Welcome back to EGamersWorld.
Welcome back to LEC Winter 2024, one of the top four professional League of Legends tournaments. In case you don't remember, LEC Winter 2024 features €80,000 and two tickets to the key tournaments of the year - Mid-Season Invitational 2024, the first international tournament of the year, and LEC Finals 2024, the final championship in Europe.
However, it's a long way off, as the regular season is in full swing. It's already the second week of matches, and the situation is only getting hotter.
The opening matches of the second week will be SK Gaming and Team Heretics. If last season we shouldn't have expected something The International interesting from such a match, but at LEC Winter 2024 the match may become even more interesting.
We are trying to find out who will be stronger in this confrontation and who will gain points ahead of the LEC Winter 2024 play-offs.
Let's go.
Heretics uniforms
We will open the match with a look at the Team Heretics uniforms. In this match they will play as favourites.
Heretics have been in the LEC structure since 2022. In their "debut" season Team Heretics played on the TIR-2 stage, more specifically in Superliga Summer 2022 (TOP 1), European Masters Summer 2022 (TOP 1) and Iberian Cup 2022, where they finished TOP 2.
In 2023, the Heretics entered the LEC series of tournaments. The successes were not so good: first TOP-8 at LEC Winter 2023, with SK Gaming knocking them out.
In spring the situation only got worse: Heretics again failed in the group stage, this time playing it with a score of 3-6 and not making it to the play-offs.
In the next round of the LEC draw, Team Heretics performed their best as an affiliate team. They took the top 4 at LEC Summer 2023, Ledge and Fnatic in a battle for the top 3. Heretics secured $5,512 by finishing in the top 4.
- Team Heretics roster: Wunder, Jankoz, Perkz, Flakked, Kaiser.
After a series of bad performances last year, Heretics changed their roster by signing top European players. Let's see how they will do against the strongest representatives of the region.
In the opening match Heretics will play against MAD Lions. In that match I expect the Heretics to win. Then Heretics faced Rogue, where they got their first win of the season. That's right the first, because they Ledge-ed the MAD Lions by flooding the draft in a way that only the Heretics could.
Team Heretics' most popular champions
Aatrox (3 matches, 100% wins) and Renekton (2 matches, 100% wins) appear on LOUD's top line.
Sejuani (4 matches, 100% wins) and Wukong (3 matches, 66% wins) take the jungle.
On the centre line, Taliyah (3 matches, 100% wins) and Lissandra (3 matches, 66% wins) are not the most popular.
Among the shooters Aphelios (4 games, 75% wins) and Xayah (3 games, 66% wins) are the most popular.
Nautilus (4 games, 75% wins), Nami (4 games, 75% wins).
SK Gaming uniforms
We continue the match breakdown with an analysis of SK Gaming's form. Here they will be playing as the number two, but the gap is minimal.
The main achievement of SK Gaming last season was the debut winter LEC split. The team, being among the outsiders and previously occupying the top 8 at LEC Spring and LEC Summer, managed not only to make it to the play-offs, but also to impose a serious struggle against MAD Lions in the match for the top 3.
What followed was much worse. At LEC Spring 2023 SK Gaming were not so confident. This time they managed to pass the regular season and bo1 matches, but not the group stage. SK fell in the top 7.
- SK Gaming roster: Irrelevent, Isma, Nisqy, Exakick, Doss.
At LEC Summer 2023 SK Gaming almost repeated the spring result, with a slight improvement. They took the top 6, but thanks to the top 4 at LEC Winter 2023 they still reached the regional finals.
However, SK Gaming's achievements ended at the LEC 2023 finals. There they played the only match against BDS and lost 0-3 without a chance.
In the first match at LEC Winter 2024 SK Gaming will play against Rogue. The Germans have a good chance to win their opening match. Next SK Gaming will play against MAD Lions, and there they have every chance to win that match. And SK Gaming fulfilled my hopes: the first two matches - two wins. This way they can even compete with Fnatic, in the final match of the first week.
SK Gaming's most popular champions
The top SK Gaming picks were Gnar (2 games, 1 win), KSante (1 game, 0 wins), Camile (1 game, 1 win), Sion (1 game, 1 win), Renekton (1 game, 1 win).
Sejuani and Eliza are honoured in the forest. Both champions have appeared twice each and won both matches, but Vi and Kindred have lost their games.
The centre line performs on Sylas (2 matches, 50% wins), Kassadin (1 time, 0 wins), Azir, Syndra and Akali (1 game each and 100% wins).
From shooters - Zeri. The character appeared 3 times and won 2 matches, besides Varus (who lost the only match), Sivir and Lucian.
Karma, who has had enough of Karma, as well as Renata Glasc and Lulu. Yummi won two matches out of 3, Karma lost the only game, and Renata Glasc and Lulu won.
History of head-to-head meetings between Heretics and SK Gaming
Previously, the teams have played each other twice during the LEC and now they are tied with one game each.
Predicted result of SK Gaming vs Team Heretics at LEC Winter 2024
I expect an equal fight from this match. SK Gaming looked very good in the opening week and with such a pressure they have every chance to qualify for the play-offs. Heretics left mixed feelings, especially considering their match against MAD Lions. All in all, I'm in favour of SK Gaming.
Bottom line: SK Gaming wins.
