Their first attempt to clinch a Stage 2 Challengers berth in the Open Qualifier 1 failed, as they finished one spot out of the top four. TSM were their nemesis in the tournament, as they sustained two losses at their hands.

The first loss came in the first game of the Top 16, relegating them to the lower bracket. After a series of victories against Gen.G Esports, Evil Geniuses, and Knights, they were one victory away from qualification.

However, they had to face TSM once again and managed to win only one map in the best-of-three series.

Despite that loss, 100 Thieves did not let their heads drop. They came back stronger in Open Qualifier 2, putting together a near-perfect run.

Their first game in the Top 16 ended in a sweep over Soniqs, in what was a dominant win on both maps. On Breeze, they won 13-4, sealing the deal on Fracture with a 13-3 victory.

NYFU put up a better fight in the second round, winning the first map, Split. 100T quickly turned things around to win the next two maps.

Their final match to secure a berth was the most intriguing. With their map veto, Akrew chose Split, but it ended in favor of 100T 13-7. On Breeze, 100 Thieves were determined to close out the series in exquisite fashion and they did just that, ending the tie with a 13-1 victory.

They are currently one of two teams that have secured their spot in the VCT Stage 2 Challengers. There is still a lot of action in the lower bracket before the final two participants will be revealed.

Qualification is a big boost for 100 Thieves, especially considering the number of changes to the roster and at management level since the 2021 VCT Masters Berlin.

The NA Challengers 2 will commence on May 13, long after the final two teams have been decided. The 12 teams will be split into two groups, with the top four in each advancing to the playoffs.

Each team will be fighting for a larger piece of the US$200,000 prize pool, as well as direct seeding to the Stage 2 Masters, reserved only for the best two teams.

Whoever makes it to the grand final is guaranteed participation in the Masters. However, a first-place finish will see the winning team walk away with $50,000.

So far, 100 Thieves have only 15 circuit points and are ninth in the NA rankings. For a shot at competing in the Valorant Champions, they need to put together stellar performances in the upcoming tournaments.

If they manage to win the Masters 2, they will get 1,000 points to add to their current tally. OpTic Gaming are currently sitting atop the NA rankings with 750 points obtained after winning the 2022 Masters Reykjavik.

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?XSET weren’t supposed to drop into the lower bracket so soon, but they, couldn’t make it past OpTic Gaming (1-2) in the first round of the quarter-finals. However, despite losing that bout, XSET are still strong candidates to make the lower bracket finals, and there is little that would suggest Luminosity Gaming can stop them.

Luminosity last met with XSET just under two weeks ago, when XSET won 2-0, with 13-5 on Breeze and 13-11 on Split. Luminosity Gaming have since won against Version1 (2-1) in the quarter-finals and played well against the current best NA team, The Guard, who beat them 2-0 on Sunday.

On paper, XSET look much better, but Luminosity have proven that they can compete with the top teams. Moreover, Luminosity are a good team on Bind (XSET’s top map), and if they ban XSET’s second favourite map (Breeze), Luminosity might even stand a chance. At +110 with a map advantage, Luminosity are worth a shot.

?Cloud9 barely made it past Knights (2-1) in the first round of the playoffs and then lost against OpTic (1-2), which isn’t terrible, but we expected much more from them. Likewise, Version1 underdelivered in their VCT NA Challengers 1 quarter-final bout against Luminosity (1-2), but they looked much better last weekend when they defeated Sentinels (2-1).

Cloud9 are perceived as the better team, which they are, but only on paper. C9 have not looked good since the group stage and arguably don’t deserve to be priced as low as -227.27 for the win. Of course, there is a world where Cloud9 wake up and show us how good they can be, but based on what we have seen from these two teams so far, this is a 50/50 match.

A bet on over 2.5 maps is worth a look, but at the offered Valorant betting odds, it’s hard to pass on Version1.

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?We kick off Week 5 with the undefeated teams Cloud 9 and The Guard playing to take top spot in Group A. Both of these teams are currently sitting at 4-0, so it is expected to be a tough and exciting series between two of the best teams in North America. Equally, these two teams have only dropped two maps each throughout the group stage with a +3 round differential the only stat splitting these two teams. Their past four games are the same.

Both teams have won all four, 2-0, 2-1, 2-1 and 2-0. These two teams have never met before this series which is what makes this matchup so much more stimulating. With all of the recent roster changes, this match looks to be an absolute belter. Tune in on Twitch and enjoy one of the better games that this group stage will produce.

Given the difficulty in splitting these two teams statistically and historically, over 2.5 maps looks the way to go. The +100 on offer at BetOnline is a spoil.

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?Going from a top of the table match-up in Group A, we now look ahead to the bottom of the table series in Group B. NRG Esports, are currently winless from their four series, take on Rise who have one win and three losses from the group stage so far.

Rise are coming off a very close game with Sentinels, who sit in second position in Group B, pushing them all the way to the 21st round out of 24. On the other hand, NRG Esports come into this game with all but one of their series going the distance. NRG pushed the undefeated Version1 to a third map two series back, and even took them to the very last round in regulation before ultimately losing.

Even though Rise has a win on the record and NRG has not managed a single win so far, NRG have shown a lot more potential against the better teams in this group than Rise has. If NRG want to get their first and only win of the group stage, this matchup is their best opportunity against Rise.

Although the market is saying that these two teams cannot be split, sitting at -120.48 with BetOnline, NRG has a better roster and better results to back up their case and walk away victorious in this series. NRG Esports at the money line is the way to go for this game.

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?Like the latest Valorant esports betting odds suggest, there isn’t much to separate NRG and Knights, as they’re both in a tough spot after failing to deliver across the opening three rounds. NRG have yet to win a match (0-3), whereas Knights have picked up only one series (1-2).

Record-wise, NRG are in a worse spot, but that figure doesn’t tell the whole story. Had a few rounds gone their way, NRG could easily be 2-1 right now, with wins against Version1 and Sentinels. But we must also show some respect for Knights who showed up last week when they swept RISE 2-0.

This match can go either way, but we’re leaning more towards NRG. A small play on NRG to sweep Knights (+250) might be worth a shot, but we’re happy with the price we’re getting on the moneyline.

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100 Thieves were just a few rounds away from securing their first victory of the tournament on Sunday, but they ended up losing against Luminosity with 9-13, 13-9, 12-14. Still, the team played decent, considering this roster has been together for less than a week.

With a 1-2 record, XSET should feel calm, knowing that their only two defeats so far came against Cloud9 (1-2) and The Guard (1-2) – two of the strongest teams in the league. Now XSET need just one more game to lock a playoffs spot, and we can be sure they’ll look to seal the deal on Saturday.

100 Thieves have enough talent to be competitive, but they’ll likely need a bit more time to form a strong synergy. XSET have looked better so far, and we have no reason to doubt them.

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