[LCK Today] KDF collects first win of the season, NS defeats KT to rise to 3rd

Jan 21, 2022

On Jan. 21, in the 2022 LCK Spring Split, Kwangdong Freecs collected their first win of the season by sweeping Liiv SANDBOX and Nongshim RedForce rolled over KT Rolster to rise to 3rd place in the standings.

In the first game between Liiv SANDBOX and Kwangdong Freecs, Liiv SANDBOX decided to start Yoon "Ice" Sang-hoon in the bot lane, but he wasn't able to make much of a difference. Kwangdong Freecs Yoo "FATE" Soo-hyeok played Twisted Fate and earned enough time for Park "Teddy" Jin-seong's Jinx to scale. After Jinx scaled, it was Teddy all the way.

Game 2 also tilted early. They snowballed early benefits against Liiv SANDBOX's late-game composition. As Kwangdong Freecs secured the first Rift Herald and won the teamfight surrounding it, they sprinted ahead and never let go of the lead. Although Liiv SANDBOX managed to cut off Kim "Kiin" Gi-in's Akali, it wasn't enough to stop the rest of the team. As Teddy's Jinx scaled well once again, there was no stopping him. With a 2-0 win, Kwangdong Freecs took their first win of the season.

The second match was between Nongshim RedForce and KT Rolster. It was Nongshim RedForce that inched ahead in the early game. Kim "Canna" Chang-dong's Gnar avoided the opponents' ganks well and Nongshim RedForce's bot duo secured a kill as well. Meanwhile, KT Rolster managed to take three dragons first and when it was necessary, Kim "Rascal" Kwang-hee's Lee Sin pulled off a super play as he made a big kick on Corki to turn the game around. They secured Baron and continued to push. Rascal was always there in the important moments as KT Rolster took the first game.

Nongshim RedForce struck back in game 2. KT Rolster picked another aggressive charging composition while Nongshim RedForce picked late-game champions. Even so, it was Nongshim RedForce who had the initiative in the laning phase. As all of their laners scaled well, they had plenty of champions to lead the teamfights. With a solid performance, Nongshim RedForce took down KT Rolster's Nexus to tie the game.

The two teams fought fiercely from early in the game. KT Rolster smiled first as Kim "Aiming" Ha-ram collected a double kill, but Nongshim RedForce kept close by winning a top-jungle skirmish. Afterward, Nongshim RedForce was more proactive. Lee "Dread" Jin-hyeok's Poppy actively moved around the Rift to collect benefits for the team. KT Rolster still managed to stay close, but rookie support Jeong "Peter" Yoon-su's Alistar had a great engage, making three champions airborne. This allowed Nongshim RedForce to take Baron and ultimately, the game. Through the win, Nongshim RedForce placed themselves at 3rd place.

2022 LCK Spring Split Jan. 22 Results

Liiv SANDBOX 0 - 2 Kwangdong Freecs

KT Rolster 1 - 2 Nongshim RedForce

2022 LCK Spring Split Standings

1st T1 3-0 (+5)

1st Gen.G 3-0 (+5)

3rd Nongshim RedForce 3-1 (+3)

4th KT Rolster 2-2 (+1)

5th DWG KIA 1-2 (0)

6th Liiv SANDBOX 1-2 (-2)

6th Fredit BRION 1-2 (-2)

6th Kwangdong Freecs 1-2 (-2)