The second round robin of the LEC 2022 Spring Split kicked off with a staggering result on the first day of Week 5. Astralis, who could not take any win until Week 5, stunned Rogue and secured its first LEC win over the only undefeated team. Rogue was overpowering every single rival, including FNC and G2. Led by Malrang, the newly designed roster went unbeaten in the first half of the regular season, contrary to what fans expected.
LEC 2022 Spring Split Week 5 Results
Friday
- Team BDS 0 — 1 Misfits Gaming
- Rogue 0 — 1 Astralis
- Team Vitality 0 — 1 Excel
- SK Gaming 0 — 1 Fnatic
- MAD Lions 0 — 1 G2 Esports
Saturday
- Team BDS 0 — 1 Excel
- SK Gaming 1 — 0 MAD Lions
- Rogue 0 — 1 Misfits Gaming
- G2 1 — 0 Astralis
- Fnatic 1 — 0 Team Vitality
Day 1: Astralis squeezed Rogue
Astralis looked like one of LEC’s worst teams in the past weeks, considering they could not stand even against teams close to them in the standings. As of Week 5, they could not have made a better return to the league. Astralis overpowered Rogue thanks to an outstanding performance by Dajor in the mid lane. Although Malrang picked an early game jungler, Lee Sin, Zanzarah was the one who picked up neutral objectives one after another. He caused Lee Sin to be useless towards the mid-late game while leading his team in team fights.
Astralis also had a solid lane phase by winning 1vs1 or 2vs2 skirmishes. There was an Ahri pick by Larssen against Dajor’s Wex in the mid lane, but he could not impact the match. WhiteKnight demolished his kingdom on the top side, giving Astralis an advantage in putting extra pressure on the map. Kobbe also showed off why LEC teams still need to ban Zeri if they will not get her in their first pick. He finished the game with a superb scoreline of 9/1/5. Astralis earned its first regular-season win by offering a thrilling match against the league’s juggernaut, Rogue.
WE DID IT!
First W of the season. ✅
Denying @Rogue the 18-0 split. ✅
Denying the 0-18 split. ✅Holy sh*t. pic.twitter.com/kvGlotORAb
— Astralis League of Legends (@AstralisLoL) February 11, 2022
G2 defeated MAD, Fnatic dominated SK Gaming
One of the most anticipated match of Week 5 has concluded with G2 taking down the previous champion, MAD Lions. Apparently, Excel can get below MAD in the final standings, considering there is no light for the former king in the future
MAD could not show off even a promising performance against top-tier teams. Reeker still needs more time to be adapted. Elyoya stood out as the only player that could lead MAD to victory. This situation limits not only MAD’s hand but also allows the other teams to prepare well. If MAD does not find a new solution, they may not secure their spot in the playoffs.
Excel wiped out Team Vitality
Team Vitality continues to succumb to its ego-driven by its over-talented roster. In their match against Excel, Carzzy picked Vayne in the bot lane and gave Aphelios a free lane phase, which means VIT has agreed to compete with Aphelios in the late game. Indeed, Patrick destroyed team fights before Vayne came close to strike her.
Nukeduck picked Zeri in the mid lane against Ryze. It seems Ryze with tank build will continue to shackle teams that use him. Taking Ryze’s ability to deal excessive damage from his hands is the worst thing teams can make in the current meta.
On the flip side, Finn had another great game, and this time he stood firm with Malphite against Alphari, restricting Jayce’s impact on the top side of the map. Excel put their fifth LEC win in their pocket after taking down Fnatic in the past week.
Misfits Gaming did not let any surprise against Team BDS. With a valuable victory on a Day when MAD and VIT lost, MSF moved up to fourth place in the rankings.
.@EXCEL beat @TeamVitality! #LEC pic.twitter.com/QQR7DsxscE
— LEC (@LEC) February 11, 2022
Day 2: Misfits upset Rogue, had a flawless week
Misfits Gaming closed up Week 5 by taking down Rogue in a fierce 35-minute battle and secured its first 2–0 week in the 2022 Spring. Rogue headed to Lucian-Nami’s bottom lane as Neon replied with Jinx after Zeri was banned from the first row. What Misfits did throughout the match was to take Malrang under control in the early game. They allowed Ryze to prefer a tank item build that limited his damage, then MSF turned their focus to the bottom lane. Shalatan was quite active around the bot side while picking up four dragons and one Herald for his team.
There was a dead-end for Rogue in the mid-late game, which was that they would not have enough damage to win team fights. Ryze turned into a walking ward after buying four tank items. On the flip side, Lucian was not a hyper-carry Rogue can trust from a certain point. Misfits Gaming maintained the global gold lead from start to finish. Neon dealt rocket damage from outside the opponent’s range in team fights while leading his team to complete the week flawlessly.
Excel took down Team BDS, tied in fifth place
Another team that had a flawless week was Excel. After taking down Team Vitality on the first day, Excel did not let any surprise against Team BDS. The newest member of the LEC is having a rough season, and they need to upgrade their starting roster. Although Finn had his worst game ever, there was a noticeable damage gap between Excel and Team BDS.
Corki had an action-free lane phase against Ryze, Aphelios started taking control of skirmishes around neutral objectives towards the mid-late game. They could not fight because of Corki’s poke from afar, and the dragons went to Excel one by one. Team BDS withstood the intense pressure until the late game, but, from a certain point, they could not prevent loss.
Team Vitality fell to Fnatic
Fnatic overwhelmed one of their close rivals, Team Vitality, and nearly caught Rogue on the top. VIT has been underperforming since the beginning of the 2022 Spring. Consistency must be on their focus, and whether they lose, VIT needs to adopt a game plan that clearly describes their strategy.
Though the weakest rosters in the league, such as Astralis and SK Gaming, don’t hesitate to try something unusual to squeeze the top-tier teams. Given that VIT is not a top-tier team considering their current form, it is clear that their primary plan is not working for them.
Maybe Selfmade takes a supportive jungle role despite being a carry, or Maybe Perkz heads to several champions that can change the game in competent hands like Syndra or LeBlanc. Alphari performs well enough in the top lane but VIT’s bot lane must take more responsibility considering the other duos in the league.
Sad week, a bit bad practice week into bad showing
but going to studio and playing on stage was very fun 😋
— Luka (@Perkz) February 12, 2022
MAD is having a rough season
MAD Lions lost their last four of five matches, and the game that they have been playing for the past weeks is unsatisfying. SK Gaming, one of the LEC’s lower-ranked teams, defeated MAD tanks to an outstanding performance by Sertuss.
Reeker could not stand against the elite mid laners in the league, and this lack of talent puts MAD at a disadvantage every match. Mid lane is the most crucial role of League of Legends in the current meta. If any team does not have a top-tier mid laner, they need one or two top-class players in their starting roster. Otherwise, it is almost impossible to reach success. When MAD was crowned as the King of Europe two seasons in a row, Humanoid could make the difference against the other mid laners.
Reeker, who is in his first LEC season, maybe will meet the expectations in the next season, but as of now, MAD will either give their Rookie more time and trash this season or come up with a new game strategy to change this dire situation.
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