Cloud9 force the comeback against SK; to playoffs
Cache began the matchup, and Cloud9 opened up their CT-side by claiming the pistol and anti-eco rounds. A firm B-site defense claimed the first full buy round for the Americans, before taking the next. SK picked up a round but were instantly hit back by Jake "Stewie2K" Yip taking three kills, retaining the lead.
But the Brazilian side are known for being strong players, and came in strong for the remaining rounds. Gabriel "FalleN" Toledo's team struck back with the familiar CZ-75 and pushed forwards to even up the game and then take the lead. But it wouldn't last too long, as Cloud9 secured the final two rounds of the half to take a narrow 8-7 lead.
The second half commenced with SK's CT-side taking the pistol round and anti-eco, before preventing a Cloud9 force. From there the Brazilians pushed on to secure a small lead, with Fernando "fer" Alvarenga paving the way for his teammates.
Cloud9 secured a round thanks to a combined Stewie2K and Timothy "autimatic" Ta effort, but SK instantly reset them in the following round. From there the Brazilians secured map point, thanks to the services of Marcelo "coldzera" David, before securing the map for SK, 16-9.
Mirage was next, and Cloud9's T-side secured the pistol and anti-eco rounds. SK secured the first full buy round but the American side immediately pushed back and regained control of the game. That control wouldn't last too long as the Brazilian side came back to narrow the American's lead.
Tarik "tarik" Celik and co. pushed on to regain the lead with a couple rounds, but SK pushed on to even the game up once again, at 7-7, with Epitacio "TACO" de Melo taking a key role in two simultaneous defuses. The final round of the half went the way of SK, with FalleN taking four kills and defusing the bomb for a narrow 8-7 lead.
The second half began with TACO taking four kills on the pistol round for SK to start extending their lead with the two anti-eco rounds on their T-side. The first buy round went the way of Cloud9, before the American side narrowed the gap with tarik and Stewie2K performing well. But before Cloud9 could even the score, FalleN shored up the site to keep them in the lead.
The next round was a masterclass in Stewie2K headshots, collecting four to reset the Brazilian team. From there Cloud9 evened the match up and then proceeded to take the lead, looking for that third map. autimatic then collected an ace on the B-site against a fully bought up SK side to send them back to an eco. From there the Americans claimed map point and swiftly claimed the final round for a 16-12 win.
The final map was Inferno, with Cloud9 claiming the pistol round. But before the Americans could push on to start a lead, SK won an eco with a couple of Deagles. From there SK took the lead, but when Cloud9 finally bought up into full strength weaponry, they took a strong A-site hold to keep them in the game.
But a few traded rounds saw SK remain on top. Forcing the Americans to save with a bomb plant, the two teams were barely separated before SK started to once again string rounds together. From there SK comfortably claimed the lead, dropping only one round to Cloud9 for a strong 11-4 halftime score.
The second half began with Cloud9's T-side taking the pistol, and saw autimatic battle past a forcebuy in a 1vs3. From there the Americans closed the gap on their opponents, with Tyler "Skadoodle" Latham's AWP on point. Just when they were about to even the game up, however, SK came straight back into the game to keep their lead.
But Cloud9 weren't to be held back, instantly coming back with a narrow win to reset the Brazilian side. From there they evened the game up and pushed on to take the lead, claiming the 14th round. But before the Americans could claim match point, FalleN opened up his AWP'ing skill to claim three kills to keep his team in the game.
But it was Skadoodle to take two kills through coffins on B-site to force SK back, placing his team on match, series and playoff point. From there they completed the comeback and secured a 16-13 win to keep them in Katowice.
Cloud9SK| Cloud9 |
K - D | +/- | ADR | KAST | Rating 2.0 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Jake 'Stewie2K' Yip |
67 - 53 | +14 | 95.5 | 73.2% | 1.30 |
| Timothy 'autimatic' Ta |
66 - 53 | +13 | 84.9 | 72.0% | 1.21 |
| Tarik 'tarik' Celik |
47 - 55 | -8 | 63.7 | 72.0% | 0.97 |
| Tyler 'Skadoodle' Latham |
41 - 45 | -4 | 57.8 | 72.0% | 0.95 |
| William 'RUSH' Wierzba |
38 - 59 | -21 | 53.8 | 72.0% | 0.74 |
| SK |
K - D | +/- | ADR | KAST | Rating 2.0 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Gabriel 'FalleN' Toledo |
54 - 47 | +7 | 75.8 | 74.4% | 1.21 |
| Marcelo 'coldzera' David |
57 - 48 | +9 | 78.4 | 69.5% | 1.11 |
| Fernando 'fer' Alvarenga |
54 - 57 | -3 | 72.8 | 74.4% | 1.05 |
| Ricardo 'boltz' Prass |
52 - 53 | -1 | 64.9 | 63.4% | 0.92 |
| Epitacio 'TACO' de Melo |
48 - 54 | -6 | 63.9 | 64.6% | 0.91 |
This result puts Cloud9 into the quarterfinals tomorrow, and sends SK home. With two games still going on in Katowice, the playoff games are yet to be fully confirmed as of yet.
