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| Photo from Moonton |
by Drew Malihan
MAKATI - Blacklist International show their might anew as they sweep rivals Smart Omega, 2-0, to wrap up Week 1 of MPL Philippines Season 12.
Omega made one change for their lineup with Carlito "Ribo" Ribo Jr. starting in the mid lane in place of Patrick "E2MAX" Caidic, while Blacklist keep their main five off from a victory from RSG Philippines on Saturday.
Blacklist went for a flex Edith pick for Edward Jay "Edward" Dapadap to complement the tanky trio with a roam Khufra and a jungle Baxia while Smart Omega opted for a midlane Angela for Ribo with Joshua "Ch4knu" Mangilog getting the Kaja.
The Agents went wire-to-wire with their early to late game aggression, not giving Andrew "Androyuuu" Flora's Martis any breathing room courtesy of Renejay's consistent roam from the start as well as not giving Duane "Kelra" Pillas a comfortable laning phase.
Stephen Jasper "Sensui" Castillo and company got all the major objectives, including all four lords in the game, as Blacklist dominated the Barangay, 13 kills to 2, with Renejay's 3/1/7 KDA performance getting the MVP nod.
Ch4knu went for a roam Akai with Ribo on the Pharsa and Kelra on the Brody as the main damage dealers while Edward went for the X.Borg to complement Gord and Bruno for burst damage.
Omega went on with their early-game prowess with Kelra's Brody and Andoryuuu's Fredrinn doing most of the damage.
But the Agents held on and win a crucial kill of Sensui to Andoryuuu in the 14th minute and a lord take, it was all Blacklist as Ribo and Kelra were left to defend.
Salic "Hadji" Imam's Gord took down both Ch4knu and Kelra in a crucial team fight in the top lane that prompted Blacklist to call GGs in the 22nd minute to seal the deal for the men in black.
It was again Renejay who was hailed the MVP of the game with a 1/1/15 performance with his Kaja.
Blacklist sits atop the MPL PH standings with six points and a 2-1 standing while Omega sinks to joint fifth with TNC Pro Team with a 1-1 record and three points in the bag.
Blacklist will have their next game on Friday against Minana EVOS while Omega will try to bounce back against ECHO on the same day.
Follow him on X: @drew_corner
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