LoL - LCK: KT Rolster pulled off a surprise victory over Hanwha Life, while T1 lived up to expectations with a solid win against BRION

A giant fell today in the LCK as Hanwha Life Esports saw their eleven-game win streak snapped by KT Rolster, who claimed a 2-1 victory after an incredibly intense series. KT’s Nexus barely survived a final push before the team turned the game around in dramatic fashion. In the second match of the day, T1 secured a hard-fought win over OKSavingsBank BRION, who put up a tougher fight than expected against the reigning world champions.

The junglers were the stars of the day, with Moon "Cuzz" Woo-chan and Mun "Oner" Hyeon-jun earning MVP honors in their respective series. Oner made headlines by playing the first Talon of the year across all leagues, while several surprising picks emerged throughout the day. Lee "Clozer" Ju-hyeon brought out the first Zoe in the LCK in over two years, and Park "Morgan" Ru-han picked Shen in the toplane—a champion not seen in that role in the league for more than four years. Interestingly, it was Morgan himself who last played it back in 2021, when he was still with HLE.

The series between KT and HLE lived up to the hype and then some. It all started with a pure stomp in Game 1 from the First Stand champions, who dominated every aspect and made it look like the series wouldn’t last long. But in Game 2, KT showed they had fight in them and weren’t going down without a response. Rallied around Cuzz’s Nidalee, they tore through the Rift, with Lee "PerfecT" Seung-min’s unkillable Sion standing out once again since his return.

Game 3 promised fireworks—and it delivered: over 40 kills, fights breaking out all over the map, and a game that looked all but won for HLE, as Choi "Zeus" Woo-je and Park "Viper" Do-hyeon were tearing down KT’s Nexus. But a last-second hold kept KT alive. Later, a clutch Elder Dragon fight swung in their favor, they aced HLE, and closed out the series in a game full of twists and chaos. With this win, KT now sit sixth in the standings, still a fair distance behind HLE, who maintain their second-place spot despite the loss.

Fifth win in a row for T1, who have been in great form lately. They picked up another series victory today against BRION, though it didn’t come easy. Game 1 went to T1, with standout performances from Choi "Doran" Hyeon-joon and the botlane duo. A toplane Gwen and a Jhin AD Carry made the difference and carried the game. BRION struck back in Game 2, largely thanks to their new jungler Kim "Croco" Dong-beom, who impressed on Wukong and helped his team even up the series.

The final game was packed with unconventional picks—Talon for Oner, Zoe for Clozer, Shen for Morgan, and Trundle for Croco. Variety was on full display, and so was the entertainment. Oner, undoubtedly one of the best junglers in the world right now, completely took over the game. He finished 6/0/9 on Talon, with massive impact across the map and on objectives, stepping up on a champion that’s rarely seen and hard to execute. With this win, T1 firmly hold onto third place in the LCK and are inching closer to HLE. As for BRION, they drop to eighth and will need to break their losing streak soon if they want to stay in the playoff race.

For tomorrow’s matches, Dplus KIA will look to keep climbing back up as they face BNK FEARX, a team that’s also been struggling lately. Meanwhile, in a clash of extremes, DN Freecs will go up against the undefeated Gen.G, who continue to look unstoppable in the competition.