LPL And LCK Spring Split Picks, Predictions, Odds March 10

• Team WE and Invictus Gaming face off in LPL mismatch on Thursday
• FunPlus Phoenix and OMG will be a tight contest between two solid teams
• Hanwha Life Esports desperate for renewed momentum as split draws to a close

Pick: Gameward (moneyline)

Invictus Gaming v Team WE Predictions

This isn’t a contest that will elicit the same kind of excitement as a top-of-the-table clash. It ain’t going to set pulses racing. It ain’t going to see the top sides watch every move of theirs with bated breaths. It’s because this is a clash between two strugglers, who are out of playoff contention and trying to end the season on a winning note.

Invictus Gaming are currently 14th, having lost twice the games they’ve won (four). To make it worse, they have lost two games on the bounce. It’s not a bad time to run into the bottom scrapers, Team WE, who have fared much worse.

A solitary win is all they have to show as we near the last two weeks of what has been a draining Spring Split. The motivation for them to win stems from the possibility of at least lifting themselves off the bottom of the pile. They’re going into the game on the back of five successive losses. So winning is easier said than done. Current form and season’s track record pegs Invictus as the comfortable favourites for this one. They will be a safe bet.

Team WE – A Season To Forget

The 2-1 loss to FunPlus Phoenix, their 11th of the Spring Split, effectively killed any mathematical chances Team WE may have had of making it through to the playoffs.  It brought into spotlight the kind of season they’ve had. They’ve managed all of seven individual game wins out of 30, and the only time they managed to convert those into a win was when they beat LGD Gaming 2-1.

WE have games against Royal Never Give Up, ThunderTalk Gaming and Anyone’s Legend coming up after this one. It’s all about playing for pride, experimenting, looking for that perfect combination heading into the Summer Split. Team WE isn’t the only legacy organisation struggling. TSM, who have most LCS titles, are also currently placed last in the LCS Spring Split.

Invictus With Work To Do

Invictus Gaming were soundly beaten 2-0 by Rogue Warriors. The alarm bells are ringing, because they didn’t look like coming close to a win there. In the first game, they let Ahri take control of the map as he sifted lanes seamlessly, landing 9 kills, 3 deaths and 7 assists. That such a superlative performance was firmly second-best was due to Zeri’s magnificent play, landing 7 kills, 1 death and a mind-boggling 17 assists, which amounted to a creep score of 367. In the second game, Kennen and Jinx rose to the occasion to display incredible squad depth as Invictus stood no chance.

In the first game, Invictus finished 16-27 in terms of kills, and they followed that up with 8-18 in game two. Just going by the evidence of their previous game, Invictus have a lot of work to do. Playing a slightly easier opponent may help them.

FunPlus Phoenix vs OMG Pick

Pick: FunPlus Phoenix (moneyline)

FunPlus Phoenix vs OMG Predictions

This is a mid-table battle of two teams that are striving for the playoffs, only to find that berth running away from them.

While they aren’t mathematically out of contention, it’ll need a miracle of sorts for them to make the top six. FunPlus are 11th with a 6-7 win record. It could’ve been far worse but for the two wins on the bounce that keeps them close to the top 10.

OMG are also in with a similar 6-7 record and are a spot above at 10th. In terms of current form, there’s not much to choose between the two sides. The odds, though, are against OMG for this one.

FunPlus Phoenix eliminated any flicker of hope Team WE may have had to make it to the playoffs.

Now, they run into a team that has been on level terms with them, both in terms of the standings and in terms of squad composition and recent history. So in many ways this is a contest of equals.

The Issues FunPlus Phoenix Must Address

In League of Legends, the bottom lane is where one can effect maximum kills.

For FunPlus Phoenix, Lwx will be one of the key players. His overall record doesn’t really give you a true picture of the player he is, and it’s perhaps time to correct that.

So far, he has returned 3.26 kills, 2.37 deaths and 5.15 assists, with a KDA of 3.54 and creep score of 295.49. Over in the middle lane, gori and Beichuan are forever in a quest to improve their proficiency.

Worryingly,  having the same number of deaths as kills doesn’t speak highly of their track record so far. So there are problems to address and they have a handful of games to try and do things differently to better that.

OMG needed to dig deep into their reserves to eke out a win against Vici. After the match was even after two bouts, OMG brought their A game to the fore in the decider.

They finished with nearly 14k more gold after surging to an early lead they eventually maintained. The byproduct of this was the 17 kills they landed, which was 15 more Han Vici. They also captured 10 towers to Vici’s grand sum of zero.

Creme led the way with 7 kills and 5 assists, while Aki as support cast had a high kill participation record, lending as many as six assists apart from effecting one kill.

OMG don’t have blockbuster players with intimidating records to boot, but have so far found enough depth to get over the line from tough situations even if they haven’t done it consistently. The last few games give them an opportunity to do that in the run-up to Summer Split.

KT Rolster vs Hanwha Life Esports Pick

Pick: KT Rolster (moneyline)

KT Rolster v Hanwha Life Esports Predictions

Hanwha Life Esports have sunk to the bottom of the points table. But there’s a ray of hope. No, we ain’t referring to miraculous playoff prospects, but the possibility of getting off the bottom of the pile.

Their nearest competitors Nongshim Redforce have one more win, so Hanwha can realistically hope to pull level and then try and get a couple of other positive results to try and ensure at least they don’t finish last this Spring Split.

That’s however easier said than done, given they will be heading into the game on the back of four successive losses.

KT Rolster are seventh, but they too have lost more than they’ve won. A 4-10 record does no justice to the kind of talent they have tried to nurture over the years, but teams are eventually judged by results and championships they have won.

On that count, KT Rolster are smarting from six straight losses that has completely detailed their season to an extent that playoffs seem far-fetched even if they’re just outside the qualification zone with six games left. On Thursday, one of the losing streaks will come to an end. Whose will it be? The punters are saying KT Rolster will come out with flying colours.

Hanwha Thwarted By Covid

Ever since a slew of positive covid cases in their camp a couple of weeks ago, Hanwha have been on shaky grounds, struggling for momentum, plans and confidence in executing them to the T. Suddenly they look more vulnerable than ever.

There wasn’t this kind of despondency earlier, even though it appeared as if things were going downhill. It seems to have taken a turn for the worse now. It is about trying to pick up the pieces of a complex jigsaw they are trying to piece together. There are no quick fixes here.

SamD has been their flag bearer in recent times, having a kill rate of 3.43, along with 1.87 deaths and 3.83 assists.

If he can improve his record a notch, Hanwha will massively benefit from it. Their experiments in the mid lane and the jungler position have not yielded desired success so far. Can they try and find a winning combination right at the end of the Spring Split?

Ray Of Hope For KT Rolster

For KT Rolster, mid laner VicLa offers a ray of hope, having been one of their better performers in each of their four losses so far. He lands a kill rate of 4.25, but much of it has been nullified by his high death rate of 3.5 Still, they will want to build on his kill percentage that points to ability.

Aiming in the bot lane has been a leader of sorts for a while now. His kill rate of 3.97 is second best, along with a death rate of 2.33 and 3.97 assists. If these two can cobble up some magic between them, it’ll come as a massive boost for the team.

Liiv Sandbox vs Fredit Brion Pick

Pick: Liiv Sandbox (moneyline)

Liiv SANDBOX vs Fredit BRION Predictions

Two mid-table contenders for much of the Spring Split, Liiv SANDBOX continue to drift away from the playoffs pack. Liiv are currently placed eighth with four wins and 10 losses, three of which have come in their last three matches.

Fredit are slightly better placed with six wins and eight losses. They’re fifth, and the surge to the top half has come about on the back of three back-to-back wins.

So it’s a contrast between a side that has lost momentum as compared to one that is on an upward swing. No wonder the odds are slightly against Liiv SANDBOX going into Thursday’s fixture.

Liiv SANDBOX’s Gaping Holes

After this clash, Liiv SANDBOX have KT, Fredit, and Kwangdong Freecs over the final two weeks of the split to come. If they can take advantage of those matches against direct competitors, their playoff chances could improve significantly.

Liiv SANDBOX have an underwhelming record to speak of, manifested by the poor numbers their crew have consistently churned out.

Picture this: the highest kill rate in their ranks currently in their ranks is Ice, who goes at 2.52. Now consider this in relation with his death rate of 2.26, and it tells you of a player who struggles have been laid threadbare.

This is a story that has repeated itself with all their players so far this season. The lack of proficiency stems from multiple reasons. It’s time to address these.

BRION’s Jigsaw Coming Together

Fredit BRION will draw confidence from the way they wriggled out of tough situations against Nongshim Redforce.

At one point, with the game locked at 1-1, it appeared as if they had let the advantage slip. But they found their bearings and flexed their muscle eventually to take the game 2-1. When it mattered, after surging to an early gold lead, they finished with nearly 15k more gold, 8 more kills and 6 more towers.

UmTi led the way with 3 kills and 11 assists in the mid lane, while Lava and Morgan, both had similar numbers: 4 kills, 3 deaths and 10 assists.

Zeri rose to the fore, landing as many as 8 kills and having 7 assists. If there needed to be an example of a complete term performance, this was it.

T1 vs Kwangdong Freecs Predictions

Pick: T1 (moneyline)

T1 vs Kwangdong Freecs Picks

T1 were undefeated in week seven, and given the way they’ve dominated proceedings so far, it’s likely they may end up with their first undefeated LCK season.

Kwangdong Freecs are currently in with 6 wins and 8 losses, and are placed sixth. The gap between them and the bottom four is so massive that Kwangdong may still make the playoffs because of this difference in quality.

For now though, the punters clearly favour T1 to continue their joyride after this game.

T1’s Season Of Plenty

Their toughest match-ups are behind them, but in two of those three games, they had a massive advantage due to Covid-19. Gen G were playing with three sub-players due to some starters contracting COVID-19.

And once again in their second clash against each other, Gen G’s star bot laner Ruler was ruled out. This made T1’S demolition job all the more easy as Gen G fielded a mid-lane sub to fill a void left by a bot laner.

That said, T1 can only play the opponents they are given, and they did whatever they could in their hands to the best of their ability.

As the playoffs loom, T1 have an opportunity to showcase their immense talent and squad depth, and what they’re capable of even when their opponents are full strength. Only time will tell if their undefeated record is as good as it suggests.

Kwangdong Freecs will likely make the playoffs despite having endured a very poor season, because the four teams below them have all been shockingly ordinary.

How to Watch LPL and LCK 2022 Spring Split