For the first time in almost two years, Team Liquid have finally got one over on former teammate Russel “Twistzz” Van Dulken and FaZe Clan, eliminating the reigning champions from IEM Katowice 2023 today and stealing one of the final playoff spots. The win for Liquid is also their first victory against Twistzz on LAN.
Liquid’s primary AWPer Josh “oSee” Ohm, who has struggled with inconsistency in recent matches, had himself a great overall series where he showcased the precision, consistency, and playmaking that fans have been looking for. He averaged a +5 K/D but, more importantly, had his best average player rating across a three-map series since Liquid’s win over Outsiders back at the BLAST World Final.
Early in the series, Liquid were on the cusp of stealing away FaZe’s pick of Inferno but fumbled the final two rounds to lose 16-14—and it felt like a massive missed opportunity for the NA roster. But they retaliated on Overpass, closing out both halves with five-round win streaks to send the series to Mirage.
Liquid came out strong on Mirage on their T-side, keeping FaZe’s economy humbled for almost the entire half. In the second half, FaZe mounted a comeback and retook the lead, but some huge playmaking from the likes of nitr0, YEKINDAR, and oSee brought Liquid back and they narrowly crossed the finish line 16-13.
It was a surprisingly quiet game from the typically reliable EliGE. There are no games in recent history where Liquid have won the match with EliGE posting a negative series player rating until today’s game against FaZe. Liquid move on to the playoffs and the packed Spodek Arena and will play a struggling Vitality in the first round.
Published: Feb 7, 2023 03:24 pm