SK Telecom T1 vs Invictus Gaming

What a spectacular way to close out the Group Stage of the tournament. This is, without a doubt, a clash that will bring a ton of fireworks. Maybe that's not even a fair statement seeing how any clash that Invictus Gaming is a part of becomes a barnburner almost by default.

Regardless, it's hard not to get excited because of the fact we're going to see the Chinese and Korean champions trade heavy blows on the Summoner's Rift.

There is, however, a slight asterisk above this seismic match-up. One team -- Invictus Gaming -- is entering the clash with a metric ton of hype, and they're currently undefeated at the tournament. They're the heavy favorites coming into any match-up, and this one is no exception. They're poised to reach the finals (at the very least), and there's not a team competing at this year's Mid-Season Invitational that has the tools to take them down.

On the other hand, we have SKT T1. On paper, that's as legendary of a name as possible, and yet we've seen a pale shadow of their old dominant selves. Make no mistake -- they're not bad; they're just not as exceptional as everyone had hoped they would be. And against Invictus Gaming, against such a giant of immeasurable strength and potential, that's just not good enough. They've reached a point on their path which they cannot overcome; an obstacle that is immovable. They can fight to the best of their ability, but Invictus Gaming has an uncanny ability to make the right play regardless of the state of the game. They're all on the same page, they're creative, their macro is spectacular, and they're playing out of their minds on an individual level as well.

Each and every single member is hard carrying more often than not, and singling out just one of them is downright impossible. That's why it's impossible to side with the Korean champions. Invictus Gaming are poised to advance as the number one team, and they've already taken down SKT once before a couple of days ago -- that was not just a shellacking, but also the quickest game in the history of all international League tournaments: a few seconds shy of 16 minutes.

Let that sink in. This team was so downright spectacular in their play, so dominant and in sync, that they needed less than twenty minutes to beat down a team that has Khan, Faker, and Mata within its starting five-man line-up. Is there even an end to Invictus' dominant run?

Even if there is, SKT surely won't be the one to solve the puzzle. They're simply too far off the mark, and they'll need a ton of time before adapting at the current meta, let along taking the reigning, defending world champions down. We're siding with the LPL champions on this one and with full confidence. Regardless of the final outcome, this should, by all means, be a very entertaining scrap. The Korean giants want revenge, and they're going to fight tooth and nail in order to attain it.

In other words -- expect fireworks.