We are now past the halfway point of Street Fighter League, and the battles aren’t only getting more intense, but they are becoming more important as well. In the past couple of weeks team All-In dropped from their undefeated position and team Alpha 3 is the new team to beat. This week featured Alpha 3’s Punk, CJ Truth, and Nephew against Psycho Shinobi’s HotDog29, Caba, and Xian. Then after that was NASR’s AngryBird, Big Bird, and Samurai against All-In’s iDom, 801 Strider, and SKZ.
To start off the night, Alpha 3 banned Guile targeting Caba and Psycho Shinobi banned Kolin targeting Nephew. This many weeks in, the standard for the bans has been well established, and they have been working well for the teams so far. So there isn’t really a need for the teams to switch up their picks at this point in the season. The first match of the night was Nephew’s G versus Caba’s Ryu. Unfortunately for Caba, the night started off with a sweep for Alpha 3 as Nephew beat Caba 2-0 in game one and 2-1 in game two. G is a very hard matchup for Ryu, and the Guile ban continues to seriously hinder Caba. Alpha 3 was now up 1-0.
Next up was Punk’s Seth versus HotDog29’s M. Bison. This was definitely one of the most anticipated matches of the night this week for Street Fighter League, as the last time these two faced off was explosive. Punk took game one 2-1, but HotDog29 was able to close round one of game two with a great EX stomp. However, the match was over almost as soon as it began, as Punk quickly closed out game two as well 2-1. Punk finished the match by punishing a mid-screen projectile from Bison with Seth’s Critical Art, once again showing off how dominant Seth is and how dangerous they can be from anywhere on the screen, especially with full meter. Alpha 3 was one match away from taking the night at 2-0.
Xian mounts an offense
The third match was CJ Truth’s Cammy versus Xian’s Seth. CJ Truth was able to take game one 2-0, but Xian immediately responded by winning game two 2-0. Xian was able to carry that momentum into game three, taking that 2-1, further proving why Xian is the workhorse of team Psycho Shinobi. Alpha 3 was still one match away from taking the night, but Psycho Shinobi now had one point on the board. Since Xian was able to take down CJ Truth, it seemed almost inevitable what would happen next.
The fourth match was Nephew’s G versus Xian’s Seth, and Xian steamrolled through Alpha 3, winning game one 2-0 and game two 2-1. Xian’s amazing comeback had now come up against his biggest obstacle, Punk, as both teams sat tied 2-2.
The fifth and final match of the night was a Seth mirror versus Punk and Xian. Punk put an end to Psycho Shinobi’s comeback dreams real quickly though, winning game one 2-1 and game two 2-0 taking the night for Alpha 3 3-2. Punk’s surprise Seth pick proved too much for Psycho Shinobi to handle, despite a valiant and amazing effort from Xian. Punk continues to prove that no matter what character he picks, he is a force to be reckoned with in Street Fighter League.
NASR makes a statement
The second half of the night was NASR versus All-In. NASR banned G targeting 801 Strider and All-In banned Rashid targeting both of the Birds, Angry and Big. The first match was Samurai’s Akuma versus 801 Strider’s Urien. Once again, the first team match of the night ended in a sweep with Samurai taking the first two games 2-0 in an extremely dominating fashion. NASR started the night off 1-0. The second match was Big Bird’s Kage versus SKZ’s Seth. SKZ was able to take game one 2-1, but Big Bird brought it right back winning game two 2-1. This was a make or break moment for both teams and the young phenom SKZ was able to clutch it out and take game three 2-1. Both teams were now tied 1-1.
The third match of then night was iDom’s Poison versus AngryBird’s Zeku. AngryBird was able to take game one 2-1, showing some cracks in the champ’s armor. Those cracks only deepened as the previously seemingly untouchable iDom lost game two as well 2-0. AngryBird might have played the best he has this entire season, and to do it against the current reigning Capcom Cup champ is no small feat. With that amazing performance from AngryBird, NASR was now up 2-1.
The fourth match included Samurai’s Akuma and SKZ’s Seth. Samurai was able to take game one 2-0, and then SKZ hit him right back winning game two 2-1. Unfortunately for SKZ and the rest of team All-In though, Samurai took game three 2-0, winning the night for NASR 3-1. SKZ played very well, but the amount of tournament experience under Samurai’s belt may have been just too much for him. Once again Samurai proves that he is the GOAT of Street Fighter League.
With All-In now losing two weeks in a row, Alpha 3 has taken the top spot with a 6-1 record, with their only loss coming from their first week. All-In drops down to second with a 5-2 record, and NASR moves up to third with its new 4-3 ranking, bringing team Dynamite down to fourth. Psycho Shinobi remains in fifth with a 2-5 record and UYU stays in sixth at 0-6. Week 11 of Street Fighter League will take place on January 7, taking the next two weeks off for the holidays. You can catch it on the Capcom Fighters YouTube and Twitch channels at 7PM ET.
Published: Dec 19, 2020 09:58 am