It is the time of year when the top League of Legends divisions across the world see their Spring campaigns reach their climax and on Saturday there are key playoff encounters in both China's LPL and South Korea's LCK.

The LPL and the LCK are the two biggest regions in the League of Legends realm, having provided all four World Championship semi-finalists between them in 2022.

And they will also each provide two teams for the upcoming Mid-Season Invitational - one of the most prestigious international events on the Esport's calendar - following the conclusion of the Spring Splits.

The LCK Spring 2023 is further ahead than the LPL with Gen.G and KT Rolster in action on Saturday in what is essentially the lower-bracket final with the winner set to progress to the Grand Final and battle it out with T1 for glory.

In the LPL Spring 2023, meanwhile, Bilibili Gaming are set to take on Oh My God in the losers' bracket and the winner of that match will face the losers of the semi-final between JD Gaming and Edward Gaming for a place in the Grand Final.

Things are hotting up in both campaigns and Saturday's matches are not to be missed.

Plucky KT Rolster can push giants Gen.G to their limits

Gen.G Esports dominated the LCK scene along with T1 last year but there were perhaps concerns that might not be the case this campaign given the players they lost during the offseason.

Coming into the 2023 season, Gen.G parted ways with key players Park "Ruler" Jae-hyuk and Son "Lehends" Si-woo, weakening their roster, but they acted quickly to draft in Kim "Peyz" Su-hwan and Yoo "Delight" Hwan-joon in their place.

And it is fair to say both "Peyz" and "Delight" have held their own, managing kill-death-ratios of six and 5.8 respectively in this year's LCK Spring, while "Peyz" has also put in a decent kills average of 4.9 - the highest in the division.

They put in a decent 13-5 win-loss record during the regular season of  the LCK Spring, finishing second behind T1, but KT Rolster matched those numbers in third and are expected to push Gen.G close in the playoffs.

Both sides are -120 to win this contest and it is easy to see why.

Although Gen.G have more experience at this level, KT Rolster have come into their own during the LCK Spring Playoffs, easing past Liiv SANDBOX before nearly toppling T1 in a 3-2 defeat in the winners' bracket.

And they also looked sharp upon dropping down to the losers' bracket, winning 3-1 against Hanwha Life Esports - a team many had down as dark horses.

The temptation may be to go for the old reliable in Gen.G Esports but this game will be tough and punters are better off backing over 4.5 maps at +163. 

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Bilibili Gaming and Oh My God look evenly 

The stakes are also high in Saturday's sole LPL match between Bilibili Gaming and Oh My God, who are competing for a place in the playoff semi-finals but the prices suggest it will be a one-sided affair.

Bilibili Gaming are -225 shots to win the match with Oh My God priced at 13/8 but the teams are more evenly matched than those prices suggest.

Both sides finished the LPL Spring regular season with 10-6 records with similar game differentials - Bilibili finished on 25-17 and OMG finished on 24-18 - while their playoff paths have also not been massively dissimilar.

They both joined the fray in round two of the playoffs and proceeded to win back-to-back games - Bilibili Gaming overcame Royal Never Give Up and Weibo Gaming, while OMG defeated Top Esports and LNG Esports.

They then made it to round for and both lost to each of the division's top two.

OMG lost 3-1 against Edward Gaming, while Bilibili Gaming got a touch closer in their match, losing 3-2 to juggernauts JD Gaming.

All in all though, there is not enough between these sides to justify those prices, so the best bet could instead be over 4.5 maps at +175.

bet365 News Team

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