T1 swept KT Rolster 2-0 during mid laner Lee “Clozer” Ju-hyeon’s debut in the LCK.
The rookie mid laner was subbed in to replace the legendary Faker, likely putting a lot of pressure on the 17-year-old. He played remarkably well in this League of Legends series, though, receiving the Player of the Game award in his debut match. He was also set to receive the second POG award, but Teddy’s plays on Aphelios were more crucial in T1’s comeback and he was given it instead.
The series began with passive play from both teams. Everyone was farming up and the junglers were just peeking at the lanes for gank attempts. KT managed to get a couple of early kills, which they converted into two dragons. But T1 replied with two Rift Heralds of their own, reducing the gold lead in a short period.
Going into the mid game, KT got a crucial pick on Teddy, but the superior mechanics from T1 allowed them to win the teamfight without their ADC. T1 converted this teamfight win into two Barons, which allowed them to lay siege to KT’s base and finish the first game with almost a 10,000 gold lead. Clozer, on Zoe, produced a 5/0/4 scoreline in his first LCK game.
In the second game, KT subbed out three players, only leaving in their bottom lane. They brought in legendary top laner Smeb, jungler Malrang, and mid laner Ucal to try to help them tie the series.
While their early efforts were successful at acquiring small leads, Clozer quickly put a stop to them with his impressive Akali performance. KT slowly lost control of the game, living up to their name of KT Rolster as the gold lead went down. KT’s hopes and dreams were shattered toward the end after a failed Baron play. After losing their gold lead, they desperately tried to take down the objective to make a comeback, but Teddy’s Baron steal destroyed their dreams.
Clozer’s debut was great and he put on a good show in his first time on stage. The fact that he managed to do so against T1’s rival is just the cherry on top. It’s going to be interesting to see if Clozer will remain on T1 as a substitute for Faker or if will have an more active role within the T1 squad or move onto another LCK or LPL team. His performance is unmatched for a rookie.
