NRG break the heart of Zeta Division to keep themselves alive at Champions LA

It's Zeta Division versus NRG in the first elimination match of Group C here at the VALORANT Champions Los Angeles 2023 event. Sparks shall fly in this match as both teams fight to keep their quests for glory alive. We will be here to bring you all of the live scores and updates throughout the match.

Zeta Division found themselves on the losing end in their opening match against Fnatic. They didn't really get a chance to show their best selves in that match as they were just suffocated by the raw power of the Fnatic roster.

While Dep and TENN had relatively respectable performances, the rest of the team did not turn up in the slaying department — including their IGL Laz who had a very quiet game despite using his trusty pick of Chamber in both maps. He and the rest of Zeta Division are going to have to dig deep within themselves and muster up the kind of performances they showed at the Pacific LCQ if they are going to have any hope of defeating NRG. Otherwise, they will likely find themselves leaving Champions with their tails between their legs.

NRG were on the receiving end of a shock defeat to Bilibili Gaming in their opening match of Group C. It was a close-run affair, with the Americas League side finding themselves up against some colorful and creative play calls from Bilibili Gaming. Although they are unlikely to have to deal with any sort of silly plays against this Zeta Division side, that does not mean this will be a straightforward tie for NRG. — Especially if their main duelists Ardiis and Victor cannot get themselves going early in this match. But if we are following the usual trend of this NRG team, then we could quite possibly see another shot-calling masterclass at the hands of FNS.

The match begins with a trip to the sandy plains of Bind, curtesy of Zeta Division. The Japanese side look to adopt a very aggressive style with a double-initiator combo of Raze and Neon. Whereas NRG do with a double-initiator setup, with Ardiis busting out a surprise Chamber pick; An agent he has not used in competitive play since the 2022 season.

Zeta Division manage to take the pistol round to kick things off on Bind. NRG pull off an early eco-round to keep things level. Which is succeeded by two more Thrifty rounds split between the teams. Zeta manage to break the deadlock with some very aggressive pushes on their defensive side. NRG manage to put up a flawless round following a very long tech-pause to get them close to Zeta's lead. But the Japanese side manage to take a 7 - 5 lead into the halftime switch.

Dep gets a 3k as Zeta Division put together a flawless performance to take the second pistol round of the map. They cobble together another flawless on their anti-eco but just barely lose out on the bonus. NRG spring to life to tie wrestle control of the map away from Zeta as they tie the map up at 9 - 9 with Ardiis and S0M turning up the heat for their team. The American side hit the double-digit mark only for Zeta to tie things back up with another Thrifty round. Laz pulls off a superb ace to put Zeta onto map point, but Victor responds with a multi-kill to tie things up again to send Bind into overtime.

Crashies and S0M combine to put NRG on map point in the first round of overtime. But a heroic clutch from SugarZ3ro and Crow keeps Zeta in this one as we head to a second set of rounds. Ardiis comes up with a clutch of his own to put NRG back onto map point. Zeta attempt to pull off another gamble play but it is easily dealt with by NRG. And with one last multi-kill, this time from Crashies, NRG manage to take Bind 15 - 13 and give themselves a 1 - 0 lead in the series.

Following on from their overtime win on Bind NRG bring us over to Haven for the second map of this series. The American side leave little to the imagination with their team composition as they go with the Harbor, Viper double-controller setup. Whereas go with a double-sentinel composition with Dep moving onto Killjoy and Laz bringing out his Chamber.

NRG take the opening pistol round to kick things off on their attack half. Ardiis gets a 4k in their anti-eco as he continues his killing spree from Bind. Their lead stretches to 4 - 0 with Zeta struggling to establish a foothold on the bind. But Dep pulls off an unlikely ace to put the Japanese side on the board. But that proves to be a flash in the pan for Zeta as NRG continue to dominate proceedings. And it only continues to get worse for the Japanese side as NRG break the double-digit mark and finish the first half with a commanding 11 - 1 lead.

NRG take the second pistol round off a flawless post-plant retake move to put themselves onto match point at 12 - 1. Zeta are forced to commit everything to stage an unprecedented comeback. One that just wasn't meant to be. And with one final snap of the rifle, NRG were able to lock up Haven 13 - 1 to take the series 2 - 0 and set themselves up with a rematch against Bilibili Gaming.

We are at the business end of the 2023 VALORANT Champions Tour (VCT) season. Sixteen of the best VALORANT teams from around the world have come together in the city of Los Angeles as they fight for the right to be called Champions. Fans who wish to watch the Zeta Division versus NRG match may do so by heading to the VALORANT Twitch and YouTube channels.

You can also tune in via the embedded stream link down below if you don't wish to click off of this page.

Head on over to our VCT 2023 hub for all of the latest news from across the tournament.