Ethan after LOUD victory: "I don’t really have expectations for the team. The goal is to win but expectation-wise, I like the underdog mindset a lot."

Coming off of a hot winning streak from the group stage of VCT 2023 - Masters Tokyo, Evil Geniuses were put up against the behemoth of VCT Americas; LOUD . Despite a phenomenal run in the groups, where EG defeated FUT Esports and then DRX VS, both with clean 2-0s, many fans were certain LOUD would put an end to their streak. Instead, EG showed up guns ablaze and defeated LOUD with a very comfortable scoreline of 13-7 on Fracture and 13-5 on Ascent. One thing that EG has done for themselves at Masters Tokyo is silence the doubters and prove that they are not a one-time wonder, but a world-class VALORANT team that has come to dominate.

Following EG's triumph over LOUD, we managed to sit down with Ethan "Ethan" Arnold for a chat. Despite being only 23, Ethan is one of the team's more experienced esports players and has displayed a very calm presence that goes well in hand with high confidence without setting high expectations that see EG rise above the competition. Here is what Ethan shared with THESPIKE.GG following the victory over LOUD.

Masters Tokyo: Interview with EG Ethan following LOUD matchup

Puri (THESPIKE.GG): Congrats on your win! You stepped up and beat Americas #1 seed in LOUD. What’s going through your mind right now?

Ethan: Feeling good, I think we’re showing we’re here to play with a little bit of luck involved getting here, we’re playing really well right now.

THESPIKE: From your domestic showings all the way up to this tournament you’ve leveled up a lot as a team. What do you attribute this to?

Ethan: Everyone’s playing really well right now individually. Nobody is slacking and even if they are, they’re bringing a lot more other than just aim into the matches which is always helpful. Everyone knows their job and are all comfy in their roles right now, so that helps a lot.

THESPIKE: Your team seems to be a bit momentum based and streaky, where when you’re on fire, you’re unstoppable but when you start to lose things go south fast. What about you, do you find your team to be very momentum based?

Ethan: I’d say every team is momentum based to a point. This game is special, if you know what the enemy team does and you can stop them from getting their momentum, it’s a big advantage to your team. I think some of our players are momentum based for sure, I think it’s all about vibes in the matches and keeping everyone not just level headed but hyped at the same time.

THESPIKE: Could you guide me through that crazy multikill you had on Ascent?

Ethan: It was a 2v4 and we knew where every player was, so it was all about getting the space and me and C0M knew we had to get kills, so he set me up with a drone and I posted up. The Ares there was the best gun I could have had.

THESPIKE: A lot of people definitely had you as the underdog and didn’t see LOUD losing so what do you have to say to that?

Ethan: I have said before in press conferences that I don’t really have expectations for the team. The goal is to win but expectation-wise, I like the underdog mindset a lot.

THESPIKE: Before EG you went to LAN with 100 Thieves way back. When you compare the two teams, how does the atmosphere differ?

Ethan: I think this team is a lot more energetic, which can be attributed to younger players. When I was on 100 Thieves our only really young player was Asuna. There’s points in the team where it’s good to have a lot of hype. It’s like a 180 degree difference between the two. 100 Thieves was very level headed and we took a lot of time to think about stuff and what’s going on.

THESPIKE: In regards to your comment about young players, you’re a veteran obviously so did you help your teammates with less LAN experience in any way at all?

Ethan: There wasn’t too much prep in regards to that. During matches it’s everyone's job to keep level-headed but I make sure to keep vocal about that the most. Whenever there’s a super hype round the younger players will continue that hype maybe even to the freeze time into the next round. One round after another we have to keep going so we need to keep our heads straight and let our IGL call.

THESPIKE: Coaches are usually the most polarizing members of a team because from the outside you cannot really tell what they do and don’t do to help the team. In regards to Potter I’d love for you to go into detail into how she helps the team. Who is Potter to you?

Ethan: She’s very direct with players and has been with the core for a very long time which comes with a connection. When I joined she helped me a lot in regards to bringing me up to speed and integrating me a lot into how the team operates. With Max Demon1 everyone can tell what kind of player he is so we gave him a lot of freedom, but he’s also thankfully very intellectual when it comes to strats. He’s not like a brain-dead Jett that just runs in, he helps a lot with mid-rounding too sometimes.

THESPIKE: Going forward there’s still a long way to go before the trophy so could you give some insight into your mindset and aspirations?

Ethan: We’re showing a lot right now, hopefully we can keep it up. Even if there is a close loss, I just tell my team to stay confident. It’s unlikely that we are able to stay undefeated the whole tournament but I think it is definitely possible with how we’re playing right now. Hopefully if there is a little bump in the road, we’re able to stay straight and close it out.

Evil Geniuses will now face Team Liquid in the Upper Bracket semi finals of VALORANT Masters Tokyo on June 19. Make sure to check out our VCT 2023 - Masters Tokyo event page for the latest results, news, and stats.

Featured image photo credit: Photo by Colin Young-Wolff/Riot Games