Moon Studio
Team SMG vs LBZS: Results, Highlights- Grand Finals of the Moon Studio New Year Showdown
Rakshak Kathuria
Published On: 06 Mar 2021, 11:41 AM
LBZS defeats Team SMG 3-0 in the grand finals to become the champions of the Moon Studio New Year Showdown.
While Team SMG was able to put up strong fight in the first game, LBZS overpowered them in the second and the third game.
LBZS has previously won the Moon Studio tournaments of Moon Studio Carnival Cup and Moon Studio Mid-Autumn League.
Team SMG faced off against LBZS in the grand finals of the Moon Studio New Year Showdown earlier today, on March 6, 2021. While SMG was the favorite going into the finals as they had not lost a single series in the entire tournament, LBZS showcased a dominant performance as they absolutely stomped them to win the finals 3-0. While the first game witnessed Mushi and his teammates present a strong fight, they were outdrafted and outplayed in the second and third games as they lost these two games in just 19 and 20 minutes, respectively. LBZS crown themselves the Moon Studio New Year Showdown champions and take home a sum of $5,120 USD, while SMG finish as the runner-ups, winning $2,640 in prize money.
ALSO READ: 2021 DPC Season: Points and Standings of SEA Teams
Mushi's Team SMG Loses To LBZS in the grand finals of the Moon Studio New Year Showdown
SMG was undefeated in the tournament in terms of series coming into the grand finals. They had won all six series in the group stages and had then defeated Galaxy Racer and LBZS in the upper bracket playoffs.
LBZS also had a decent run, finishing third in the group stage and then carving their way to the upper bracket until they lost to SMG in the upper bracket finals. They defeated Execration in the lower bracket finals and then took their revenge from SMG in the all-important grand finals.
Game 1 was the Anti-Mage show as LBZS played incredibly well around their carry's timings. An unconventional Enigma in the mid lane and an offlane Timbersaw made enough time and space for Anti-Mage who eventually ended with a KDA of 11-0-13, leading his team to a game one victory.
Game 2 drastically fell apart from SMG's grab as soon as the laning phase ended. Enemy heroes ran over them, and the map kept shrinking for them. They had nowhere to farm and gank as LBZS was spot on with their strategies, winning the second game in just 19 minutes.
Game 3 witnessed SMG drafting a quick-paced core duo of Meepo mid and Razor safe lane. However, they were heavily countered in all their lanes as Meepo was the only one getting farm through the jungle. They tried to play aggro but found it difficult against elusive heroes of Slark, Lycan, Pangolier and a save in the former of Oracle. Realizing they had nothing left in the game, SMG tapped out of the game in just 20 minutes.
Neon Esports was widely considered to the top contender to win the tournament but they ended in fifth-sixth spot.
Image Via LiquipediaThe full highlights of the series can be watched in the following video.
This is LBZS' third title win in the Moon Studio tournament series as they previously been the champions of Moon Studio Carnival Cup and Moon Studio Mid-Autumn League.
ALSO READ: Dota 2 Roster Changes: Post DPC 2021 Season 1 Tracker
If we talk about the 2021 DPC Season 1, the Chinese team has had a miserable tournament in the Upper Division of China DPC as they are currently placed at the bottom of the points table, having incurred six losses in six series. On the other hand, Team SMG had been unable to qualify for the DPC's first season in the SEA region.
Rakshak is an undergrad, an inquisitive person who likes to acquire information and knowledge of varied sectors in esports. However, his current focus is specifically on Dota 2.
Dota 2Moon StudioLBZSTeam SMGTournament Coverage