To round out the first day of the 2023 LCS Summer Split, 100 Thieves’ League of Legends team stepped up against FlyQuest as the two teams aimed to kick off their season on a high note.
For 100 Thieves, however, this matchup was going to be tough, and not just because FlyQuest is a bonafide behemoth on paper. The team also lacked their starting mid laner Quid, who won’t be available for the first week due to visa issues. In his place, the Thieves were forced to start assistant coach Nukeduck, who hadn’t played professionally since last year.
Expectations weren’t too high for the team in this opening match, but after a masterclass showing from their top and bottom lane stars specifically, it was clear this squad was ready to prove all of the doubters wrong with a monster performance.
Doublelift and Busio were out for blood in the opening 10 minutes, outplaying Prince and Vulcan in a straight two-vs-two that gave the legendary AD carry a two-kill lead that would snowball into a vintage performance from the 29-year-old superstar.
The veteran marksman continued to style on Lucian throughout the rest of the game with fearless teamfighting and perfect positioning that eventually helped him collect seven kills and four assists. Ssumday also made his triumphant return to 100 Thieves and showed off with six kills of his own, including two unbelievable outplays where he would style on multiple opponents by his lonesome.
Ultimately, the Thieves pulled off one of the most-impressive games of the day by not dropping a single kill to their opponents. In fact, FlyQuest only captured one turret and a lonely Rift Herald on the way to a lopsided 30-minute match. Their star players failed to show up in key moments, and their overall decision-making was lackluster as they were caught out or outmacroed in multiple moments.
Even still, fans and teams shouldn’t start to doubt FlyQuest after this first loss. The team has massive amounts of talent on its roster, and they might just need a bit of time to ramp up their performances on-stage. Meanwhile, 100 Thieves have caught fire in their first match and are now hoping to continue this momentum into their next match against a shaky Team Liquid.
