AUTHOR: CHRIS "BEARLIGHT" LEE / @BEARLIGHTGAMING
A sizable amount of implications rested on the hands of team's performances in the final week of the Turbo Tuesday Summer Series regular season this past Tuesday. The winner of the Segment 3 payout determined, the final four remaining Invitational spots sealed, and the unofficial first round of matches released to our Rocket League recruits over the course of the night. As the teams locked in their spots over the course of the night, the players on those teams set their eyes on the $1000 prize, and the scholarship opportunities that are more likely inbound by securing their invitation to the prestigious event. This week let's crown the winner of Segment 3 payout, recap the regular season results, and gain an insiders view of each team leading into the two-week Invitational beginning next week.
DDB WINS SEGMENT 3, REGULAR SEASON
Over the course of the season we saw a constant battle between Doodle Bangers (DDB) and GnS, initiated by their first matchup of the Series; the Segment 1 off-the-books tiebreaker back in mid June. Many people at that time (myself included) felt that the GnS win in that match would indicate that DDB would be dethroned from their glory at some point in time. Fast forward to Week 6 where DDB came in as the king of the Series at [15-0]. GnS and undefeated newcomers, Humphrey Gang (HG), both were present on the night, but with GnS dropping to HG in Round 2, and a big (3-0) DDB series win against the "H Gang" in Round 3, Doodle Bangers proved us all wrong, and were perfect in regular season matches to win both Segment 3 [6-0] and the regular season title [18-0]. Incredible accomplishment for Knight, skies, and luca. Congratulations!
FINAL REGULAR SEASON STANDINGS
1. Doodle Bangers [18-0] - 606 Points
Fair to say that DDB earned their right to be considered the best team in the Turbo Tuesday Summer Series regular season, and they will be favorited in the upcoming bracket as well. The only question mark I had was how they would fare against Humphrey Gang, past Carry2College winners and the Series new powerhouse team. That question was answered in Week 6 by a tight, yet decisive [3-0] series win. We can all conjure up stories of teams dominating during the season and falling apart in the post-season. DDB must remain focused in order to close out the Invitational on top.
2. GnS [12-3] - 412 Points
Up until this point, GnS figured that DDB would be their one true challenge in the post-season. It makes sense, as through five weeks, DDB was the only team that had beaten them in a series. Outside of the rivalry, GnS had beaten (#5) 1ThousandVoice and (#6) RegimentGG on multiple occasions. They also edged out (#3) Stellar in Week 6, however the final week introduced GnS to another team to keep them up at night. Humphrey Gang became the only other team besides DDB to beat GnS in the regular season, and did so in a (3-1) decision. Maybe it's a good thing for GnS, as they maintained their 2nd seed and can take their experience with them when the two inevitably face off in the final bracket.
3. Stellar [8-7] - 290 Points
A healthy balance between Summer Series attendance and competitiveness from Stellar this regular season. Although I hesitate to say that they are the third best team in the Invitational, I do think that their combined peak skill level is enough to take advantage of teams coming in over-confident. Last week I referred to Stellar as the true gatekeepers of the top 3, and my view is no different after this final week. Expect Stellar to win the games they are favored in, and lay it all on the line deep into the post-season.
4. Funky Bois [6-6] - 220 Points
Funky Bois ran into Stellar A LOT in the regular season, more than any other pair of teams faced off (4 series). In those four series, Stellar won the game count 7 to 4, including a 6 to 1 winning count in their first two series wins. Funky Bois shocked Stellar with a (3-0) sweep in Week 5, but it would be their only win out of the four, as Stellar closed out the running season series with a (3-0) sweep of their own. What does this all mean? First things first, the ongoing war created a great rivalry between the two teams, hopefully one that we'll get to witness next week. Secondly, Stellar has proven that they deserve the 3rd spot over Funky Bois. But will this drive the "Bois" to revenge? All things considered, that final Week 6 sweep may have left Funky Bois feeling a bit depleted against Stellar moving into August.
5. 1ThousandVoices [5-7] - 180 Points
For a team with the name "1ThousandVoices", we certainly haven't heard from them a whole lot recently. Their last match played in the series was a full month ago back on June 28th against GnS, where they got outscored 10 to 1 and made an early exit on the night. Quite unfortunate, since this team did collect 5 series wins over the course of three weeks and certainly has potential. A long shot to call the Invitational the "1ThousandVoices Comeback Tour", as cool as that might sound. For 1TV, here's to hoping that a first round win can get you going.
6. RegimentGG [5-4] - 180 Points
Another team that virtually disappeared in the second half of the season, and this one might be even more disappointing than 1TV. In the three weeks they played, they only had 4 series losses. In those 4 losses, they took a game off of GnS in both series they played, and 2 games off of Stellar when they fell just short in Week 3. Regiment has the skill to keep up with the top teams, and it would be a mistake to sleep on them early in the bracket.
7. Humphrey Gang [5-1] - 171 Points
For no other reason than their late entrance into the Summer Series, Humphrey comes in as a 7th seed destined to play spoilers in the early rounds. This team has only fell to Doodle Bangers, and has wins over #2 GnS (3-1), #3 Stellar (3-1), #4 Funky Bois (3-1), and #6 Regiment (3-0). This team has experience in Stay Plugged In big stakes tournaments, recently winning C2C Winter this year. Therefore, I don't know if you can call it an upset if they win early, or even if they win it all. Either way, they will have plenty of eyes on them all Invitational long.
8. Gnome Gamers
Listen, I have to shoutout this team for making the Invitational against all odds. Their performance in games against the top eight teams were not exactly the greatest, to be quite honest. For that reason I do not see this team making it past their first two games in the final bracket, but I do respect their willingness to face the toughest competition, and for receiving an invitation only given to the top eight teams of the Turbo Tuesday Summer Series.
WEEK 6 PLAYER AWARDS
TOP STRIKER
Name: MILIO
Team: HUMPHREY GANG
SPIN Rating: 6.027
Notes: Milio led the league with 14 goals on the night, placing him in the top 3 in average goals per game (1.273). Humphrey Gang had the group of death, facing GnS, Funky Bois, and Doodle Bangers. Thanks to milio's ability to score when goals came at a premium, they walked away with a [2-1] record for Week 6.
TOP PLAYMAKER
Name: SKIES
Team: DOODLE BANGERS
SPIN Ratio: 5.000
Notes: Hardly a scoring chance wasted for DDB when skies was in on the play. Skies finishes the night with a chart-topping 1.444 assists per game. He also had 1.444 saves per game (not a reason for Top Playmaker, I just thought that it was a crazy stat). Knight and luca allude to skies ability to initiate big plays in the offensive zone, and the stats allow us to do the same.
TOP SAVIOR
Name: AZO!
Team: STELLAR
SPIN Rating: 5.600
Notes: In the "role" field of Azo's Stay Plugged In player profile, Azo wrote "Last Man". A player who is true to their role is a player you want at the next level. Azo held down the back line with a Series leading 25 saves in 11 games played, for an average of 2.273 per game. These big saves will be needed in the post-season, so continue to play to your strengths, Azo.
Make sure to keep yourself parked right here in the news section early next week, as we confirm and make predictions for the first round of matches. In the meantime, get your fix of Summer Series content by visiting the main page here.