AVANT and MVP PK round out Asia Minor playoffs

AVANT beat 5POWER on Overpass (16-11), Mirage (13-16), and Inferno (19-16), to qualify for the Asia Minor playoffs, while MVP PK made it out of groups after defeating Alpha Red on Vertigo (13-16), Inferno (16-7), and Mirage (16-8).

AVANT kicked off the defense on Overpass with a pistol win as they cleanly killed off every 5POWER player. Down 0-3, 5POWER were finally able to break into the A site, with Bin "⁠Savage⁠" Liu closing out a 3vs3 afterplant situation with a triple to get on the board. AVANT then retaliated, winning two rounds in a row forcing 5POWER on an eco. Jared "⁠hazr⁠" O'Bree was then unable to win a 1vs3 clutch after killing two, as Peng "⁠xiaosaGe⁠" Song defended the bomb plant to make it 2-5. 5POWER then broke AVANT’s economy, bringing it to a close 4-5 early on. The two teams were tied 6-6 heading into the last rounds of the half, but it was the Aussies that closed it out in the lead, 8-7.

5POWER won a 4vs2 afterplant situation in the second pistol round to tie it back up. AVANT then forced, with the next round reaching a 2vs2 afterplant, but a flank by Savage who was able to mow down the Terrorists put 5POWER back in the lead. AVANT then took the reins of the half on the attack, not giving 5POWER a chance before hitting match point, 15-10. The Chinese team was able to stop AVANT from taking the map, but only momentarily, as the Australian team closed Overpass out 16-11.

5POWER obliterated AVANT as they tried to make a fast B push on the opening pistol round in Mirage, with the Chinese side taking control of proceedings early on, winning the first gun round and going on to take a 7-0 lead before AVANT could get on the board. The two teams then traded several rounds back-and-forth as the Australians managed to cut the Chinese team’s lead to 9-6 at the half.

The second pistol round saw 5POWER go towards B, and although it seemed they would be stopped, three kills by Lei "⁠bottle⁠" Mao saved them as Savage planted on A and killed the rotators to hit double digits and increase their lead. 5POWER stayed in the driver’s seat, taking a 14-6 lead before AVANT could get back on the board. The Australians won several rounds to try and mount a comeback, but it was too little too late, as 5POWER hit match point and eventually closed it out 16-13 to force the third map of the series.

The decider, Inferno, started with 5POWER winning the attacking side pistol round. bottle then won a 1vs2 clutch against the forcebuy, but 5POWER’s struggles became apparent as AVANT was able to win a full eco before going on to take an early 3-2 lead. The Aussies were able to assert their dominance, with Jireh "⁠J1rah⁠" Youakim going off on the defending side as his team took a 10-5 lead before switching sides.

AVANT got in a good position to take the map winning the second pistol round and the anti-eco. Down 6-14, 5POWER managed to get some rounds on the board and eventually were able to come back and take the lead in the last round, 15-14, but a 1vs2 clutch by Euan "⁠sterling⁠" Moore pushed the match into overtime.

AVANT took the lead on the attacking side winning the two first rounds after A strikes before 5POWER could win one of their own. Having switched sides, AVANT stayed in the driver's seat, hitting match point and winning out, 19-16.

Alpha Red kicked Vertigo off winning a 4vs5 afterplant situation. MVP PK were finally able to get on the board on the fourth round when Seon-Ho "⁠xeta⁠" Son,Hyun-Pyo "⁠XigN⁠" Lee, and Gu-Taek "⁠stax⁠" Kim won a 3vs4 afterplant on A. xeta then got a triple before the Koreans went on to tie it up, 3-3, against an eco. Both teams then traded rounds, keeping it tied at 4-4, but MVP PK had the economic advantage on the attacking side. The Koreans were finally able to take hold of the half, albeit just barely, as Alpha Red were able to win the last three rounds of the half to make it 7-8.

The Thai team then won the second pistol round of the map, following it up with an eco bash to take the lead, 9-8. After the third round of the half, MVP PK were finally able to get back on the board as XigN was able to defuse surrounded by the flames of a late molotov by Peeratch "⁠Olivia⁠" Ingkudanonda. Alpha Red then found their groove, however, getting several opening rounds they were able to convert on to take a 13-10 lead. Down 10-15, MVP PK were able to stop Alpha Red from taking the first map, although just momentarily, as the Thai team closed Vertigo out 16-13.

MVP PK won the first pistol round on the attacking side of Inferno with a B push, which they were able to follow up twice for a 3-0 lead after the first gun round. Alpha Red were unable to get back into the game as the Koreans were able to break the defenses round after round without much effort, quickly instilling a 6-0 lead before the Thai team could get on the board. It looked like the MVP PK show, but several successful retakes by Alpha Red made it even, as they only trailed by one at the half.

MVP PK then won the pistol round on the defending side with a triple by stax and went on to put a completely dominating performance as CTs closing out every attempt by Alpha Red to take a round, closing the map 16-7 and pushing it to the decider.

Mirage kicked off with MVP PK taking the pistol round on the CT side and following it up against the eco. They then got off to a great start by winning the first gun round without upgraded weapons, and taking a 5-0 after an anti-eco. Alpha Red finally managed to get on the board as Olivia downed four with the AWP, including 1vs3 clutch, but MVP PK stayed firmly in control, taking seven of the first ten rounds and going on to close the half 11-4.

MVP PK won the second pistol round, but were unable to convert the follow-up as Alpha Red set-up their second half to try and mount a comeback, but MVP PK were quick to turn it around, going on to win the map and series, 16-8, to clinch a spot in the playoffs.