Team SoloMid vs Evil Geniuses

Team SoloMid vs. Evil Geniuses -- a far more interesting Best of 5 than what first meets the eye. It is, in many ways, a clash between some of the most entertaining players North America has to offer. Notice how we said "entertaining" rather than "best" or "most capable." There's a world of difference between these adjectives. Still, even though TSM and EG might not have the absolute best players around, they're still packed with potential and talent. The fact that neither team stands much of a chance of leaving a mark in no way diminishes their overall worth. On the contrary! They're every bit as dangerous as most of their peers and that includes Team Liquid and Cloud9. Still, once the going gets rough, both TSM and EG tend to fumble and fail almost by default — an indication of their inexperience and lack of synergy.

Then again, such a thing was to be expected given how both line-ups underwent immense change during the course of the off-season. TSM, in particular, consists of five players who've never played with each other — the sheer fact that they're *this* good at *this* point in time is astonishing, and a true testament to their talent and impressive work ethic. Still, they're just not good enough to compete on even footing with the likes of Team Liquid and Cloud9 (at least not in the Best of 5 format) but that doesn't mean that'll still be the case once the Summer Split comes along.

Evil Geniuses, on the other hand, are about as volatile and crazy as everyone thought they'd be. They are, perhaps, a bit more controlled in their aggression, but we're talking nuances here — they're still the most bravado-fuelled team in North America and will surely prove it yet again tonight. Are these virtues we're talking about? Well, that depends on whom you ask. They can certainly be assets if used and harnessed correctly, but more often than not EG rely too much on sheer brute force rather than any controlled and tamed aggression. But that's just the way they are — there's no use in criticising them for it as it's literally in their DNA and their most defining characteristic.

So, who's favored and why? Well, there's no clear and definitive answer this time around. Both teams have an equal shot of getting the win, which is not what any of us want whenever we're looking to put our money on the line. Evil Geniuses have more hype coming into this Best of 5 merely because they still haven't played (which could also provide them with an invaluable strategic edge) whereas Team SoloMid got destroyed by TL. Still, the boys in black and white have the tendency to bounce back in quite grand fashion and they're also a bit more consistent than Evil Geniuses so we're going to side with them on this one. Although, as already mentioned, this is pretty much as even as it gets.