On the final competition day of Round 2 of the SEA Games 31 League of Legends qualifiers, GAM Esports found themselves on the brink. The VCS Winter 2021 runners-up unexpectedly suffered a perplexing defeat against Burst The Sky Esports in Game 3 on March 2, shaking their position in the top 4 fiercely. Not to mention, with their habit of “throwing games” shown in recent matches, many fans are even worried that GAM might be eliminated from the final qualification round of the SEA Games 31.
GAM’s first opponent was the “Buffalo Herd” Saigon Buffalo. From the early game to almost the middle of the match, the GAM players showed that they were not performing at their peak. They allowed SGB to gain too much advantage, and if the “Buffalo Herd” played more carefully, they would certainly not give GAM a chance to turn the game around. However, after some cautious skirmishes towards the end of the match, GAM managed to secure a hard-fought 1-0 victory.
In Game 2, GAM was again the team that controlled the early game. However, SGB also put up a significant resistance. Things only changed when GAM wiped out SGB after a Baron attempt by the “Buffalo Herd”. After securing their second Baron, GAM intensified their snowballing efforts and convincingly won 2-0.
One would think this victory would set a good precedent for GAM heading into the tie-breaker match against SBTC Esports, but things didn’t go as planned. On a day when SE was on fire, they caused another upset right in the SEA Games 31 qualifiers. GAM had a balanced early and mid-game against SE, but a skirmish near GAM’s second turret opened the floodgates for a disastrous match. SE’s players, especially NPer and Spot, performed excellently. The gold gap between SE and GAM widened significantly. In a crucial team fight, Celeb was taken down early, but GAM managed to trade for 4 kills. SE pushed from the top lane, and GAM had to sadly accept defeat in the tie-breaker.
After that, SE continued to win against SKY to secure the top position after the final competition day of Round 2 of the SEA Games 31 League of Legends qualifiers. Immediately after SE’s victory, the VCS community wondered who “Gà Hồng” would choose between SGB or GAM. However, most opinions suggest that SE should “avoid” GAM, as the yellow-black team is too familiar with tense BO5 matches.
But regardless of who SE faces in the top 4, SE fans have every reason to be confident, as their “beloved” team has performed exceptionally well in the qualifiers, especially with two victories against GAM. However, SE should not be complacent, as in the decisive round, even a small mistake could ruin all their hard work.