Entering their final match of the first round of the MSI 2022 group stage, Saigon Buffalo aimed for a victory to solidify their standing on the leaderboard. Their opponent this time was Team Aze, who had lost all of their previous two matches. Notably, each loss for AZE, even against a team from the “lower tier” like DetonatioN FocusMe, had been significant defeats. Therefore, an easy win would boost the morale of the players and SGB fans heading into the second round.
In reality, the match unfolded just as everyone had predicted. Although Dimitry made attempts with consecutive ganks in the bottom lane, the first of which secured First Blood, the skill gap was simply too vast. SGB had a “win lane win game” lineup, and once they gained the lead, AZE simply could not stop this “snowball”.
On a day when Bean J was performing exceptionally well, along with every lane of SGB winning, Bean J’s job became incredibly simple. No one could stop him from helping SGB’s lanes extend their advantage. Even though Shogun played a champion focused on pushing lanes rather than fighting, “The Buffaloes” did not lose a single team fight. In the end, only in just over 20 minutes of play, SGB claimed victory, marking one of the fastest wins in MSI 2022 to date.
Witnessing the destructive power of SGB against AZE, as well as this team’s impressive performance at MSI 2022, the international League of Legends community was left in awe and excitement. Countless praises flooded in for SGB, with many predicting that if they maintain their good form, SGB could very well aim for the top 4, not just top 6.
Additionally, there are many comments regarding how SGB performs impressively yet is only the second seed of VCS. The League of Legends community believes that if GAM Esports had truly participated in MSI, the VCS representative could have caused even more surprises.
However, some pointed out that one player from AZE did not greet the SGB players after the loss. This caused SGB members to hesitate for a moment before returning to their positions.
With an easy victory over AZE, SGB has seemingly completed their mission in the first round, as expected by the League of Legends community. However, based on what they have shown, SGB will be fully confident in maintaining their second-place position after the group stage ends. Additionally, the rematch between SGB and T1 is sure to be highly anticipated, and “The Buffaloes” have every reason to make Faker and his teammates wary.