Cloud9 swept NRG 3-0 on Saturday in the upper-bracket final of the League Championship Series playoffs.
With the victory, Cloud9 advanced to the grand final, which will be held on Aug. 20. NRG was sent to next Saturday’s lower-bracket final, where they will play the winner of Sunday’s lower-bracket semifinal between Golden Guardians and Team Liquid.
Cloud9 opened Saturday’s match with a 33-minute win on blue before securing victories on red in 38 minutes and 42 minutes.
South Korean Jang “EMENES” Min-soo led Cloud9 with 17 kills, 11 deaths and 25 assists, while Victor “FBI” Huang supplied a 16-10-13 kills-deaths-assists ratio for NRG.
After the regular season, the first- and second-place teams in the top North American League of Leagues circuit headed to the upper-bracket semifinals of the double-elimination playoffs. The third- through sixth-place teams opened the playoffs in the upper-bracket quarterfinals. The seventh- and eighth-place teams entered the postseason in the lower bracket, while the ninth- and 10th-place teams were eliminated.
The top three teams in the playoffs will secure berths in the League of Legends World Championship, scheduled for Oct. 10-Nov. 19 in South Korea. The fourth-place team will head to the World Championship’s Wildcard Qualifier.
The playoffs continue Sunday with one match:
–Golden Guardians vs. Team Liquid (lower-bracket semifinal)
League Championship Series Summer Split prize pool:
1. $100,000, berth in League of Legends World Championship
2. $50,000, berth in League of Legends World Championship
3. $30,000, berth in League of Legends World Championship
4. $20,000, berth in League of Legends World Championship’s Wildcard Qualifier
5-6. No prize money — Evil Geniuses, Dignitas
7-8. No prize money — TSM, 100 Thieves
9. No prize money — FlyQuest
10. No prize money — Immortals
–Field Level Media