Day 2 of the June Joust has concluded with the New York Excelsior and Atlanta Reign out of the tournament. The NYXL were the first team eliminated, not winning a single map in the tournament. The Reign faced two tough games against the Fuel and then the Dragons, losing both games. The second day saw more games and maps played, but the end result was the same as the May Melee. Dallas and Shanghai are facing each other again in the finals, fighting for the top spot in the Overwatch League.
WHO'S READY FOR A REMATCH?
The @ShanghaiDragons sweep the @ATLReign and are heading to the June Joust finals to square off with the @DallasFuel. #ShanghaiDragons | #OWL2021 pic.twitter.com/dIZ7sbykcJ
— Overwatch League (@overwatchleague) June 12, 2021
New York struggle against the best
When it comes to this tournament, it was clear the NYXL were outclassed by the other three teams. Their hero choices left fans confused, and their play didn’t make up for it. Making this tournament was a big step for the young core of New York. However, it was clear from their two games that they still have a lot to learn. Considering their wins heavily depended on Lim “Flora” Young-woo and Lee “Ivy” Seung-hyun in the regular season if the other teams focused them, their chances to progress went down sharply.
Leejaegon wasn't expecting that! @owivy2 leaves him as a mere smear against the wall 🥊#EverUpward #OWL2021
📺 https://t.co/tbTGBrUfiE pic.twitter.com/F7EHvC3Wqu
— Overwatch League (@overwatchleague) June 12, 2021
Flora and Ivy didn’t play poorly, but they weren’t close to the Fuel and Dragons in the two games they played. Both of their losses were sweeps, not winning a single map. There were moments of brilliance, such as their attack on Numbani against the Dragons. Even then, the Dragons held the NYXL at the very last moment and won the map and the match, eliminating them from the June Joust.
Atlanta collapse against Shanghai
After building momentum, the Reign were poised to make the finals of the June Joust on Day 2. Atlanta are the only team in this tournament to have taken a map off of Dallas. They lost to them 3-1 and just had to defeat the Shanghai Dragons to get their rematch. However, the Dragons were also seeking a rematch, from both this tournament and the May Melee finals.
.@Izayaki_ow chose to be a hitscan carry today 🎯#ShanghaiDragons #OWL2021
🐉 https://t.co/tbTGBrUfiE pic.twitter.com/QWa9XFFcxd
— Overwatch League (@overwatchleague) June 12, 2021
They looked strong heading into the Dragons game, which made it all the more surprising when they made big mistakes in the first two maps. Losing them put the Reign in a hole they couldn’t dig themselves out of, they were swept 3-0. After the confident start the Fuel and Reign had in Day 1, the Dragons pulled themselves together at an opportune time. The assistant coach for the Atlanta Reign Max “Unter” Unterwurzacher called the Eastern region teams ‘a joke’ after the first day, but got swept out of the tournament by one of their teams.
This leaves the finals of the June Joust the same as the May Melee. The Dallas Fuel will face the Shanghai Dragons to see which team is the best in the Overwatch League. Fans can tune into the Overwatch League Saturday at 6 p.m. PST to watch the finals rematch.
