TSM are about to clash with Echo Fox on March 31! It’s fair to say that this is one of the most unexpected quarterfinals matchups in the league, so we just had to cover it in our LCS playoffs 2019 breakdown. TSM have been steadily gaining momentum since the beginning of the regular season. They went from a hectic team that has no idea how to control its aggression to a confident lineup that knows exactly what it needs to do to snowball the game. Combine that with the raw firepower on their roster, and TSM already look like one of the most dominant teams in the region.
We’ll be honest: we never imagined Echo Fox to make it this far. This team had a rough start to its regular season, but it regained its footing during the final weeks of the 2019 Spring Split. Most of this newfound momentum comes from Echo Fox drafting around their strengths and being very aware of their limitations in a Bo1 setting, but we can’t help wondering whether they have enough fuel in the tank for a Bo5 series.
TSM vs Echo Fox Match Breakdown
Top Lane Matchup
There’s a huge power discrepancy in the TSM vs Echo Fox top lane. With a 2.8 KDA and 8.3 CS per minute, Broken Blade might not look impressive on paper, but it wouldn’t be an understatement to call him the focal point of this TSM roster. His relentless aggression is a breath of fresh air in the top lane, and his ability to snowball individual leads through splitpushing gives TSM a solid side lane threat to play around.
Solo pales in comparison. Holding a 2.1 KDA and 8.1 CS per minute, Echo Fox’s top laner is a niche role player whose main forte is surviving the laning phase without getting any resources from his teammates. Still, this will be a tough feat to manage against Broken Blade, and Echo Fox will have to go above and beyond to protect their top laner from enemy aggression.
VERDICT: TSM Broken Blade breaks open the top lane.
Jungle Matchup
Things aren’t as one-sided in the jungle. Sporting a 3.1 KDA and 5.3 CS per minute, Akaadian is the driving force behind TSM’s aggression. He’s also one of the shakiest members on the team, and while he can take over the entire game with his explosive playmaking, he can also drag his teammates into one questionable fight after another.
Rush shares these hyperaggressive tendencies. With a 2.3 KDA and 4.9 CS per minute, he’s the definition of a jungle wildcard, and even the most experienced junglers in the LCS have a hard time reading his brash plays and unorthodox jungle routes. We’d still give the edge to Akaadian for being a bit more consistent, but it’s not a big one.
VERDICT: TSM Akaadian finds a lead in the jungle.
Mid Lane Matchup
Let’s face it, the TSM vs Echo Fox mid lane won’t be close. With a 4.8 KDA and 8.9 CS per minute, TSM Bjergsen has been on top of his game for as long as we can remember. His consistency is almost uncanny, and you can always count on him to show up in the laning phase and snowball the slightest leads into crushing advantages.
Fenix isn’t nearly as dominant. Sporting a 2.8 KDA and 9.1 CS per minute, Echo Fox’s mid laner takes pride in his laning and playmaking, but he’s lacking in just about every other aspect of the game. He won’t be able to put a dent into someone as solid as Bjergsen in the early game, and he’ll just get outscaled in the later stages of the game.
VERDICT: TSM Bjergsen outmaneuvers his mid lane opponent.
Bot Lane Matchup
A similar story takes place in the bot lane. With a 4.5 KDA and 9.4 CS per minute, Zven is the ultimate teamfighter that takes every opportunity he gets to dish out as much damage as humanly possible. Meanwhile, Smoothie (3.1 KDA) does a great job of protecting his lane partner from enemy initiations and setting him up with winning 5v5s.
Echo Fox’s duo is like a worse version of TSM’s bot lane. Holding a 4.0 KDA and 9.3 CS per minute, Apollo is a measured marksman that shines on late game carries and utility champions. As for his support, Hakuho (3.7 KDA) can be quite potent when he gets his hand on his trademark Thresh and Morgana picks, but he’s mediocre on just about everything else.
VERDICT: TSM Zven and Smoothie take over the bot lane.
TSM vs Echo Fox LCS Quarterfinals Prediction
Echo Fox are outclassed here. Not only will they spend the entire early game on the back foot, but they’ll also struggle to keep up with TSM’s macro in the later stages of the game. With that, we’re going to have to with a 3-0 victory for TSM!
You can bet on Team SoloMid winning the TSM vs Echo Fox LCS quarterfinal with a 3-0 score for odds of 2.20 at Betway.
