Cloud9 and Liquid move on at iBUYPOWER Masters

Cloud9 and Liquid bested fnatic and Luminosity, respectively, in their group stage matches, securing spots in the winners' matches at iBUYPOWER Masters.

The main stream match saw fnatic kick things off on the T side of Overpass, where an A hit fell through in a post-plant 2v3 situation as Cloud9's rotators made work of the remaining Ts, copping the first pistol. Off the back of initial momentum, the international mix proceeded to accrue rounds with an outstanding performance from Robin "⁠flusha⁠" Rönnquist, who contributed to his team's third consecutive round after securing a 4k.

Round five was pivotal for the Swedes as they were finally able to get on the board. After winning the next round, fnatic left Cloud9's economy in tatters and closed the gap to 3-4. The scales started to weigh back into Cloud9's favour over the remainder of the half, with the Ts able to breach the defense on three additional occasions. The final round saw Jesper "⁠JW⁠" Wecksell convert a low HP 1v2 situation into a victory for his team, softening the deficit to 6-9.

Cloud9 furthered their position by landing the second pistol round, this time on the T side, with Jordan "⁠Zellsis⁠" Montemurro and Fabien "⁠kioShiMa⁠" Fiey dispatching the opposition between them, picking up a 3k and 2k, respectively. Once fnatic were able to purchase rifles in round 19, their first victory of the second half occurred, but it did not yield any long-term gains, as a brittle economy was shattered immediately by Cloud9's advances. The international mix had no difficulty closing out the best-of-1, as a 4k from William "⁠RUSH⁠" Wierzba in round 22 was succeeded by a round victory against a force buy, closing Overpass at a 16-7 victory for Cloud9.

Over in group B, Liquid commenced on the CT side of affairs, where every member of the roster barring Keith "⁠NAF⁠" Markovic survived the first round, securing the pistol. The North American mix was able to keep the ball rolling all the way to a 5-1 lead, falling short in round 3 on their way. The Ts struggled with their footing throughout the initial half, only able to occasionally secure rounds, with the half ending with a 10-5 scoreline in Liquid's favour.

Luminosity made up for previous shortcomings by landing the second pistol, giving them a much-needed boost. Two further rounds were accrued, with immediate reaction from the Ts in the form of a round victory, coupled with an economy reset. This allowed Liquid to take the driver's seat for the remainder of the half, conceding just three more rounds before running away with a 16-11 victory.