It’s ONIC time!
ONIC Esports were crowned the champion of the Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Southeast Asia Cup 2023 (MSC 2023) after earning a 4-2 victory over Blacklist International in the grand final.
This marks the organization’s second MSC title, following their previous win in 2019, solidifying their status as the first team to capture two MSC trophies in the tournament since its debut in 2017.
They kicked off their journey with an impeccable 4-0 record in the group stage. As they progressed into the knockout stage, ONIC Esports continued their reign of dominance with a near-perfect 10-1 record.
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ONIC Esports becomes first team to win two MSC trophies after a dominant 4-2 performance over Blacklist International
The first game ended in just 11 minutes thanks to the combined effort of Calvin “CW” Winata’s Beatrix and Kairi “Kairi” Rayosdelsol’s Ling, who had a combined 11/1/14 KDA on a 14-6 kill score.
In the second game, they staged a remarkable comeback, propelled by Nicky “Kiboy” Fernando’s crucial Iron Hooks on Franco to pick off Blacklist International’s backline heroes.
ONIC Esports appeared on track for a 3-0 lead, but Blacklist International fought back. At the 19-minute mark, Blacklist secured the Lord and two kills, handing ONIC their first loss in the tournament.
In the fourth game, ONIC Esports dominated the early stages, establishing a comfortable 1-7 lead within 10 minutes.
With a 9,000 gold advantage and securing the Lord at the 14-minute mark, ONIC overwhelmed Blacklist, forcing them into a desperate four-man base defense to reach match point.
Blacklist wouldn’t go down without a fight and put on an incredible performance in the fifth game. EDWARD’s Lapu-Lapu and Howard “Owl” Gonzales’ Claude finished with a perfect 6/0/5 and 4/0/7 KDA, respectively, putting up a lopsided 18-4 kill score.
In the sixth game, it was a back-and-forth affair in the early game as both teams traded kills and objectives. However, ONIC would get the upper hand at the 14-minute mark after securing the Lord and killing three Blacklist members, prompting them to destroy the bot and midlane turret.
With two lanes exposed, ONIC went up a notch in aggressiveness to stop Blacklist from coming back into the game. The Lord at the 18-minute mark sealed the deal as ONIC went straight to their base to capture the series.
For his outstanding performance, Nicky “Kiboy” Fernando was hailed the grand final MVP. ONIC Esports takes home the lion’s share of the US$300,000 prize pool.
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