MOUZ defeat HEROIC 2–1 at ESL Pro League Season 23 Stage 2

MOUZ secured a hard-fought 2–1 victory over HEROIC in Stage 2 of ESL Pro League Season 23. The European side lost Dust2 but managed to turn the series around on Mirage and confidently close the decider on Inferno to start the stage with a win.

Map veto:

1. HEROIC removed Overpass
2. MOUZ removed Anubis
3. HEROIC picked Dust2
4. MOUZ picked Mirage
5. HEROIC removed Ancient
6. MOUZ removed Nuke
7. Inferno was left over

MOUZ started strongly on their opponent’s map pick. In the first half, they played on the CT side and managed to win more of the key rounds, building a comfortable 8–4 lead. However, the situation changed completely after the side switch. HEROIC mirrored their opponent’s success and, conceding only one round, closed Dust2 with a 13–9 victory.

Mirage also turned out to be a competitive map. The first half was evenly contested and ended with a 6–6 scoreline. In the second half, however, MOUZ looked much stronger on the CT side and managed to secure the map 13–8.

The deciding map, Inferno, was fully controlled by MOUZ. They dominated the game from the start and left HEROIC with little chance to respond, closing the map convincingly with a 13–3 score.

MVP of the Match

The best player of the match was Jimpphat, who finished the series with 96.1 ADR and a 1.60 rating.

Despite a challenging match, MOUZ managed to secure the win and move forward with a 1–0 record. HEROIC had their chances against the favorites but failed to maintain the pressure on the decisive Inferno. ESL Pro League S23 Stage 2 runs from March 6 to March 10, where 16 teams compete for a place in the playoffs. The remaining eight teams will share a prize pool of $185,000.