NiKo's 40 bomb powers FaZe past Liquid

FaZe have progressed to the Group B winners' match at the ECS Season 4 Finals after beating Liquid 16-12 on Mirage.

The second opening match in Group B began with a great B hold from Liquid, with Jonathan "⁠EliGE⁠" Jablonowski picking up three kills on the site. A third-round buy from FaZe put the Europeans on the scoreboard at last and sparked a great run from the Terrorists, who eventually took the lead despite a significant setback in the fourth round - an eco win for Liquid off of three kills from Josh "⁠jdm64⁠" Marzano with a p250.

The rest of the half was all about Liquid's near-impenetrable defence: the North Americans won five rounds in a row, bringing the scoreline to 8-4. With their backs against the wall, FaZe picked up the pace and won two of the final three rounds to bring the deficit to 6-9.

NiKo drops a 40 bomb to help FaZe win a tough match

Liquid added to their lead by picking up the second pistol round of the game with a clean A execution. FaZe then hit back on a force-buy and kept their defense very tight, eventually taking the lead without dropping any more rounds, with Nikola "⁠NiKo⁠" Kovač doing a huge chunk of the work for the team.

Down 10-12, Liquid were finally able to break FaZe's streak, but they could not find the equaliser as they got shut down by NiKo, who by now had 37 kills to his name. The North Americans still tried to get back in the game, but the Europeans remained in control and locked down the map, 16-12.

ECS Season 4 FinalsBest of 1 FaZeMatchpage 16 12 15th December 2017 Liquid 16Mirage 12

FaZe	K - D	+/-	ADR	Rating 2.0
Nikola 'NiKo' KovačNiKo	40 - 16	+24	136.3	2.07
Håvard 'rain' Nygaardrain	18 - 18	0	75.2	1.11
Ladislav 'GuardiaN' KovácsGuardiaN	19 - 19	0	71.6	1.06
Olof 'olofmeister' Kajbjerolofmeister	17 - 18	-1	71.1	0.98
Finn 'karrigan' Andersenkarrigan	13 - 18	-5	51.9	0.76

Liquid	K - D	+/-	ADR	Rating 2.0
Jonathan 'EliGE' JablonowskiEliGE	23 - 20	+3	87.1	1.20
Russel 'Twistzz' Van DulkenTwistzz	18 - 20	-2	83.4	0.97
Lucas 'steel' Lopessteel	19 - 21	-2	72.2	0.86
Josh 'jdm64' Marzanojdm64	16 - 24	-8	71.1	0.83
Nick 'nitr0' Cannellanitr0	12 - 22	-10	44.9	0.62

Liquid #10 Lucas 'steel' LopesNick 'nitr0' CannellaJosh 'jdm64' MarzanoJonathan 'EliGE' JablonowskiRussel 'Twistzz' Van Dulken Jonathan 'EliGE' Jablonowski Age: 20 Team: Liquid Rating 1.0: 1.08 Maps played: 694 KPR: 0.76 DPR: 0.70 Josh 'jdm64' Marzano Age: 27 Team: Liquid Rating 1.0: 1.02 Maps played: 695 KPR: 0.68 DPR: 0.64 FaZe #2 Finn 'karrigan' AndersenOlof 'olofmeister' KajbjerLadislav 'GuardiaN' KovácsNikola 'NiKo' KovačHåvard 'rain' Nygaard Nikola 'NiKo' Kovač Age: 20 Team: FaZe Rating 1.0: 1.17 Maps played: 725 KPR: 0.82 DPR: 0.68