Collegiate Starleague Starcraft 2 Playoffs Begin

Image Source: Collegiate Starleague cstarleague.com/sc2/playoffs

Postseason Playoffs Begin

March playoffs are in the air, and it is not just March Madness. The Collegiate Starleague has announced the teams that have qualified for the 2017-2018 Starcraft 2 Playoffs. Playoffs begin March 17, with sixteen teams battling it out for the championship title. The sixteen teams include colleges like; Temple, University of Connecticut, UCLA, and more. The bracket is single elimination with Best of Five sets between each college and university competing with Round One being the Round of Sixteen. Each match will start with two 1v1’s, followed by one 2v2. If there is no winner after the 2v2, the match extends to another 1v1 and, if needed, one ACE 1v1 game, where any player on the roster can return and play the final game. Some matches will not be broadcast, but there will be broadcast games on Twitch at the Collegiate Starleague’s channel here.

The five number one teams for their conferences are: Temple University in Division 1. University of Connecticut and University of Waterloo tied for first in Division 2,. Georgia Tech takes the lead in Division 3, and Rennsselaer Polytechnic Institute leads in Division 4. Every team has a 4-0 conference record, except University of Connecticut which has a 4-1 record. Every other team is behind with records such as 3-1 and 3-2.

The bracket will go from the Round of Sixteen, to the Round of Eight. Semifinals follow the Round of Eight with the bracket ending in the Grand Finals on April 14th. All games will be played either on Saturday, Tuesday, or Thursday. Broadcast games will be on Tuesdays at 9 PM Central Daylight Time on the Collegiate Starleague’s Twitch channel cstarleague2.

Return to Form: Possible Championship for Temple?

Temple University’s Temple Starcraft looks to be the favorite as they concluded regular season play with a conference record of 4-0 in Conference 1. Temple’s full record is 12-2.   They are going to be the number 1 seeded team going into the bracket. Temple returns to the playoffs after last year’s second place postseason finish against Universite de Montreal, losing 3-1 in the finals. Temple also finished second in 2016 against a UC Berkeley team that went on to win the finals for the 2015-2016 Collegiate Starleague season.

While Montreal is not in the playoffs this season, Temple still has a rough contention in the bracket with the possibility of facing the University of Connecticut, University of Chicago, or Rennsselaer Polytechnic Institute. Despite the tough bracket before the finals, Temple University is still the favorite to win the bracket. They go on to face University of Ontario Institute of Technology in the Round of Sixteen.

The current main roster includes: Conan “Suppy” Liu, Yuchong “CentaurWA” Wang, Robert “Tesla” Plata, and Taylor “Heartbeat” Tredinnick.

The Year of the Underdog?: UOIT in the Playoffs

A shocking turn of events has occurred as the University of Ontario Institute of Technology has advanced to the playoffs. The team holds a 1-3 conference record in Conference 4, with a total record of 6-10. The team did have a playoff appearance last year, but was quickly knocked out of contention in the Quarterfinals by the Universite de Montreal in a 3-1 count during the 2016-2017 season. UOIT looks to improve their playoff run this year, but have a rough road ahead as their first match in the bracket is against top seed, Temple University.

While the road ahead looks challenging, the underdog team has chosen an aptly good year to make their playoff birth, with it being the Chinese Year of the Dog. There is no way to tell this early, but the playoffs could have a very early upset if UOIT manages to defeat Temple University.

UOIT has a five player main roster, looking to bring home their first playoff win. Their roster includes: Colin “EhMove” Strong, Jason “juggernautjason” Papadimitrios, Brendon “MrRyze” Walker, Syed “Zero_2134” Sabir, and Tyler “Nuliflyer#1361” Messenger-Lehmann.

With the Starcraft 2 season is nearing its end, new legacies can be written. Will there be a “third-time’s the charm” final win for Temple University? Or will there be an Underdog Miracle for the University of Ontario Institute of Technology? Only time will tell the full story of this year’s playoffs.

Final Thoughts

While there is a chance for UOIT to create the upset, the most likely result will be Temple making a run and making the Grand Finals again for a third year. The biggest uncertainty right now is the other side of the bracket. Will Georgia Tech’s “Long Live Harambe” move to the finals, or will University of California San Diego move on to the finals? Each possible outcome looks towards a tough opponent in the form of Temple University as their final opponent.

Who do you think will win in the CSL Starcraft 2 Playoffs? Either way, it will be an exciting postseason for the Starcraft 2 teams of every college and university involved.

More information at: cstarleague.com/sc2

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