Entering the final round robin of regular season play, Dignitas look to finish the season off strong and potentially move up in the standings before the playoffs begin as they face off against 100 Thieves, Golden Guardians and Evil Geniuses in week seven.
In the previous week, Dignitas lost some of the momentum they have been gaining ever since their win against TSM, falling short to top teams Team Liquid and Cloud 9. A blowout win against CLG by DIG on Sunday steered them clear of another 0-3 weekend however. The team currently sits in sixth place with a 18-18 record and is four games behind third place where there is a three way tie. Here are three things Dignitas needs to do for a successful week seven:
1. Play Your Game
This upcoming week will arguably be the hardest one of the season thus far for Dignitas. To start it off they play first place team 100 Thieves, then face the surging Golden Guardians who had a 2-1 week after acquiring Eric “Licorice” Ritchie from Flyquest and then finish it off against Evil Geniuses who are currently on an eight game winning streak. In this weekend’s tough matchups the most important thing DIG needs to do is stick to their identity.
We’ve already seen from just the past two weeks that DIG is more than capable of keeping their head above water against the top teams in the league. It is because of this reason that DIG must stick to their guns and not experiment in draft and in game in hopes of catching their opponents off guard. Get early leads, let Zaqueri “Aphromoo” Black lead the team and suffocate the opposition through slowly taking over the map’s objectives. This is DIG’s style and if they want to win any games this weekend they must stick to this.
2. Neo Has to Step Up
Last week, AD Carry Toàn “Neo” Trần failed to pick up his small slouch and continued to play not up to standard in the team’s games, especially in those against Team Liquid and Cloud 9. In the early game he has been fine but when it comes to mid and late game he really falls behind when it comes to farming and participation. Prior to the past two weeks, Neo was playing amazing in the role and looked like the only bright spot on the team as the top half struggled immensely.
This weekend won’t be easy for Neo either as he faces quite a challenge every single game. Against 100 Thieves he’ll go up against probably the best AD Carry in the league right now Ian Victor “FBI” Huang, then he’ll face LCS veteran Trevor “Stixxay” Hayes who has been a solid piece on Golden Guardians this split and finish it off against Rookie of the Year hopeful Kyle “Danny” Sakamaki on Evil Geniuses. If Neo can return to his old self against these three and then the rest of DIG can continue playing as well as they have been, the black and yellow can walk away with some wins this weekend.
3. Don’t Let Licorice Get Ahead Early
The most winnable matchup this weekend for Dignitas is without a doubt against Golden Guardians. GG is showing some form as of last week, due to the acquisition of former FlyQuest Top Laner Licorice but they still sit in last place for a reason. Licorice was having a subpar season on FlyQuest before turning it up in his first week with his new team and winning Player of the Week.
The key to the game will of course come down to how effective Licorice can be. Last week, he managed to just take over the game in GG’s two wins. He was securing solo kills, snowballing early leads and making enemy Top Laners irrelevant. DIG needs to make sure he doesn’t get ahead, especially early. They must do this through banning his comfort picks, making sure he doesn’t get any solo kills on Aaron “FakeGod” Lee and applying pressure before he is too far ahead. If DIG fails to do this and ultimately loses to GG, they may very well walk away from the week with another 0-3 performance.
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