MIBR and EG Black clash in ECL finals; currently 1-1

Another lengthy season of ESL Challenger League has nearly drawn to a close, with the finals underway right now to decide the winner that will the hoist the trophy. That final game is a doozy; a BO5 final between MIBR and Evil Geniuses Black, two behemoths in the top domestic league.

While the highly coveted ESL Pro League Season 18 spot is not on the line for either squad, given that MIBR have already earned one from their Season 44 win and that EG Black are ineligible as a result of the main team's participation in the event, this final is an interesting.

The two sides faced off in an ECL final relatively recently, in Season 43, where MIBR took down the American side with three hotly-contested map wins, with EG Black's only map win coming from their upper-bracket advantage after beating MIBR 2-0 in the upper-bracket final. Season 45 is already playing out quite similarly, as EG Black have once again secured the upper-bracket advantage while MIBR took map one 16-14 on Ancient.

Since Season 43, EG Black have changed around some key parts to their lineup, with Peter "stanislaw" Jarguz and Jerric "wiz" Jiang's vacancies being replaced by Jadan "HexT" Postma and Paytyn "junior" Johnson. junior has so far been a fruitful addition, averaging a 1.35 rating in the league across twenty maps played. In the ongoing series he has to contend with the fact that four of MIBR's players are in the top ten highest-rated players of the season, while Matheus "Tuurtle" Anhaia, the team's lowest-rated player, still has posted a monstrous 1.16 average rating.

With EG Black looking for revenge and MIBR looking for their third-consecutive ECL title, the Season 45 final is no doubt set to be one worth watching.

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