FaZe Clan advance to the grand final of Intel Extreme Masters XI: Katowice 2017 as they surpass Immortals with a 2-0 map score.
de_Inferno - 16:9 (9:6, 7:3)
The first semi-final of the day commenced on de_Inferno, a map that was fairly recently introduced into the competitive map pool. With recent introductions it's never certain which team will perform best, making this an intriguing one. FaZe Clan kick off on the defence, where they get run over by Immortals during the initial pistol round. A ruthless Lincoln "fnx" Lau was able to land three kills, shutting down any chances the European mix had taking the round. The surplus was short-lived for the Brazilians, as FaZe's newcomer, Nikola "NiKo" Kova? bought a Deagle in the following round. Having secured two crucial kills with the hand cannon, the Bosnian superstar picked up a UMP-45 to secure his third kill, pushing back the aggression. This performance apparently had an impact on the team, whereby FaZe were able to keep running away with rounds, all the way to a 7-1 lead. During the 9th round, Henrique "HEN1" Teles decided it was about time for the team to secure a secure another round, landing an absolutely insane four frags, three of which were in a 3v1 clutch situation. FaZe stepped up in the following round to secure an 8-2 score. At this point the Brazilians truly woke up, and started to get themselves back on the map. The rest of the rounds in the half went in their favour, barring the thirteenth, closing the half at a 9:6 lead for FaZe Clan.
The second half kicked off with a bomb plant from FaZe Clan, that subsequently exploded thanks to great hold from Aleksi "allu" Jalli, Finn "karrigan" Andersen and Fabien "kioShiMa" Fiey. As per usual the team was able to grab the following two rounds, placing them at a comfortable 12:6 score. Rounds eighteen and nineteen saw complete dominance from the Brazilian roster, as they were able to hold flawlessly, without losing a single members of the team in both. Fabien "kioShiMa" Fiey was not happy with how things were going, absolutely exploding in round 20 with four frags in a 1v5 situation. Having eliminated two members with a P250, followed by two frags with an AK and M4A1, the Frenchman was unable to best Lucas "lucas1" Teles in the end, conceding the round despite a colossal effort. At this point the score was 13-9 in favour of FaZe. Nine rounds proved to be all the wrote for the Brazilians on this map, as FaZe Clan secure a consecutive three rounds, closing out de_Inferno at 16-9.
de_Mirage - 16:10 (6:9, 10:1)
The second map of the series started off with Immortals taking the pistol round on the defence. Lucas "lucas1" Teles and his partner in crime, Lucas "steel" Lopes accounted for four frags, carrying the initial momentum for their team. Captain of FaZe Clan, Finn "karrigan" Andersen had something to say about this, calling a force buy for his team, donning the infamous Deagles. On this occasion the leader was to step up himself, landing three astonishing kills with the one-shot wonder. The score equalised at 1-1, with FaZe securing an economic lead, enabling them to secure a couple more rounds in their favour. Performances from the initial few rounds would set the pace for the entire half, where both teams went blow for blow, ultimately concluding at three round lead in favour of Immortals at 9:6.
The second pistol round saw a usual suspect demonstrate just what raw skill looks like. Nikola "NiKo" Kova? stood out once against, securing three kills for his team and subsequently the second pistol round. Three consecutive rounds were taken by FaZe following the pistol, bringing the Europeans to a 10-9 lead. Immortals retaliate, securing a round of their own, with but one casualty in Henrique "HEN1" Teles. The score line was equalised at 10-10, with both teams struggling for a lead. The struggle was soon over, as the Europeans "FaZed up" to an unparalleled level, crushing the Brazilian aggression. FaZe crush round after round, pushing the round lead ever closer to the sixteen threshold. Six consecutive rounds are secured by the European mix, closing out the best of three series in two relatively fast maps.
Image courtesy of IEM Twitter
