By Ivan Saldajeno
SEATTLE--TNC avenged fellow Filipino club Execration's TI6 ouster to Escape with a 2-0 sweep in their final group stage match at the Key Arena on Saturday (Philippine Time).
Nico Barcelon proved to be of great help for TNC in the opener as his Elder Titan's timely clash initiations contributed to the struggles of Max Broecker and Adrian Kryeziu in playing the carry roles as Templar Assassin and Timbersaw respectively.
TNC once again proved its veteran smarts over the former No Diggity club as Carlo Palad and Marc Fausto's ever dependable plays as Timbersaw and Terrorblade respectively helped the quintet buck yet another durable lineup by the England-based squad with Broecker's Tinker, Kryeziu's Tiny, and Maurice Gutmann's Faceless Void.
However, despite the back-to-back victories, TNC missed out on making the upper bracket of the playoffs which will begin on Tuesday (Philippine Time) after Alliance swept its own series against EG and Wings took down fellow Chinese outfit LGD twice in another two-game affair.
Both Alliance and Wings, which finished the group stages with an 8-6 record each, ended up in joint third, handing them the last two berths to the upper bracket, while TNC settled for fifth place with a 7-7 slate.
Pre-tournament favorites OG topped Group A with an 11-3 record, while EG, despite the series loss, will still play in the upper bracket as they ended the group stages with a 9-5 record.
TNC's playoff stint starts with a win-or-go-home showdown against their Group B lower bracket opponent of choice.
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