One of the biggest hurdles for Evil Geniuses was Brazilian superteam LOUD leading up to VCT Maters Tokyo, losing to them just before heading to the event. But a different EG arrived in Japan, rematching LOUD in the playoffs on June 15 and outplaying them in a dominant 2-0 sweep to send the first seed from Americas to the lower bracket.
Much like how they surprised opponents in the group stage, EG pulled off set plays and executed them to perfection. LOUD were supposed to be their most challenging opponent yet, but EG delivered one of their most convincing wins of the tournament, with Alexander “jawgemo” Mor leading the way on Raze and Omen.
This series was defined by two jawgemo moments, one to start off the series on Fracture, and one to end the series on Ascent. The first was one of the best team-coordinated set plays not only in Tokyo but over the entire year.
In round three, EG made the call to use almost the entire team’s utility to clear out tower on the B site. LOUD’s Matias “Saadhak” Delipetro was quickly overwhelmed by Breach’s Fault Line, Raze’s Paint Shells, Killjoy’s Nanoswarm, and Sova’s Hunter’s Fury to bag the kill.
But the moment that everyone will remember is a big mistake from LOUD on Ascent. Arthur “tuyz” Vieira seemed to have a free kill as jawgemo walked past. Tuyz was patient, waiting to kill him, trying to see if others would pass by. But he kept waiting and waiting and it proved to be too long as jawgemo checked behind him and picked up the free kill.
Sometimes patience pays off, but being too patient can allow for moments like this to happen. Jawgemo ended the series with 43 kills, 13 more than the next player on either team. But even with the standout performance, every player on EG outplayed their counterpart on LOUD, mainly due to their familiarity with their regional rivals.
“Teams like that, they’re not new. We know what they do and they know what we do,” Ethan “Ethan” Arnold said in a post-match interview. “It would be different against a team we haven’t played before. We are lucky to be here, but we’re showing we can hang with the big dogs and I hope we can keep our undefeated run going.”
EG move on in the playoffs through the upper bracket, with their next match on June 19. LOUD are now on their last life, with their first lower bracket match of the tournament kicking off on June 18.
