"Once we started playing hard on Fracture. It was just a matter of getting to 13." Derrek on 100 Thieves' win

When the schedule for Americas league was announced, a pattern emerged where each team was would face a new opponent each week. However, a unique change to this consistent pattern was a dedicated "super week," featuring six days of competition with each team participating in two matchups over the course of those days.

Day 2 of the super week produced an entertaining matchup between NA’s renowned 100 Thieves and KRÜ Esports, both searching to improve their record at the tournament. Following 100 Thieves’ win, THESPIKE.GG was granted the opportunity to conduct an interview with Derrek "Derrek" Ha breaking down his thoughts on the game, coming off a loss, individual performances and more.

Derrek on 100 Thieves getting off to a slow start

THESPIKE.GG: Congratulations on the win. What were the emotions running like immediately after the result became apparent?

Derrek: Once we started playing hard on Fracture I knew we were going to close it out. It was just a matter of getting to 13.

THESPIKE.GG: You guys were coming off a loss against a poor loss against Cloud9 just last week. How was the team’s feeling going into this matchup?

Derrek: Honestly, losing in the fashion that we did against C9 it just motivated us to just get a lot better quick, because you play one match every weekend. So, you don't have much time to mope and be sad about losing in that fashion. You just must get better and that's what we did.

THESPIKE.GG: The start on Ascent was relatively underwhelming. What do you think went wrong early on?

Derrek: I think we fixed a lot of our stuff in scrims, but it really just came down to Keznit and Melser farming us. I don't know what those guys were on, but they were just absolutely shooting us, and we were just not shooting back. It was just down to poor spacing and when they're having a game and you start slow, it's just a recipe for disaster.

THESPIKE.GG: Starting off the game with Ascent, a map that 100 Thieves hasn’t been able to take in all the games it has been used at the League. Why do you think the improvements have not been showing up?

Derrek: I wish I had the answer, because if I did, I wouldn't be losing every single time. I don't know, I felt like we should definitely close it out against Sentinels, and today, Melser went off, we couldn't run anything that we've that we fixed, and yeah, I feel like that's what it came down to.

THESPIKE.GG: Given the outcome 100T faced on Ascent, it might be a target for being banned early on?

Derrek: Yeah, it's in a weird spot right now, where we feel super confident in our Ascent in practice, but then come match day, we start slow and the enemy team is starting off hot, and after being down like 0-6, you're like, why did we play this map. We’re confident in practice, but we can't execute it in matches, so, I don't know. I don't want to say if we're going to ban it or not, but, we're going to try our best to fix it.

THESPIKE.GG: After a considerably poor showing on Ascent, how difficult is it to muster the morale to comeback into the match and fight from a disadvantageous position?

Derrek: I think every game from here on out is a must-win for us, um, but I think coming into Split, we start again, but Split is a defensive sided map, and we try not to get too worried about being down multiple rounds, as long as we get like 3 or 4, our defense is super strong and we closed it out there.

THESPIKE.GG: If you were to rate your individual performance on a scale of 1-10, what would you give it and why?

Derrek: Coming to Ascent, I felt like, unless I was the first one out, we weren't usually taking the space how we normally do. There were multiple instances where I was moving through B main, like as an attacker, and then I was still the first one taking fights from lane, which usually never happened in practice. It was a little frustrating, but we're going to watch it back, fix everything, and hopefully come back better for Ascent. If I were to put numbers to it, mechanically, probably a 4 or 5, and then, macro play and just supporting my team, I’d say, 7-8.

THESPIKE.GG: If you have been following the Americas scene, what team has shocked you the most?

Derrek: Loud is just frying. Sentinels gave them a run for their money with Marved. Other than that, I mean, I feel like anyone could be anyone on any day, so, the league is dead even in my eyes.

THESPIKE.GG: Did Cloud9’s performance take 100 Thieves by surprise?

Derrek: I mean, a little bit, but we played them in scrims before the whole roster was announced, and we had an idea of how good they were going to be. It feels like the roster that meshes a little bit better, I would say.

THESPIKE.GG: You face Leviatan soon. What are your thoughts going into that matchup?

Derrek: Definitely going to be a tough match, they've been looking pretty good, uh, but I'm looking forward to it. As long as we show up and we don't start slow, I think it'll be a very good match.

Make sure to check out our VCT 2023 Hub for all the information about the VALORANT events this year.

Featured image courtesy of Riot Games.