"GG Introboys," Abeng and OB.Neon Respond in Style in DPC SEA S1

The return of the Dota Pro Circuit (DPC) Southeast Asia (SEA) 2021-22 Tour 1: Division 1 could not have been any spicier with T1 and OB.Neon engaging in some all-chat banter in addition to showcasing top-quality Dota 2. T1 stomped OB.Neon in the first game in which Karl "Karl" Matthew Baldovino wrote "Dog" in the chat after killing Federico Jr. Cartagina "Abeng" Dicdican’s Lion. OB.Neon, however, appeared to be fired up by this. It went on to draft and perform exceptionally well in the next two games, ensuring the series was won 2-1. The last laugh went to Abeng and his teammates, who took to all-chat at the end of the third game to fire shots back at Karl and T1, writing “GG Introboys.”

T1 vs OB.Neon: Match Recap and Highlights

Recap

In game 1, T1 totally owned OB.Neon. The latter went for a cheeky Broodmother pick but T1 masterfully countered it with 23savage's Kunkka. The other two lanes were also lost for OB.Neon and it tapped out of the game in just 24 minutes.

Game 2 saw a farm-oriented laning phase with less than two kills recorded in the first 10 minutes. While T1 looked like it was better at map movements and farming, the slow pace of the game allowed OB.Neon to catch up when it came to networth. T1 also lacked the best control and lost the first major teamfight despite 23savage's Anti Mage having an Aegis. Palos on his signature Morphling sparked OB.Neon's comeback, helping the team clinch a victory in 43 minutes.

In game 3, OB.Neon selected Tinker as its last pick, which seemed to catch T1 by surprise. Instead of finding a way to deal with it, T1 went for Medusa, which on paper, appeared to be a decent choice. T1's lanes once again saw its supremacy, especially Karl taking the victory massively against MamangDaya. However, OB.Neon's resource allocation was spot on and T1, without stuns, could not do much to bolster its early lead. Once again, Palos excelled on his safelane Morphling and the teamfights became too hard for T1 to handle and the team lost in 41 minutes.

Highlights

Here are some highlights of the series.

Following the crushing 24-minute loss it handed OB.Neon in the first game, T1 looked set for a quick 2-0 series win. However, it got outdrafted and outplayed in the second and third games. In the second and third games, the drafts lacked control, and despite showing its proficiency in laning, the team could not translate it into bigger goals.

With its top form continuing, OB.Neon has managed to bypass SEA’s favorites after a surprise tournament win in the form of Huya Dota2 Winter Invitational. Over the past few weeks, the team's chemistry has been evolving with Jinn Marrey "Palos" Lamatao being its best player. OB.Neon will look to play like this in its remaining three DPC series and establish winning as a norm.

In the DPC SEA 2021-22 Tour 1: Division 1, it was T1's first series loss and OB.Neon's first win.

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