HCS Preview for Week Five

Week four almost saw the end of Team EnVyUs’s winning streak, and to a team that shouldn’t be underestimated. LOL is looking to push their way up the standings this week, so there is sure to be lots of movement this week.

Here’s what to expect:

The Current Standings

Team EnVyUs is still in the top spot, but maybe not as comfortably. Last week saw LOL apply pressure on EnVyUs, taking them to the last game with a close final score of 50-40. In an interview with EnVyUs after the game, Justin “iGotUrPistola” Deese stated, “We’re going to work on all the little details”, and that the team would “come back strong next week.”

A strong factor in the near loss was the team’s weak performance on Strongholds, which LOL made sure to exploit. Not only this, but Bradley “APG” Laws stepped up his game, becoming a force to be reckoned with. Going up against Team Liquid is going to be a challenge for EnVyUs, as this was the team that defeated them in their very first match, so they are the most likely contenders to ruin their uninterrupted seven game win streak.

Second and third place are still occupied by OpTic Gaming and Team Liquid. Both teams are still on a three game win streak, but each has a relatively tough matchup this week. OpTic will be taking on LOL, who’s performance has done nothing but improve over the past weeks. Furthermore, taking on former teammate APG will be a challenge for the team following his success in last week’s match against EnVyUs. Team Liquid will be looking to capitalise on their past victory over EnVyUs in the first week, and may be the only team who is capable of halting their seven game streak.

In fourth and fifth place are Luminosity and LOL, who will be facing off in their first game this week. Luminosity will be looking to improve their standing in their match against EnVyUs, but will have to surpass LOL. OpTic Gaming will be the main challenge for LOL, whose performance against EnVyUs has proven them to be stronger than their initial performance.

Occupying sixth, seventh and eight are Evil Geniuses, Enigma6 and Allegiance. Both Evil Geniuses and Enigma6 have had a troubling past few games, both being overtaken in the standings by LOL. Evil Geniuses’ matchups are against the last two positions, so they shouldn’t pose much of a threat. Enigma6, however, has to deal with OpTic Gaming, an extremely strong team who put Enigma6 in their place in the first game of the HCS Pro League.

Finally, firmly in last place is Allegiance, who has struggled to show any signs of resistance in their past three games. Allegiance will be taking on Evil Geniuses and Team Liquid in their matchups this week, and will need to up their game if they hope to move anywhere in the standings.

The Matches

Day One:

Match One: LOL vs. Luminosity

Match Two: Enigma6 vs. OpTic Gaming

Match Three: Allegiance vs. Evil Geniuses

Match Four: Team Liquid vs. Team EnVyUs

Day Two:

Match One: Allegiance vs. Team Liquid

Match Two: Team EnVyUs vs. Luminosity

Match Three: LOL vs. OpTic Gaming

Match Four: Enigma6 vs. Evil Geniuses

Predictions

It seems like the main team to watch this week will be LOL, a team who has had a ferocious turn in momentum. After nearly defeating EnVyUs in last week’s matches, no team is going to take LOL lightly. LOL didn’t catch EnVyUs on a bad day, they gave them an extremely hard time. Expect LOL to keep up the momentum they have going and quite possibly take down both Luminosity and OpTic Gaming.

EnVyUs will face off against the only team to take a win from them, Team Liquid, but they have seem to be in a strong position. It is unlikely that EnVyUs will struggle this week, having beaten every team thus far except for Team Liquid, and seem set to increase their lead further.

OpTic Gaming can’t afford to lose a game at this point, as this could open the door for LOL to move up into the higher standings. OpTic had nothing but strong performances so far, and surely aren’t ready to move anywhere in the standings.

On the lower end of the standings, there shouldn’t be much movement, as the bottom three teams can’t catch a break in their matches. Unless LOL majorly messes up, we won’t be seeing any of these teams move up. Allegiance has seemingly lost all hope at this point, and need nothing short of a miracle to get out of last place, having only won one game overall.

Who do you think will move in the standings this week? Leave a comment down below, or tweet us @GAMURScom.

Jordan Aldridge-Payne is an esports journalist for GAMURS and can be reached on Twitter @mrjordanap.