FaZe captures last XSE Pro League playoff spot in Guangzhou
9z
BIG
FaZe
EYEBALLERSFaZe, along with 9z and BIG, has secured the final playoff berth in XSE Pro League after a thrilling group stage finish.
The XSE Pro League group stage in Guangzhou has wrapped up, with FaZe, 9z, and BIG claiming the last three spots for the playoff bracket of the Chinese tournament.
Match results in the 2-2 pool were tightly contested, starting with 9z facing off against Felipe "insani" Yuji. In a gripping first match, 9z edged out their opponent with a narrow 13-10 victory on Nuke before needing overtime to seal the match on Mirage, coming back from a 9-3 disadvantage.
BIG encountered similar drama, battling B8 on Inferno. After trailing, they mounted a comeback late in the match, forcing overtime and ultimately winning before securing a strong performance on Ancient. However, despite leading 12-1, BIG found themselves clinging to victory as they allowed ten consecutive rounds before finally taking the win in Round 24.
FaZe, who initially faced setbacks and found themselves in the 0-2 pool, managed to rebound by defeating EYEBALLERS for the final playoff position. This victory was particularly significant, as EYEBALLERS had previously handed FaZe a loss in the BLAST Bounty tournament, which marked the start of a downward trend for the European team, resulting in their failure to qualify for the Cologne Major.
Despite starting the tournament with two wins, EYEBALLERS will reflect on missed opportunities after suffering three consecutive losses to TYLOO, Nemesis, and finally FaZe, which dashed their hopes of advancing.
In the group stage, Jason "JBOEN" Boe Nielsen emerged as FaZe's standout player, achieving a 1.35 rating across nine maps and playing a crucial role in the battle against EYEBALLERS. The first two maps displayed intense competition, with EYEBALLERS claiming victory on Ancient in double overtime after retrieving a match from the brink, and later winning Mirage with an impressive comeback. However, FaZe regrouped in overtime and dominated the Cache decider, driven by impressive ratings of 2.13 and 2.11 from Russel "Twistzz" Van Dulken and David "frozen" Čerňanský respectively.
The upcoming quarter-final matchups are set, with further details on the schedule and bracket available.