Splyce
2018-03-23 17:00:00
Team ROCCAT

Splyce vs Team ROCCAT

2018-03-23 15:12:22Posted by Petar

After an incredibly exciting Spring Split - perhaps the most exciting one in years, we are finally on the verge of the playoffs. For today we have an exciting clash between third ranked Splyce and sixth ranked Team ROCCAT. Now this might seem like an unlikely quarterfinal matchup, after all Splyce started off the split somewhat abysmally whereas ROCCAT was never really hyped up as a playoffs contender. (they were nearly relegated last year)

As the split progressed however things started to change. Both teams started to adapt, Splyce realized where their true strengths were while ROCCAT focused more on the fundamentals and even when the meta shifted they relied heavily on Memento and Blanc carrying the majority of the weight towards victory.

Splyce however knew they didn't have any synergy, so they focused on the late game almost exclusively. (the hour long snoozefest against the Unicorns in week one comes to mind) As the weeks went by they developed team cohesion and actually started playing a bit more proactively before the twenty minute mark which elevated them from a one-dimensional team to an actual threat to the very best teams in the region.

The thing with Splyce is that we don't really know their full potential nor their current strength. They have a tendency to play incredibly clean and look dominant but then fall off a cliff the very next day. They're a bit too inconsistent for a Top 3 team and yet here they are. Even though they managed to carve out an identity and a playstyle near the end of the split they were still prone to losing games through a bad call or a bad draft. Fortunately for all Splyce fans those games are a rarity, however in a Best of 5 every single map matters.

From a statistical standpoint Splyce are definiately playing as the third best team in the region, boasting an impressive 1.18 kill-to-death ratio, and individually some of their players rank among the very best performers of the split. Expect for one player - Nisqy. While he isn't a world beater by any stretch of the imagination he is also far from a dominant, top tier midlaner.

He is dead last in kill participation (a measly 65%, especially when compared to Perkz 79% or Blanc 82%) and is at the very bottom in the laning department as well. If anything he is never a detriment to his team which is a plus for sure, but it often looks like Splyce are fighting 4v5 as he is a non-factor more often than not. If Nisqy improves - and we know he can as he had a couple of fantastic performances during his short stint at the NA LCS last year with Team EnVy) then Splyce don't have a weakness.

Sadly their early game is pretty week as they're positioned in the very bottom of the standings amongs the likes of Giants and H2K. However, as it became evident ever since week one of the split their true strength lies in drafting late game team comps and executing them perfectly on the back of Kobbe and sometimes Odoamne. Their late game rating is just below Fnatic and far above anyone below. They have the tendency to lose the early game badly enough to still keep up and overcome the deficit when they transition over to the mid and late game.

As for ROCCAT, they're a fairly solid team at the moment. You would never really give them that credit just by looking at the roster on paper, but their coach freddy122 has a tendency to make a seemingly random group of players into a well functioning machine. They started off the Spring Split strong - led by Memento's solid shotcalling and overall team cohesion. While other teams were struggling to develop an identity after a chaotic mid-season signing period ROCCAT somehow already had that figured out. Individually every member really stepped up and while no one really shines - other than the amazing Memento + Blanc duo - they're all very serviceable and they're on the same page when it comes to teamfighting and focusing on right objectives.

We're going with Splyce on this one and with good reason. While ROCCAT is a very solid team they're not dominant, they're not as efficient and they don't have as many win conditions or tools in general. If Memento doesn't impose his playstyle and Blanc doesn't dominate they don't really have a way to win as all of their players are really good - but nowhere near the best and their synergy while impressive overall cannot compete with the Worlds worthy roster that Splyce has.

That said ROCCAT won't go down without a fight. They're fearless and that approach to the game allowed them to reach the playoffs so they surely won't change the "winning formula". They have the tools to make this a very hard series for Splyce, however in the end they shouldn't be able to emerge victorious.

GamePickBookmakerOddsStakeResult
Splyce Pinnacle 1.34 7 Win

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