper Field Enviornment in London had loads to cheer for as their second-seed representatives flexed their muscle tissues towards the highest seed from North America by sweeping them in three video games on Might 11. Throughout this League of Legends collection, nonetheless, C9 had transient flashes of greatness, particularly in the course of the early levels of every match the place they stayed surprisingly hyperactive towards a crew from probably the most aggressive area on the earth.

Within the backside lane, for instance, C9’s celebrity AD carry Kim “Berserker” Min-cheol was one of many solely lifelines on the crew as he stood tall towards BLG’s Zhao “Elk” Jia-Hao from the laning section to the later teamfights. His confidence and particular person mechanical abilities saved his crew afloat, together with some well-timed ganks from Robert “Blaber” Huang.

Associated: T1 open up MSI 2023 run with second-fastest international game in LoL esports history

Throughout all three video games, the LCS champions managed to drag momentum of their favor in the course of the early recreation by catching their opponents off guard with good roams and dives. Sadly for them, because the mid-to-late recreation rolled via, BLG’s superior teamfighting and macro decision-making was far too overwhelming.

Identified by his opponents and followers alike as Gigabin, BLG’s Chen “Bin” Ze-Bin is taken into account by many to be the perfect high laner at MSI, and he stomped the competitors as we speak on a trio of champions like Gnar, Kennen, and Gwen. With 12 kills, 17 assists, and a harmful efficiency in recreation one to set the tone for the day, the 20-year-old phenom earned himself Participant of the Sequence honors because the crew’s go-to reply, whether or not they wanted a dependable frontline, a harmful hypercarry, or a daunting interact software.

Associated: MSI 2023: Scores, standings, and results

As C9 head right down to the decrease bracket at MSI 2023, this loss marks the third Western crew to lose to an Japanese consultant. Solely Golden Guardians stay within the winners bracket from the LCS, however they’ve an enormous process forward once they face off towards the LPL’s monstrous first seed, JD Gaming. You may catch all of the motion when these two squads collide tomorrow at 7am CT.

In regards to the creator

Tyler Esguerra

Lead League of Legends author for Dot Esports. Eternally an LCS supporter, 5 years within the trade. Lowkey Akali stan, and AD carry principal. Creator of the Crucial Strike Podcast.

Author: Ronnie Neal