Fresh off an Academy League playoff match win, Mingyi “Spica” Lu was quickly thrust into the LCS today, making his debut in the league’s ninth week of regular season play.
Spica aced his LCS entrance exam, pulling off critical plays to help TSM secure a win against FlyQuest.
“I was a little bit nervous coming into the game since we only had two and a half days of practice,” Spica said in his post-game interview. “My Academy coach asked me during the night ‘can you play LCS scrims tomorrow,’ and that’s how I started.”
Although Spica was “really nervous” when he initially saw the late-night message, after talking with TSM general manager Parth Naidu, he agreed, saying “yeah, I can do it, I’m confident in my abilities.”
Spica’s confidence shined right at the start of the game when he stole FlyQuest’s blue buff in a level one invade, only giving up his flash summoner spell in return.
Despite TSM finding the initial lead thanks to a solo kill by top laner Sergen “Broken Blade” Çelik, the game was a back-and-forth struggle between both teams.
Late in the game, though, TSM AD carry Jesper “Zven” Svenningsen got caught out, giving FlyQuest a straight path to the Baron and triggering LCS Spring Split finals flashbacks to viewers watching.
Like a hero swooping in to save the day, Spica leaped into the Baron pit as Jarvan IV, stealing the Baron in a game-winning play for TSM.
After smoothly transitioning into TSM’s LCS roster, Spica credited his performance to his Academy coach Peter Zhang, who also recently made the leap to TSM’s LCS squad.
“I think it was a lot easier since Peter was there helping me,” Spica said. “He was my Academy coach, and now he’s helping LCS. So this transition was a lot easier than expected.”
Tomorrow, TSM will take on Team Liquid, an organization that Spica recently faced off against—in Academy. Yesterday, TSM Academy swept TL Academy and Spica said it was made possible by his time scrimming with the LCS roster.
“I learned a lot more playing with these great players like Bjergsen and Zven,” Spica said. “They taught me a lot about the game, and that’s how I was able to sweep TL.”
Heading into TSM’s match against the league’s back-to-back champions tomorrow, Spica seems to have a bit of nervous optimism.
“I hope it’s gonna be a 4-0,” Spica said.
