This is it then, this is what it all boils down to. Since the playoffs began a couple of weeks ago Samsung KHAN has had the luxury of only having to prepare for this single match, although with no clear picture of which team to practice against. OGN has gone through fire and proleague teams to reach this point. Will OGN's steam last all the way through the finals? Or will a rested and hungry Samsung KHAN be the proverbial archon against the proverbial zergling?



OGN Sparkyz emerges from their trial by fire at full speed, having ripped apart STX SouL in the first match and trounced SK Telecom T1 in a closer second match, which had to be decided by an Ace game. This time they're pulling out all the stops from the get go with the kind of lineup everyone was expecting they would field from the start.

Although Samsung KHAN might not have expected OGN to be their opponents in the finals, they certainly have had a lot of time to prepare for this one game. Pushing out their very strongest team, expect some well thought out gambits and strategies from the Samsung team. Let's take a look at the individual matchups:

Game 1 - Hades vs Leta @Katrina SE

A zerg was probably not the opponent Leta was hoping for, but it turns out to be Hades, not JangBi or Stork, he has to face. One cannot help but feel that Hades is being sacrificed to avoid a snipe, considering Leta's recent performance against protoss. Hades hasn't been up against a terran since January, where he defeated BaBy in the Minor League. In fact, Hades hasn't seen much play time at all this season, whereas Leta has been out in the field quite a lot against far better players. Leta should be able to take this one home, regardless of his mediocre score against zerg.

Game 2 - Stork vs Luxury @Andromeda

This is certainly a step up from the previous game. Stork, the eternal second place holder, gets to face Luxury on a map that favors zerg over protoss. Add to this that PvZ is not Stork's favored matchup, that he faced Luxury on this very map in May and lost, and things are looking somewhat grim for Stork. It is probably quite safe to say that given Stork's record of choking in clutch games, Luxury's recent solid play and the map, this game should by all rights belong to Luxury. Stork might be able to pull something fancy out of his sleeve and surprise everyone, but this should be considered improbable.

Game 3 - TT / JiHyun vs Zeus / YellOw[ArnC] @Hannibal

The first 2v2 match is somewhat difficult to predict. The Zeus/YarnC team has really grown during the later part of the season, being a key factor in how OGN made the playoffs. Although TT/JiHyun haven't been as pivotal, they've nonetheless proved quite solid as a team and have played for quite some time now. That being said, I'm going to go out on a limb a bit and proclaim that OGN will manage to take this game as well. This is mainly based on their recent performance, whereas the Samsung team has a slightly worse record during late season. This game could very well go to Samsung as well, however.

Game 4 - firebathero vs go.go @Wuthering Heights

Where the first three games have favored OGN (mostly), this game certainly favors Samsung KHAN. firebathero is a seasoned TvT player who has scored wins against all the terrans that count, which is more than can be said for go.go. Unless go.go decides to try some cheesy build, expect him to be dismantled by firebathero, perhaps followed by a brief dance number.

Game 5 - JangBi vs Chalrenge @Colosseum

Another star player for Samsung makes an entrance in the fifth game. JangBi is a very skilled player, although his PvP has been somewhat lacking. He's beaten Much, Stork, Kal and free among others to be sure, but he's taken more hits than he's given. Similar words can be said about Chalrenge, although he hasn't played as many PvPs as JangBi recently. As to the winner of the game, JangBi should be able to pull out a win here unless Chalrenge surprises as he did against Bisu. If all the predictions are correct so far, the score is now 3-2 in OGN's favor.

Game 6 - Juni / yoOn[s.g] vs Flower / Spear @Hunters

If the match lasts this long, this 2v2 game will be quite pivotal. The Flower / Spear team pulled out a win against SKT in the semifinals after a botched contain by MuJuk and s2. The combination Juni/yoOn[s.g] hasn't been seen this season, so a lot boils down to how well these two can work together. Juni has played a fair amount of 2v2 games for Samsung this season, but has won precious few of these, which doesn't bode too well for this crucial game. Although there may be surprises in store for them, Flower and Spear have the more convincing track record, which will most likely lead them to victory.

Game 7 - ACE vs ACE @Blue Storm

Should an ACE game prove necessary, Luxury will most likely make a comeback for OGN. Assuming this, who should Samsung send to face him? Depending on the result of game 2, Stork might be a possibility, although Stork doesn't function well in finals or ACE games. firebathero is another option and probably the most probable one as well, having defeated Luxury in the recent past and being a seasoned TvZ player in general. Knowing this, the OGN coach may opt to send in Leta to throw Samsung off, although firebathero's TvT is strong enough to make this scenario rather unlikely. In the end, Luxury's recent play should garantuee him the ACE spot, while firebathero is probably the best counter Samsung can offer.

The winner? Most likely Luxury. His third place on KeSPA is no fluke. While firebathero is certainly capable, it's hard to see him defeat Luxury as he plays right now.

To sum up, OGN has a very good shot at taking home the finals. Samsung did not end up in first place this season by playing poorly however, and if there's any team that could put an end to OGN's rampage, it is this team. One thing is certain, this is a finals you will not want to miss!

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