ONIC Philippines became the third team to secure a playoff spot in MPL Philippines Season 17 after sweeping AP.Bren.
The Super Family made quick work of The Hive, needing just 28 minutes combined to secure their seventh win of the season. AP.Bren, meanwhile, suffered their eighth loss, pushing them closer to the elimination zone.
King Cyric “K1NGKONG” Perez starred in Game 1, posting a game-high nine kills and five assists on Harley. ONIC recovered from an early AP.Bren lead—even after The Hive secured the first Lord—as Denniel Denison “Nova” Gomez’s Hilda struggled to find impactful plays.
From there, ONIC controlled the pace of the game and limited Arvie “Aqua” Antonio’s impact before closing out the opener in under 17 minutes.
Game 2 was even more one-sided, with ONIC taking control from the very start. AP.Bren managed only two kills while conceding 14, as Jann Kirk “Kirk” Gutierrez led the charge with a 4/0/6 performance on Lapu-Lapu.
Clayton “Savero” Kuswanto’s Clint also dealt massive damage, finishing with eight kills while shutting down James “JamesPangks” Mendoza’s Joy throughout the 11-minute game.
Elsewhere, Team Liquid PH also cruised to a quick 2-0 sweep over Smart Omega, wrapping up the series in under 23 minutes combined. Veteran roamer Jaypee “Jaypee” dela Cruz led the way with a combined 2/2/22 KDA across two games.
TLPH dominated Game 1 in under 11 minutes, with Karl Gabriel “KarlTzy” Nepomuceno finishing at 6/0/7 on Harley. John “Perkziva” Sumawan struggled for Omega, dying four times while assisting in just one of the team’s four kills.
Jaypee’s game-high 13 assists powered Team Liquid in Game 2, which they closed out in 12 minutes to give KarlTzy a win in his milestone 610th MPL game.
With the victory, TLPH improved to 11-1 and secured an upper bracket berth with two matches still left to play. Smart Omega, meanwhile, dropped to 5-6 as their four-match win streak came to an end.
Twisted Minds (4-7) and AP.Bren (3-8) will face off once again to open the second day of Week 7, with the Minds looking to strengthen their playoff hopes while AP.Bren aim to end their slump. Team Falcons PH (9-1) will try to join the Cavalry in the upper bracket race against Smart Omega, while TNC Pro Team (2-9) face a difficult challenge against a surging Team Liquid side.
