Sentinels defeated Luminosity in its first match in the VALROANT Champions Tour Masters One tournament despite adjusting its roster just before the event. Tyson “TenZ” Ngo filled in after Sinatraa was suspended due to sexual abuse allegations, but the team had little trouble adjusting.
Sentinels won the series 2-1, which is impressive considering the significant roster change before Masters One. Riot Games and Sentinels suspended Sinatraa earlier this week after his ex-girlfriend came forward about a history of sexual abuse. This left Sentinels in a tough spot as they needed to fill their roster before Masters.
TenZ quickly assimilated into the team, however.
“He’s the best player in NA, and I was always curious about how he would integrate on my own team, and he’s a genuine kid,” Shahzeb “ShahZaM” Khan told Dot Esports. “He was really excited to play with us. He picked up on all the things we do so quickly; his comms were good; overall, I’m so impressed by him.”
TenZ previously played for Cloud9 but stepped away from competitive play in January to focus on content creation. Sentinels acquired TenZ as a stand-in for Sinatraa and acquired the rights to the player in response to a recent ruling by Riot Games.
Sentinels acquiring TenZ before Masters One was a significant change for the team, and many wondered if it would impact their performance. Other teams confirmed it was a dangerous new lineup that could potentially be a competitive powerhouse.
Despite the new roster, Sentinels performed well in its first match of the weekend and seated Luminosity.
The team was open to TenZ feeling out each round and capitalizing on any kills or pushes he created. But their overall strategy slightly changed as ShahZaM played Sova on Ascent, which was a scenario he was not familiar with.
“Shaz played Sova on Ascent, and he never played it ever, other than a couple of ranked games a week ago,” Michael “dapr” Gulino said. “Its hard to play an Agent like that who is very supportive and tedious, like knowing all the darts and all the placements of all the abilities.”
Sentinels adjusted to this change and won the map 13-8, despite TenZ playing on double mouse sensitivity.
“I noticed the light on the bottom of my mouse was a different color, it was a little bit embarrassing, but I changed it back for the second map.”
Unfortunately, the second gamer on Split did not go their way, but the team did not blame the mid-game disruption as an issue. They maintained relatively high morale and even played games to pass the time.
TenZ and Sentinels came out strong on map three on Icebox and defeated Luminosity 13-6. The team adapted to TenZ, won their first match of the weekend, and established they are still a talented team regardless of the roster change.
It is unclear if TenZ will remain a permanent addition to Sentinels. He said he enjoys playing professionally, but he is unsure of what will happen going forward.
