The competition continues to heat up in Day 3 of Week 3 of the ONE Esports Dota 2 SEA League Group Stage, with Geek Fam and Team Adroit scoring their first 2-0 wins of the tournament over NEW Esports and BOOM Esports.
Geek Fam 2 – 0 NEW Esports
Geek Fam opened the series with a strong tri-core of Spectre for Marc Polo “Raven” Fausto, Ember Spirit for Karl “Karl” Jayme, and Nature’s Prophet for Carlo “Kuku” Palad to counter NEW Esports’ four-protect-one strategy headlined by Hsien Wan “Lance” Fua’s Phantom Assassin.
Both teams remained on even footing heading into the midgame until Geek Fam scored a huge four-for-one trade by their Secret Shop to take the lead. They then proceeded to methodically pick apart NEW Esports to eventually force the GG call after 42 minutes.
Karl led the way for Geek Fam with a game-high 14 kills against three deaths, while Raven pitched in with a clean nine kills.
NEW Esports looked to bounce back in game two behind a carry duo of Ursa for Lance and Ember Spirit for Yi Liong “ddz” Kok, while Geek Fam went with another tri-core of Nature’s Prophet for Raven, Void Spirit for Karl, and Venomancer for Kuku.
Karl keyed a 42-minute victory for Geek Fam to secure the sweep by pulling off big plays in two critical engagements. First, he won a mad scramble for the Aegis at the 34-minute mark then helped his team win the ensuing teamfight. Three minutes later, Karl helped his team defend their base three-versus-five then quickly set up a game-winning pickoff on Lance to secure the sweep after 40 minutes.
Raven notched a game-high eight kills, while Karl, Kenny “Xepher” Deo on Pangolier, and Matthew “Whitemon” Filemon on Snapfire all had six kills.
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- ONE Esports Dota 2 SEA League Week 3, Day 2: TNC climb to second
Team Adroit 2 – 0 BOOM Esports
BOOM Esports opened the series with a four-protect-one headlined by an Anti-Mage for Randy “Dreamocel” Sapoetra, while Team Adroit opted for Phantom Lancer for John Anthony “Natsumi-” Vargas empowered by Mc Nicholson “Mac” Villanueva’s mid Magnus.
Adroit’s lineup proved to be too much for BOOM, as both Natsumi and Mac were able to keep pace and eventually surpass Dreamocel’s farm. Adroit captain Marvin “Boomy” Rushton on Earth Spirit also keyed his team’s strong teamfight and chasing prowess as they cruised to a 38-minute victory in game one.
Mac led the way for Adroit with 14 kills against three deaths, while Natsumi and Boomy pitched in with six kills apiece.
BOOM looked to bounce back in game two behind a high-damage carry duo of Drow Ranger for Dreamocel and Void Spirit for Rafli “Mikoto” Rahman. Adroit had a hard-hitting lineup of their own, going with a tri-core of Terrorblade for Natsumi, Queen of Pain for Mac, and Vengeful Spirit for Jun “Bok” Kanehara.
Even if Adroit was controlling the teamfights behind Natsumi’s ultra-farmed Terrorblade, BOOM still held the lead for much of the game as Dreamocel and Mikoto were able to keep pace with him. With the game hanging in the balance at the 52-minute mark, BOOM scored a huge win by taking down Natsumi and three of his allies. However, Adroit used mass buybacks to turn the tables on BOOM and secure the 2-0 sweep after 54 minutes of action.
Natsumi notched a game-high 13 kills against just one death to lead Adroit to their much-needed first 2-0 win.
Geek Fam move up to seventh place in the group stage standings and are starting to round out into form with their first 2-0 win of the league, not counting the free win they got from Execration’s withdrawal. They still have four matches to play in Week 4 to determine their real spot in the standings.
BOOM Esports remain tied with Reality Rift for fifth place, but they are quickly losing steam and need to figure out the new patch if they hope to remain contenders.
Meanwhile, Adroit’s win over NEW Esports bump them up to eighth place and away from the verge of an early elimination after the group stage. They still have to survive a three-match gauntlet in Week 4 if they hope to make the Playoffs.
Despite their demoralizing loss, NEW Esports remain tied with TNC Predator for second place in the standings. While they have already guaranteed themselves a spot in the Playoffs, they may lose their valuable Upper Bracket berth if they can’t figure out the new patch as well.
| Rank | Team Name | W-T-L | Record | Points |
| 1. | Fnatic | 4-1-0 | 9-1 | 13 |
| 2. | TNC Predator | 3-2-0 | 8-2 | 11 |
| 2. | NEW Esports | 3-2-2 | 8-4 | 11 |
| 4. | T1 | 3-1-2 | 7-5 | 10 |
| 5. | Reality Rift | 2-3-2 | 7-7 | 9 |
| 5. | BOOM Esports | 2-3-3 | 7-9 | 9 |
| 7. | Geek Fam | 2-2-1 | 6-4 | 8 |
| 8. | Team Adroit | 1-4-1 | 6-6 | 7 |
| 9. | Neon Esports | 1-3-2 | 5-7 | 6 |
READ MORE: ONE Esports Dota 2 SEA League: What to expect from the new 7.27 meta
