Recap

This...was a quiet week. A total of 3 matches were played, which doesn't leave us with much data to talk over, but we did get yet another 5-4 showing from Exertus and Mad Men, once again proving that this season is just damn good. Outside of ESEA, we got some CEVO-P action with Mixup winning over Exertus, an amazing SFM regarding Froyotech and XTS, Twitch shenanigans, and shade hilariously trying to play TF2 with a controller. In other less happy news, Br0nzing with Br0nze was officially announced dead, which also cuts into the amount of matches we'll be seeing for the remainder of the season. Thankfully there are still some leftover Gullywash games which will be played tonight, such as Street Hoops vs. Ding Dong Daddy and Wood Pig vs. The Hurricane. The Gullywash remainders and Badlands schedule should help bring us out of last week's dull activities.

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1. Froyotech (4-1) #

Froyotech played Wood Pig and walked away with a clean 5-0 win. The combination of clckwrk and b4nny's Scout prowess and shade's extreme survivability really pushed Froyotech's advantages, though I would like to call out lansky's “gg” at the 3-0 halftime which was uncalled for and very disrespectful (Edit: You weren't supposed to take this seriously). Anyway onto Badlands week, Mad Men and The Hurricane will be looking to brawl. Considering how Mad Men played against XTS it's entirely possible to see another upset, but the disparity between clckwrk and whichever Scouts they're playing and the massive milking to be done from shade should be more than enough to give Froyotech a few more wins.

2. Exertus TF2 (6-0)

The quest to perfection continues for this XTS team, who held off a very hungry Mad Men to a 5-4 aftter a 2-2 halftime. To say that rando didn't play the game of his life would be a massive understatement, and on the flipside, alfa really needs to start contributing when he switches to Sniper. According to ESEA, alfa apparently has zero frags on Sniper thus far, which is probably not what you want to see given how much time alfa spends on the class. (Edit: Just kidding, I was looking at Sniper Rifle frags and alfa uses the AWP. I knew something was off but guess that never occured to me.) XTS' Badlands opponents will be Ding Dong Daddy and Street Hoops. XTS should just be too much for Ding Dong Daddy to handle; expecting a convincing 5-0 from XTS. The match against Street Hoops should be the MOTW and I'll cover that later.

3. Classic Mixup (2-2)

Classic Mixup had a solid 5-3 win over The Hurricane, with everyone playing well and to expectations. Mixup will pickup a forfeit win off Br0nzing with Br0nze and play Ding Dong Daddy. Now, based on the matches we've seen, I don't think it's likely that Mixup will drop a single round. 5-0 for Mixup. Cute trivia: since the fateful loss against AG (and less exciting loss to bp) during S14, Mixup have yet to lose on Badlands during the regular season. Mixup should use this calmer (more calm?) Badlands week to prepare for a fierce Metalworks week, where they'll face Street Hoops and rematch Exertus.

4. Wood Pig (1-3)

Wupig had milo ringing Pocket and bape back on Scout to accommodate arcticjoe's absence in their match against Froyotech. While I wouldn't call that an anomaly, I think they would've been able to swing at least a round with their regular lineup. That being said, Wood Pig have a few matches of breathing room before being thrown back into a schedule of 20b, XTS, mix^ and 4G again. Their matches this week will be against The Hurricane on Gullywash and Mad Men on Badlands, both being key games. A win against bl4nk and friends would continue to boost their LAN prospects, but it's up to the combo of Wood Pig to stuff the Mad Men flank. As for the Gullywash game, if Wood Pig can convincingly put away The Hurricane it would leave them in a pretty good spot. However, since this happens before the Mad Men match I may be jumping the gun a little.

5. Street Hoops Esports (3-2)

The Street Hoops team is on a mini winning streak since their 0-2 start. They will face Ding Dong Daddy tonight, in hopes to extend this string of wins. I think the cyzer and grape duo will be too much for the Ding Dong Daddies and, as predicted last week, they'll come out on top with a 5-2. This is absolutely a match they don't want to mess up on, as they've already taken down other LAN hopefuls once each (Mad Men and The Hurricane). A win tonight will leave them with a 3-1 record against the bubble teams thus far. They will take on the undefeated Exertus on Badlands, so they're the next team up to try and stop XTS' march to a perfect season.

6. Mad Men (2-2)

Mad Men have suffered 5-4 losses to LAN teams Exertus and Street Hoops. As of current they've been the bubble team with the strongest performances overall. I was unsure if this 5-4 loss to XTS warrants a rank above Street Hoops, but luckily Street Hoops' showing against the former this week should provide more convincing data. I'll leave ranks as is for the time being. Mad Men also have yet to play last week's predicted MOTW against Mixup, which I'm assuming is to be pushed back / rescheduled since Mixup's CEVO match concluded so late. After Mixup comes Froyotech and Wood Pig. Mike (apparently Ggglygy's son) and bl4nk should be stronger than arcticjoe and meb and will likely give Mad Men the edge in this matchup. I predict Mad Men to win 5-2 and further solidify their spot in the top half of Invite (again pending the 20b vs. XTS results).

7. The Hurricane (2-3) #

Don't let the 2-3 record of The Hurricane fool you, these guys have been playing hard this season. They're always putting up at a round even in their losses, always looking to keep surprising us. Their loss against Mixup was very close, much more so than the 5-3 score would say. SureShot played out of his mind, though in reality everyone played well and just missed out on some pushes and momentum which led to the loss. They'll be looking to bring the fight to Froyotech this week, and if previous results are any indication, expect to see this group put up a round or two before they're done.

8. Ding Dong Daddy (1-3)

Literally nothing happened last week for Ding Dong Daddy, but they'll be getting their slice of Gullywash tonight against Street Hoops. At this point I'm just repeating myself from the Street Hoops segment above and the Power Rankings from last week. It's entirely possible for these Ding Dong Daddies to win. They just have to contain grape and cyzer from rampaging over their team, something which falls on the shoulders of showstopper and alec (subsequently Benk and okiewaka, too). The roughest patch in their schedule is yet to come, however, with 3 of the next 4 matches against LAN teams plus Wood Pig tagging along. I predict a few strong rounds but ultimately a 1-6 finish for the Daddies by Badlands week.

9. Br0nzing with Br0nze (0-3)

Rest in peace, Br0nzing with Br0nze. We pay our respects to Br0nze, Pharaoh, Shrugger, smaka, snailboat, broking, and blink.

Match of the Week

Exertus TF2 (6-0) vs. Street Hoops Esports (3-2)

These teams have developed a good rivalry. Street Hoops knocked XTS out and got the upper hand at LAN, while XTS got some revenge during offseason showings like the i52 Qualifiers and also with stealing cozen from 20b. This specific match has many implications. Froyotech's undefeated streak was broken by XTS, and Street Hoops will want to be the team that does the same for XTS. Conversely, XTS have taken down Froyotech and Classic Mixup once, and would like to add the last LAN team to the list. Their strongest opponents would be out of the way (for round 1 anyway). This may be too early to start calculating statistics but I think winning both Badlands week secures Exertus a LAN spot, since they'd be guaranteed to a 9-7 finishing record at worst. And considering how they've been playing, I think they're going for much higher.

This is surely going to come down to the Pocket and Scout matchups. Grape vs. rando is going to be very exciting and hopefully full of fights with beautiful airshots and Shotgun frags. Cyzer will be the best Scout on the map, and it's on Decimate and alfa to keep him contained. Speaking of alfa, if (read: when) he switches to Sniper he better provide a headshot or two or he'll be a wasted Scout slot. This is especially since the counter Sniper on 20b is gonna be paragon. Along with the Pocket battle the Medic warfare will also be worth noting. Ninjanick's tendency leading to dropped players or ubers has been a lethal liability for his team. Cozen has been solid albeit on vacation the last 2 weeks. Both Medics have shown they have the survival skills, but who will have the better uber trades,

Exertus is on a quest to be the 3rd team in the last 6 seasons to go 16-0. In contrast, Street Hoops has had two extremely close 5-4's against Wood Pig and Mad Men (who just lost 5-4 against XTS). Why not have a third?

Prediction: Exertus TF2 – 5, Street Hoops Esports - 4

Players to Watch: rando, cozen, grape, cyzer

Final Glance

1. Froyotech
2. Exertus TF2
3. Classic Mixup
4. Wood Pig
5. Street Hoops Esports
6. Mad Men
7. The Hurricane
8. Ding Dong Daddy
9. Br0nzing With Br0nze [R.I.P]