Cloud9 vs Clutch Gamers

For our third match of the day, we have a pretty strange clash between Cloud9 and Clutch Gaming. If this match was happening on any other day of the Split, we would have sided with Cloud9, and with good reason. This time around, however, seeing how they already locked in a playoff bye, the organization decided to field their Academy roster, making this match downright impossible to predict.

Clutch Gaming are a deceptively strong team, but they're still as volatile as ever. You can never really know which version of Clutch will come out to play, and this time it's no different. That said, the odds are heavily stacked against them, and betting on the underdog on this one could be extremely fruitful.

Make no mistake, Cloud9's Academy team is basically strong as a mid-tier LCS contender -- they have Blaber, GoldenGlue, and even Keith, an old school LCS regular. They definitely have the tools to go blow for blow with Clutch, but it all falls down to what Clutch drafts, and how motivated they currently are.

They have nothing to play for seeing how they're out of the playoffs, but losing to an Academy team would be downright embarrassing. For two former World Championship winners (Huni and Piglet) that's unacceptable. They should be coming out of the gates swinging at least to save face, if nothing else.

This is an extremely risky bet, but if Clutch come out to play they could very well get the win. We're betting on their experience and veteran status. If they draft as well as they can, if they play up to their strengths and give the right tools to Huni, Piglet, and even Cody Sun, they should, by all means, be able to take down Cloud9's "B team". That said, this will by no means be an easy game, nor a one-sided one.