Most of the EU LCS match-ups this week will pit low-standing teams against one another. However, there is a spicy match-up to tune in for: Misfits v. H2K. Both of these two teams hold second place in their respective groups. They are also coming off of solid wins in Week 6. Week 7 will be their first clash.

There are a number of factors that set up this particular series to be explosive. Firstly, they have similar game records. Misfits has 15 wins, four losses. H2K has 14 wins, five losses. Secondly, they sit in the top two positions for Gold Difference at 15 minutes. Misfits average 1,771 ahead. H2K average 1,351 ahead. Thirdly, according to OraclesElixir.com, they also average first and second in their Early Game Ratings among the EU LCS (Misfits 71.4, H2K 65.4). Expect both squads to do their best to win leads in the laning phase and snowball as hard as they can.

The areas of gameplay where H2K and Misfits diverge are objective control and kills per minute. H2K take the first turret, first three turrets, and first dragon more often than anyone in the LCS. Misfits stand in third, third, and fourth in those respective categories. Misfits only takes the first baron in 58% of games, while H2K secures it in 82%.

However, Misfits is extremely efficient in securing kills without giving deaths. They have the highest team Kill-Death ratio in the LCS: 1.90. H2K average 1.45. Even though H2K has secured 321 kills over 19 games, they have also conceded 222 deaths. Compared to Misfits 287 kills and 151 deaths, H2K’s overall trades are not always the best. Misfits also have the lowest Combined Kills per Minute statistic in the LCS (0.6), which implies that their games rarely become clown fiestas.

Top Lane

Barney “Alphari” Morris and Andrei “Odoamne” Pascu will most likely be the center of attention in Week 7. Neither of these players are afraid of making big plays. Alphari averages a higher CS difference at 10 minutes (+8.9), and he maintains a higher KDA (4.3). Odoamne has the edge when it comes to doing a higher percentage of damage for his team (24.9%), and he has higher kill participation (59.8%). However, both top laners trend towards the top of the league in most categories.

A major difference between these two is their champions played lately. Alphari showed up huge on Rumble last week, while also putting in two games on Renekton, and even brought out Fiora. Odoamne’s last three champions have been tanks: Nautilus, Maokai, and Poppy. Misfits and H2K have shown flexibility in drafting, but Misfits generally prioritize bully laners for Alphari.

Jungle

Despite being titled “First Blood King,” Marcin “Jankos” Jankowski has only secured First Blood in 26% of his games this split. On the other hand, Lee “KaKAO” Byung-kwon has the second highest rating in the league (53%). KaKAO has also beat out Jankos in KDA (7.1), kill participation (71.8%), and CS difference at 10 minutes (+3.5). Surely, he will have the upper hand in this match-up, unless Jankos can return to his dominant form. There is no doubt that both Misfits and H2K rely on their junglers to create significant early game leads.

As far as champions go, Jankos’s most recent performances were on Graves and Kha’Zix. He excels at cleaning up fights and isolating the enemy jungler. Elise and Lee Sin were KaKAO’s choices last week. He used their early game gank pressure to enable his lanes and spread vision across the map. In the mid game, he transitioned into tankier items for survivability and utility. Much of the series will be decided by these two players.

Mid Lane

Anchoring Misfits and H2K for Week 7 are their mid laners, Tristan “PowerOfEvil” Schrage and Fabian “Febiven” Diepstraten. While both have proved more formidable this split, their playstyles diverge a bit. Febiven tends to farm much more in the early game, sticking to the lane. He averages 6.1 CS ahead at 10 minutes. PowerOfEvil averages behind 2.2 CS, but ahead by 244 gold, indicating that he either gets kills or assists to get ahead in the early game. This is shown by his high First Blood rate (32%) and overall kill participation (74.6%). PowerOfEvil’s KDA is a stellar 7.9, while Febiven maintains 4.6.

Last week, Febiven played Syndra twice. He finished 5-2-5 and 2-1-2 against Fnatic. Meanwhile, PowerOfEvil showcased incredible skill on Orianna and Ahri. Both players have deep champion pools. Other than overpowered meta picks, do not expect many bans to target mid lane.

Bot Lane

The bottom lanes for these squads are strong, as well. Steven “Hans sama” Liv and Shin “Nuclear” Jung-hyun match-up rather well. Hans sama averages a 7.7 KDA. Nuclear maintains 6.6. Nuclear averages behind 0.1 CS at 10 minutes, while Hans sama averages -2.7 CS. Kill participation and team damage numbers give Hans sama a slight advantage.

Both of these players show true mastery of the meta marksmen: Jhin and Varus. Last week, Hans sama played three straight games on Jhin. Nuclear played two on Varus. Misfits or H2K may attempt to pinch the AD Carry picks and force these guys on Ezreal, Sivir, etc. Regardless, they both seem to play more aggressive than other EU LCS marksmen.

The support players, Lee “IgNar” Dong-geun and Choi “Chei” Sun-ho, are just as formidable. IgNar is more of a roaming playmaker, pairing with KaKAO to spread pressure throughout the map. Warding against Misfits will be important for H2K’s success. IgNar’s KDA is 6.4, and his kill participation is 71.1%. Chei’s are 3.8 and 62%, respectively. However, Chei averages around 80 extra damage per minute. Chei also matches IgNar in total assists over 19 games, 190 and 191. Chei has died 52 times in that period, while IgNar has only conceded 32.

Overall, IgNar seems more flexible champion-wise. He has played nine unique champions, such as Alistar last week. Chei has only shown six unique champions. Just like mid lane, do not anticipate too many support bans outside meta overpowered picks. Misfits or H2K may try to secure a ranged support advantage, but picks such as Tahm Kench and Braum have been cropping up internationally with variable success.

Conclusion

All in all, Misfits seem to have the advantage in this one. Their jungler and support have been extremely proactive throughout Summoner’s Rift to gain advantages in vision and rotations. PowerOfEvil has been having his best split yet. Alphari and Hans sama fill their roles on the team well, while playing as cleanly as possible. H2K will need to hold it together through the early game and do their best to secure leads through taking turrets, dragons, and barons. If they draft compositions with Odoamne on a sturdy tank, and force Misfits onto a non-tank composition, then they may be able to demonstrate their superior late game.

This match-up will be one to watch in Week 7 amidst several low-tier matches. Tune in on Saturday, March 11 to catch the action.

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