REIGNING M-Series World Champion Aurora Gaming became one of the first two casualties of the MPL Philippines Season 17 playoffs, bowing out in the first phase of the post-season on Wednesday at the Filoil Center in San Juan.
ONIC Philippines had the honor of dropping the axe on the Northern Lights’ heads after a thrilling five-game match which had Indonesian import Clayton “Savero” Kuswanto leading their comeback in the pulsating do-or-die Game 5 to book a date with Team Falcons in the upper bracket semifinals.
This marked the end of a horror Season 17 run for Aurora after a masterful M-Series campaign not too long ago which resulted in the Northern Lights winning the first World Title in the storied franchise’s history.
But they simply ran out of gas in the strongest MPL region yet, only qualifying for a playoff spot in the final week of the regular season after amassing a paltry 5-9 record.
In the other game, Smart Omega progressed to the next phase after eliminating Twisted Minds with a decisive 3-1 victory, as the Barangay now has the unenviable task of facing Team Liquid in the other UB semis pairing.
ONIC sends ‘em packing
In Game 1, Aurora and ONIC PH had nearly equal gold after tightly contesting the first two Turtle objectives, but the Northern Lights started to pull away after securing the final Turtle uncontested.
ONIC PH attempted to contest the 17-minute Lord, but that proved costly after Yue’s Valentina successfully landed the Arcane Shade–Shadow Strike combo onto K1NGKONG’s Harley, capitalizing on ONIC being outnumbered during Aurora’s base siege to secure the series opener.
Domengkite flexed his marksmanship prowess on Claude with a flawless 3-0-7 KDA.
However, ONIC quickly recovered in Game 2 to tie the series at 1-1 with an explosive early-game performance, securing all Turtle objectives.
Despite extending the match, Aurora crumbled even after Demonkite’s Harley stole the Lord during the 16-minute Lord dance, as K1NGKONG’s Leomord eliminated Yue’s Gord while Savero’s Claude burst down Domengkite’s Clint, two crucial heroes for Aurora’s base defense.
K1NGKONG stole the spotlight with a 6-0-6 KDA and 100% kill participation, powering ONIC PH to tie the series at one apiece.
Momentum shifted again in Game 3 as Aurora dominated the early and mid game, building a commanding 9-1 kill lead and a massive 10,300 gold advantage just 11 minutes into the match.
However, Savero’s Harith gave ONIC a breathing space after pulling off a triple kill during an 11-minute mid-lane inhibitor defense against Light’s Chou, Demonkite’s Suyou, and Edward’s Alice.
Despite ONIC’s valiant stand, Aurora eventually closed out Game 3 after marching into the base with all five members alive, while Light’s Chou executed a Flicker–Way of the Dragon combo onto Kirk’s Paquito to create an opening for Demonkite to finish the game.
Demonkite’s Suyou led Aurora to a 2-1 match point with a stunning 9-1-5 KDA.
Facing elimination, ONIC PH refused to back down and tied the series once again at 2-2 behind Brusko’s frontlining mastery on Marcel.
During the 14-minute base siege, Brusko protected Savero’s Claude with the Framed Moment skill, allowing the gold laner to secure a game-winning double kill.
Brusko became ONIC’s saving grace after delivering a 0-2-10 KDA, forcing a decisive Game 5 against Aurora.
In the grueling 21-minute Game 5, Aurora controlled the early and mid game, but ONIC PH mounted a dramatic comeback after Light’s Marcel Conceal–Framed Moment combo failed to catch any ONIC members.
As a tightly contested 21-minute Lord fight unfolded, Savero's Claude freely dealt damage from the backline as Aurora’s members fell one by one, while Kirk’s Phoveus notched a double kill.
Savero’s Karrie stepped up big time and was hailed as the Game 5 MVP with a stellar 6-0-5 KDA.
It’s the Barang Working It’s Magic
In Game 1, Twisted Minds and Smart Omega engaged in a nip-and-tuck affair with nearly equal gold difference and map control, but things started to turn around in Twisted Minds’ favor when MPtheKing’s Suyou secured the 21-minute Lord objective.
Twisted Minds capitalized on the outnumbered situation against Smart Omega, and on top of that, MPtheKing’s Suyou eliminated Raizen’s Harley after returning to his Space Escape position in the middle lane after being cornered near the top lane inhibitor turret, leaving Jeymz’s Sora alone desperately defending the base.
MPtheKing’s Suyou earned the Game 1 MVP badge with an impressive 8-2-4 KDA performance.
But in Game 2, Game 3, and Game 4, Smart Omega completely flipped the script and took over the series behind Minguin’s Yve standout 2-0-6 KDA performance, Raizen’s Leomord with 8-1-4 KDA, and Perkziva’s Khaleed flawless 0-0-12 KDA performance.
In Game 4, Smart Omega overpowered Twisted Minds by not conceding any deaths until the 14-minute mark while racking up a 10,000-gold lead.
In the final moments of the series, Netskie’s Harith made sure to take center stage with a game-winning triple kill.
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph
NOTICE ON UNAUTHORIZED AND UNLAWFUL USE, PUBLICATION, AND/OR DISSEMINATION OF SPIN.PH CONTENT: Please be notified that any unauthorized and unlawful use, publication, and/or dissemination of Spin.ph’s content and/or materials is a direct violation of its legal and exclusive rights to the same, and shall be subject to appropriate legal action/s.
