In week 2 the Florida Mayhem played against the Houston Outlaws and the Philadelphia Fusion at Philly’s Brotherly Love Homestand. What did the Mayhem do? What can they do better in their next matches and who are they playing against in Week 4.
Houston Outlaws: 0-2-0
The Florida Mayhem had a lot to prove this week. It was their debut in Season 3 of the Overwatch League. As an original team of the League, they were also ranked in the lower half of the teams. This was an explosive first match for the Florida Mayhem to have. Houston were plagued by sickness throughout this whole week, but that should not detract from the fact that many of their players performed well.
The opening two maps of the match were on Busan and Havana. In both cases, the Mayhem played really good defense. Whether they played a mirror match up or stuck to signature heroes that Florida Mayhem was able to win both matches comfortably. A stand out moment was during overtime on Havana when Choi ‘’Karayan’’ Sanha took Austin ‘’Muma’’ Wilmot down, which allowed for all shields to disappear and opened sightlines for Kim ”Yaki” Jungi and Ha ”Sayaplayer” Jungwoo.
The last map was Eichenwald. BQB was swapped back in. With both DPS down for the Outlaws, The Mayhem capped the last point in overtime. Florida’s first match also became Florida’s first sweep of the season.
Player of the Game:
Yaki showed some good Mei play throughout the match.
His ults were well placed making it so his teammates could finish off the Outlaws. This caused some thrilling plays and exciting team fights. Yaki’s Mei is quite aggressive as he isn’t scared to jump in between his enemies and making some well-aimed kills. On Busan, Sanctuary Yaki was one on one with Hydration. He made sure to kill the most of the Outlaws, this way his teammates could come back from spawn. Yaki placed his blizzard and switched to Doomfist making Hydration also switch to mirror the Mayhem. This change didn’t do much for the Outlaws as the Mayhem still capped the point in Overtime.
Philadelphia Fusion: 2-0-0
The first map of the match is Lijiang Tower. The Mayhem put both of their main tanks into the first match with Karayan mainly on Reinhardt and Fate on Orisa. Another change was that the Mayhem put Lee ‘’Byrem’’ Seongju in instead of Gang ”Gangnamjin” Namjin for flex support. Though the Fusion won both Market and Garden, they 100:0 Control Center.
On the second map, the teams went to Junkertown. Though the Mayhem tried an offensive hold right at spawn, the Fusion cracked that easily and swept their way through to a map completion. Florida was stalled before the first point under the bridge and was only able to get point A in overtime. Unfortunately, they were not even able to touch the cart to trigger overtime after they had pushed halfway through point three.
The last map was Blizzard World. The Fusion were able to get allthree points but in overtime. The Mayhem were not even able to cap point A. It looked as if strategies were not working out as Florida hoped it would have.
Player of the Game:
Lee ‘’Carpe’’ Jaehyeok popped off during this game. His widowmaker plays were the ones we have seen from him before. His aim was astonishing and he was clicking heads left and right. The power of Carpe was just too overwhelming for just Sayaplayer to combat. Carpe was an essential part of combating the DPS duo of Yaki and Sayaplayer. Last season Carpe was not able to showcase his skills as he was stuck in the GOATs meta. Carpe showed up as a powerhouse and didn’t let the fans down as he displayed his pinpoint aim during the series.
Preview Week 4: Houston Outlaws Homestand
New York Excelsior: 2-0-0
Sam, the other Mayhem writer had this to say about the preview for NYXL vs. the Mayhem. Follow them on their twitter for more OWL & LoL content; @yaakiisoba
Florida seems to have a looser hold on the current meta than NYXL does and so on top of the possibility of playing off-meta, the Mayhem should perhaps consider playing just the one rotation of players. Last week saw each player get some playtime, however, players like BQB and Gangnamjin were real difference-makers when they played and should be starting on every map. BQB has the third-highest map win rate of any player that has played at least two matches this year and was popping off consistently on the McCree. Hopefully, after a week’s worth of play, Florida will adapt their play to the preferred meta of the more dominant teams in the league. For one, taking Kris off of Brigitte and back onto Lucio, playing Gargoyle on D.Va on each map and only running Orisa on defensive points. This should go a long way in seeing the Mayhem compete with NYXL in their upcoming match.
Prediction: 0:3 NYXL
This is a match that the Mayhem has everything to gain and nothing to lose. Most will be betting against the Mayhem, but if they take a map or even the series from the NYXL their OWL stocks in the power rankings will rise. If the Mayhem loses then it is the result that everyone expected. The Mayhem is used to be the underdog and can possibly surprise the community and their fans with a win!
Player to watch:
The player to watch is Kim ‘’Mano’’ Donggyu. There have been a few voices in the crowd talking about how Mano is washed up and being carried. This is a time to show undoubtedly that he is still a top player. If Mano falters against the Florida Mayhem this will only add fire to the rumors as well as an opening for the Mayhem to sneak in a map win. Watch Mano and whether he shows up or falls off during this match.
London Spitfire: 0-2-0
If this was the end of Season 1, to even think that the London Spitfire and the Florida Mayhem match was going to be close would be laughable. This is Season 3 and has the potential to be an amazingly close match. The London Spitfire has gone through a major upheaval with mostly new players to the Overwatch League. They have lost all of their matches so far. But they did have to face off against the highly ranked NYXL as well as Paris. Lim ‘’Sanguinar’’ Gyumin really shows his objective focused play by attempting multiple back caps. It will be interesting how the two all Korean teams will face off as they both have made multiple roster changes in the off-season. To win this match the Mayhem is going to really have to focus on the supports of London. If they are able to block the healing and take them out early then the frontline and DPS will not have the sustainability for the rest of the fight.
Prediction: 3:2 Florida
The difference between Florida and London is the existing synergies. With the RunAway players on the team, they can lean into their existing teamwork. This is going to be a strength going into the match as the Spitfire boys, though a few coming from Gen.G, had not played together for long. This is going to be a tight match going all the way to 5 maps. But on maps like control, Florida will have an edge over London.
Player to watch:
Lee ‘’Highly’’ Seonghyeok is a veteran of the Overwatch League, having previously been on the Seoul Dynasty in Season 2. Highly showed his proficiency in the first two matches in Week 1. A strong support core alongside Sanguinar could really impact whether the series will be won by the Spitfire or the Mayhem. Keep an eye out to see if the Mayhem is able to stop Highly from pumping out the heals to the team or if he is able to help the Spitfire sustain through long fights.
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