The 2022 LCK Spring Split matches on Jan. 28 were nail-biters as Liiv SANDBOX overcame KT Rolster and T1 defeated Nongshim RedForce. Both were close 2-1 matches as Liiv SANDBOX collected their 2nd win of the season while T1 remained undefeated.
The first match was between Liiv SANDBOX and KT Rolster. Game 1 was quite one-sided in favor of KT Rolster. KT Rolster secured Caitlyn and Lux in their bot lane who quickly dissolved their opponents. KT Rolster took down Liiv SANDBOX's bottom turret in only 8 minutes. At the 12-minute mark, KT Rolster took down the top turret as well. Kim "Aiming" Ha-ram's Caitlyn collected all the gold and built two core items in 15 minutes. Whenever Caitlyn appeared, all Liiv SANDBOX was able to do was run away. KT Rolster took the first game easily.
In the second game, Liiv SANDBOX struck back. In the center of Liiv SANDBOX's comeback was their bot duo. Kim "Kael" Jin-hong's Thresh was at the right place at the right time in multiple situations, cutting off KT Rolster's main champions time after time. KT Rolster was ahead in global gold, but Liiv SANDBOX controlled more objectives. At a Baron fight, Yoon "Ice" Sang-hoon's Aphelios landed his ult perfectly and scored a triple kill. This put an end to the fights and Liiv SANDBOX tied the game.
The last game was close as well. KT Rolster was able to edge ahead as Kim "Rascal" Kwang-hee's Lee Sin picked up multiple solo kills. However, Liiv SANDBOX had a better late-game comp, and they played through their jungler, Kim "Croco" Dong-beom's Diana. Rascal pulled off super plays after super plays, but as the game went on, KT Rolster wasn't able to overcome the composition difference. When Rascal started to fall, KT Rolster began to crumble and Liiv SANDBOX took the game to break their 3-game losing streak.
Many eyes were on the second match as T1 took on Nongshim RedForce. The two teams fought back and forth, and the game remained close. Nongshim RedForce seemed to be ahead, but after Moon "Oner" Hyeon-joon stole Baron, T1 came back with Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok's Corki. Whenever Corki started poking, Nongshim RedForce needed to retreat. As the game went on, Nongshim RedForce wasn't able to approach the objectives. After T1 slew the Elder Dragon, Nongshim RedForce attempted a base race, but they were no match against T1.
Nongshim RedForce didn't go down easily. They controlled more dragons while the fights were close. Kim "Canna" Chang-dong's Akali penetrated through T1's positions to torment their damage dealers. When T1 attempted Baron, Nongshim RedForce moved in, only allowing Gwen to survive. This led to Nongshim RedForce securing the Hextech dragon's soul. In following fights, Nongshim RedForce continued to win and they destroyed T1’s Nexus.
Nongshim RedForce picked Blitzcrank in game 3. It seemed that Blitzcrank was a great choice as they collected first kill, but T1 struck back quickly. The junglers and supports of both teams moved around the Rift actively to make variables throughout the game, but when T1 took down three straight turrets through the mid lane, T1 took initiative. From that point, T1's macro truly shined. Whenever the two teams confronted each other, Choi "Zeus" Woo-je's Jayce struck hard using Shock Wave. After collecting the Mountain dragon's soul and Baron, T1 finished off Nongshim RedForce to take their fifth straight win.
2022 LCK Spring Split Jan. 27 Results
KT Rolster 1 -2 Liiv SANDBOX
T1 2 \- 1 Nongshim RedForce
2022 LCK Spring Split Standings
1st T1 5-0 (+8)
1st Gen.G 5-0 (+8)
3rd Nongshim RedForce 3-2 (+2)
4th DWG KIA 2-2 (+2)
5th KT Rolster 2-3 (0)
6th DRX 2-3 (-2)
7th Liiv SANDBOX 2-3 (-3)
8th Hanwha Life Esports 1-3 (-3)
9th Fredit BRION 1-4 (-6)
9th Kwangdong Freecs 1-4 (-6)
