After weeks of intense competition, the SEA Games 31 qualifiers for League of Legends have reached their conclusion. On the afternoon of March 9th, the first semifinal match of the SEA Games 31 qualifiers took place between Saigon Buffalo and Burst The Sky Esports. This match can be seen as somewhat unbalanced as SGB is in good form while SKY has been somewhat inconsistent in both the SEA Games 31 qualifiers and the VCS Spring 2022.
In the opening game of the BO5 series, SGB was naturally favored over SKY. Right from game 1, SGB completely dominated their opponent. They crushed SKY in just about 23 minutes before securing Baron and finishing the game with a 1-0 victory. As they moved into game 2, the situation did not improve for SKY. In fact, the “Buffaloes” ended the match even faster than in game 1. After about 23 minutes of play, SKY’s Nexus exploded, and many viewers were surely thinking of an easy 3-0 victory for SGB.
But SKY unexpectedly played brilliantly when they were on the brink of defeat. In their victory in game 3, each player from SKY seemed to perform at over 100% capacity. From Ryuk to Draktharr and especially Gloryy. The dominant team fights from SKY helped this team cling to hope and forced SGB to move on to the fourth game to determine the outcome.
In game 4, SKY surprisingly played just like… games 1 and 2. They could not win against SGB in any lane. Particularly, Ryuk’s top lane was destroyed incredibly quickly due to the excellence of Hasmed and the frequent support from BeanJ and Froggy. Towards the end of the match, SKY’s efforts were futile against SGB’s strength. Hasmed rampaged through SKY’s lineup and ended the BO5 series with a total score of 3-1.
Following SGB’s devastating victory, the League of Legends community in Vietnam, especially SE fans, could not help but feel anxious. It should be noted that in the 2022 season alone, in both the VCS Spring 2022 and the SEA Games 31 qualifiers, SE has yet to win against SGB. Perhaps at this moment, SE fans will worry more about facing SGB than GAM Esports.
However, some believe that SE should only focus on defeating “BO5 specialists” GAM before thinking about the results if they face SGB.
For their part, SGB has accomplished their first task in the two crucial BO5 series. With their current strength and stability, it can be said that SGB from VCS Spring 2021 has returned. And whether the opponent in the finals of the SEA Games 31 qualifiers is GAM or SE, SGB can definitely create surprises and become the representative team of Vietnam at the upcoming SEA Games 31 in League of Legends.