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Its the middle of the week, and you know what that means: Mid laners.Its time to look at the best the mid lane has to offer at the 2016 League of Legends World Championships and which players will be challenging the greatest of all time, SK Telecom T1s Lee Faker Sang-hyeok, in his attempt to win his third Summoners Cup.5. Lee Scout Ye-chanRegion: China Team: Edward GamingWhat better way to start the countdown than with Fakers former protege on SK Telecom T1? Scout was a highly sought after amateur on the solo queue ladder, and he joined SKT T1 last year to play backup for two of the best mid laners in the world, Faker and Lee Easyhoon Ji-hoon. Scout left his homeland of South Korea to join Edward Gaming in the middle of the year after being used sparingly by T1 and knowing his chances of ever eclipsing Faker as a starter were slim to none. EDGs Heo PawN Won-seoks constant health issues opened the door for Scout to take over, and hes grown throughout the short summer split.Scout was primarily known for his explosive highlight reel play in solo queue, and he was forced to change into a safer, mage-centric player for a large part of the year behind the offensive talents of superstar AD carry Kim Deft Hyuk-kyu. Yet, in the summer finals, he was able to showcase his brash Zed play in a clear 3-0 victory over rival Royal Never Give Up. Although Scout was initially brought in to backup the two mid laners who have several world championship titles between them, hes begun cutting a legacy of his own as one of the fastest rising players in the world today.4. Lee Crown Min-hoRegion: South Korea Team: Samsung GalaxyNext to Scout, Crown is another South Korean-born mid laner who has the opportunity to break into superstar status this tournament. When Samsung was in the proverbial dumps following the exodus of all its top talent from 2014, Crown was one of the few bright spots during the rebuild. A little over a year ago, the newly cemented Samsung starter made a name for himself by alternating heavyweight blows against Faker in a matchup between Crowns pocket Yasuo and the T1 aces Ahri. It wasnt the most serious and clean game from the usually neat SKT T1 of 2015, but Faker challenged Crown, and Crown delivered, going 10/36 in a losing effort that ended the series 0-2.Since that loss, Samsung and Crown have grown leaps and bounds as a whole. Crown prides himself on his work ethic as a pro-gamer due to his old days of wanting to become a StarCraft professional where the practice is even more strenuous. After failing to make the playoffs in the spring, Crown pushed himself to become a better player in the summer with an even wider champion pool. The ace of Samsung did just that, having one of the better summer seasons of any mid laner in the world. In his past six games during the South Korean Regional to get to the World Championships, Crown played six different champions, including his signature Viktor in which he went 10/0/4 in a winning effort over KT Rolster.Samsung is not a team of many stars, but it surely has a budding one in the form of Crown. It took two full years to complete the rebuild of Samsung, and there is no better man to lead them into the future than the 21-year-old mid laner.3. Huang Maple Yi-TangRegion: Taiwan Team: Flash WolvesUnlike the other two Worlds newcomers, this will be the third World Championships for the Flash Wolves mid laner. He came to Worlds in 2013 as an excitable rookie and was sent packing by Faker and SK Telecom T1 before he could even win a single game at the tournament. Last year, it was a better show of his talent, and the Wolves got all the way to the quarterfinals before ultimately losing to Origen in a relatively close 3-1 series. Back for his third shot at the Summoners Cup, Maple is a veteran and has been consistently one of the top talents from Taiwan the past few years. His partnership with jungler Hung Karsa Hau-Hsuan cant be praised enough, and its the pairs chemistry and raw power that has dragged the Wolves through inconsistency in the side lanes the past two years.Although his spring split was good -- not great -- his summer split more than made up for it with a statline of 118 kills, 34 deaths and 60 assists in 28 starts en route to a domestic championship for the Wolves. The scarier thing, however, is that if J Team hadnt fallen apart at the end of the year, Maple wouldnt have had the best summer season for a Taiwanese mid coming into Worlds: Chu FoFo Chun-Lan, a 17-year-old prodigy, bested him. The standout rookie put together an even better regular season with a 8.3 kill/death/assist (KDA) compared to Maples 8.2, and a higher overall damage per minute, as well.Maple, though, experienced and battle-tested, got through the rough times while FoFo, a rookie, couldnt make it past the finish line. There are rumors that this could be the last run for Maple in Taiwan after getting offers from the LPL last year, and if so, hell want to make this the perfect sendoff for a Wolves team that has consistently made it to the bracket stage of international competitions over the years.2. S?ren Bjergsen BjergRegion: North America Team: Team SoloMidIts been a long road for Bjergsen to get to this position. Last year, when he was depended on to be all the offense for Team SoloMid, he was shown he couldnt do it all. For how great of an individual player he was, his position as shotcaller while also outputting 40 percent of his teams damage was impossible to keep up. Teams knew how TSM played, and teams would focus in on Bjergsen and make sure he wasnt able to beat them.Now, in 2016, with a fellow consistent damage threat in Yiliang Doublelift Peng, who has also taken a brunt of the shotcalling duties, Bjergsen is free to breathe and be the kind of talent hes always had the capabilities of becoming. Teams will still zero in on Bjergsen, but hes no longer playing a game where he always has to be the savior. This allows him to play a more free-flowing style across the map instead of always being hemmed in the mid lane. The added freedom helped Bjergsen clinch his third MVP award, and one of his better statistical seasons in history: 166/62/275 for a 7.1 KDA and a damage per minute (DPM) of 628. When you compare his 29 percent of TSMs damage output this split to last summers 42.5 percent, you can see with a better team around him, Bjergsen is able to do more with less.1. Lee Faker Sang-hyeokRegion: South Korea Team: SK Telecom T1He might not be the best player currently in the world -- Song Smeb Kyung-ho and Ming Clearlove Kai say hi -- but that doesnt mean his spot as top mid laner has been wrangled away just yet. There are a lot of issues you can point out when you look at the SKT T1 roster -- a large amount of it in the jungle -- but Faker isnt one of them. In the toughest region in the world, he walked away with the most kills out of any mid laner (162) and second-place overall to only KT Rolsters sniper No Arrow Dong-hyeon, who played three more games in the regular season.The amazing thing with Faker, though, as hes done throughout his career is what Bjergsen has finally started to accomplish on TSM: doing big things with little gold. When someone gets a large amount of his teams gold, you expect them to be able to output a high-level of damage. For Faker, he once again topped all mid laners when it came to DPM (677) and was second in the entire league behind his teammate Bae Bang Jun-sik. When it came to the percentage of gold he received from his team, Faker was 16th in the entire league. Hes not only the type of player who can stand on his feet as an individual, but hes the type of player that props up the players around him. He takes less of the pie but is still able to deliver the numbers expected from one of the best, if not the best player in the entire league.You have the likes of Scout and Crown getting better everyday, mechanical marvels like Maple and EDGs Li Xiaohu Yuan-Hao, and Bjergsens evolution to becoming the best player the western region has ever introduced. But at the front of the pack is Faker, working just as hard for his third Summoners Cup as his first. Nmd Schuhe Online . It was just business as usual for the Thunder at home. Durant scored 32 points and the Thunder beat the Bulls 107-95 on Thursday night for their eighth straight win. Nmd Schweiz Kaufen . Durant finished with 24 points and 13 rebounds, Jackson matched his career high with 23 points on 10-of-14 shooting and Lamb scored 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting, lifting the Thunder to a 94-88 win over San Antonio and snapping the Spurs 11-game winning streak. http://www.nmdschweizkaufen.ch/ultra-boost-outlet.html .C. -- Chris Thorburn thinks one of the reasons the Winnipeg Jets have been successful under new coach Paul Maurice is that theyre playing together as a team. Lite Racer Schweiz . "Hes going to have hip surgery on Jan. 7, and hell be expected to rehabilitate for four to six months beyond that," Canucks general manager Mike Gillis said Friday in an interview. Adidas Nmd r2 Schweiz . Louis Cardinals. Victorino is batting sixth and playing right field after missing two games because of back tightness. EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Amara Darboh caught eight passes for a career-high 165 yards, and DeVeon Smith ran for two touchdowns to help No. 2 Michigan beat Michigan State 32-23 on Saturday.The Wolverines (8-0, 5-0 Big Ten) scored every time they had the ball in the first half, beating the Spartans (2-6, 0-5) for only the second time in the last nine meetings. Michigan avenged last years loss in which the Spartans scored the winning touchdown on the final play when the Wolverines botched a punt.Michigan won the Paul Bunyan Trophy for the first time since 2012.Michigan led 30-10 in the fourth before the Spartans scored a pair of touchdowns, the last of which came with only a second left. Michigan State attempted a 2-point conversion and fumbled, and Jabrill Peppers returned it the other way for a defensive conversion.Michigan States LJ Scott rushed for 139 yards and a touchdown.NO. 4 WASHINGTON 31, NO. 17 UTAH 24SALT LAKE CITY -- Dante Pettis returned a punt 58 yards for a touchdown with 3:25 left and Washington held off Utah 3to remain undefeated.After Utah tied it at 24 with 9:07 left, Washington (8-0, 5-0 Pac-12) pinned the Utes on their own 1 on quarterback Jake Brownings pooch punt. The Utes (7-2, 4-2) went three-and-out and punted to Pettis, who ran parallel toward the far sideline, broke a tackle and outran everyone else.Browning threw for 186 yards and two touchdowns, and Myles Gaskin ran for 151 and a touchdown.Utah quarterback Troy Williams threw for 163 yards and two touchdowns, and Joe Williams continued his remarkable post-retirement career with 172 rushing yards and a touchdown.NO. 5 LOUISVILLE 32, VIRGINIA 25CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. -- Lamar Jackson floated a 29-yard touchdown pass to Jaylen Smith with 13 seconds left and Louisville survived a frenetic finish.Jacksons fourth touchdown pass kept the Cardinals (7-1, 5-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) in the College Football Playoff picture, and couldnt have hurt the Heisman Trophy frontrunners candidacy. Virginia (2-6, 1-3) scored with 1:57 remaining and used a 2-point conversion to take a 25-24 lead.Jackson did not have one of his best days, getting sacked five times and turning the ball over twice, but on the final drive, he ran for 18 yards, hit Cole Hikutini in traffic for 5 yards on fourth-and-3 and ran twice more for 16 yards before hitting Smith in the end zone.NO. 6 OHIO STATE 24, NORTHWESTERN 20COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Curtis Samuel had a 3-yard touchdown run with 9:43 left to give Ohio State the lead, and J.T. Barrett converted two key third downs on a game-sealing drive.After being upset by Penn State last week, the Buckeyes struggled against another multi-touchdown underdog. The Buckeyes (7-1, 4-1 Big Ten) punted on five straight drives in one stretch, but responded to Northwestern tying it at 17 with a touchdown drive, capped by Samuel.Northwestern (4-4, 3-2) then got to the Ohio State 3, but settled for Jack Mitchells 33-yard field goal to close to 24-20 with 3:31 left.Barrett was 21 for 32 for 223 yards, but didnt complete a pass over 19 yards until the fourth quarter. Mike Weber rushed 14 times for 87 yards and two touchdowns.TEXAS 35, NO. 8 BAYLOR 34AUSTIN, Texas -- Trent Domingue kicked a 39-yard field goal with 46 seconds left and Texas upset Baylor to hand the Bears their first loss.For the second straight season, coach Charlie Strong and the Longhorns (4-4, 2-4 Big 12) beat Baylor (6-1, 3-1). This time Texas also dealt a blow to the Big 12s hopes of putting a team in the College Football Playoff. Both of the conferences remaining unbeaten teams lost Saturday, with No. 10 West Virginia going down at Oklahoma State.DOnta Foreman rushed for a career-best 250 yards and two touchdowns for the Longhorns, They scored with 7:03 left on 7-yard pass from Shane Buechele to Andrew Beck to make it 34-32. The Bears stuffed Tyrone Swoopes trying to run for a 2-point conversion.Seth Russell had 364 yards passing and running and accounted for three touchdowns for Baylor.NO. 9. TEXAS A&M 52, NEW MEXICO STATE 10COLLEGE STATION, Texas -- Christian Kirk returned two punts for touchdowns and had a scoring catch for Texas A&M.Kirk returned punts for 70 and 73 yards to become the first player in school history with two punt return scores in a game. He has a school-record four in his career.Trevor Knight found Kirk on a 3-yard reception in the corner of the end zone in the second quarter to put Texas A&M (7-1) up 24-0.Tyler Rogers threw for 138 yards and a touchdown and ran for 40 yards for New Mexico State (2-6).OKLAHOMA STATE 37, NO. 10 WEST VIRGINIA 20STILLWATER, Okla. -- Mason Rudolph threw three touchdown passes and ran for a score for Oklahoma State.Rudolph completed 26 of 36 passes for 273 yards. James Washington had six catches for 117 yards, Chris Lacy caught two touchdown passes, and Jalen McCleskey matched a career high with 11 receptions for the Cowboys (6-2, 4-1 Big 12). It the 100th career victory for Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy.West Virginias Skyler Howard passed for 212 yards, but he threw two interceptions and lost a fumble for the Mountaineers (6-1, 3-1).NO. 11 WISCONSIN 23, NO. 7 NEBRASKA 17, OTMADISON, Wis. -- Dare Ogunbowale scored on an 11-yard run in overtime, and Wisconsin held on to hand Nebraska its first loss of the season.The Badgers (6-2, 3-2 Big Ten) stopped Nebraska on fourth-and-8 from the 23 after defensive back DCota Dixon swatted away a pass to the end zone ffrom Tommy Armstrong Jr.dddddddddddd intended for Stanley Morgan Jr.Dixons giddy teammates rushed from the sideline to meet the safety in the end zone to celebrate. Tested Wisconsin picked up its third victory over a Top 10 program.Nebraska (7-1, 4-1) overcame a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter. Drew Browns 35-yard field goal with 3:43 left tied it at 17.WYOMING 30, NO. 13 BOISE STATE 28LARAMIE, Wyo. -- Defensive tackle Chase Appleby sacked Brett Rypien and forced a fumble for a safety with 1:25 left to lift Wyoming past Boise State.It was Wyomings first win over the Broncos in 11 games between the two teams. Thousands of fans swarmed the field and the Cowboys players as the final seconds ticked off.Josh Allen completed 18 of 31 passes for 274 yards and three touchdowns, and Brian Hill ran for 146 yards for the Cowboys (6-2, 4-0 Mountain West).Rypien completed 22 of 35 passes for 295 yards, and he also caught a 33-yard TD pass on a trick play for Boise State (7-1, 3-1). Jeremey McNichols ran for 143 yards and two TDs, and Jake Hollister caught six passes for 144 yards and two touchdowns.NO. 14 FLORIDA 24, GEORGIA 10JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Jordan Scarlett scored for the sixth consecutive game, Antonio Callaway had the first rushing touchdown of his career and Florida used a dominant defensive effort to beat Georgia.Playing just their second game in four weeks, the Gators won their third straight in the Worlds Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party. It was Floridas 21st victory against the Bulldogs in the last 27 years.The Gators (6-1, 4-1 Southeastern Conference) pressured freshman quarterback Jacob Eason and stuffed Nick Chubb on just about every carry. Georgia (4-4, 2-4) lost for the fourth time in five games.Floridas Luke Del Rio, coming off a three-interception performance against Missouri, completed 15 of 25 passes for 131 yards and a touchdown.NO. 15 AUBURN 40, MISSISSIPPI 29OXFORD, Miss. -- Kamryn Pettway ran for a career-high 236 yards and a touchdown, and Sean White passed for 247 yards for Auburn.Ole Miss Chad Kelly threw for a school-record 465 yards, beating Archie Mannings previous mark of 436 yards set in 1969. Kelly also threw three touchdown passes and one interception.But the Rebels couldnt keep up with Auburn, which finished with 554 total yards. The Tigers once again gave a heavy workload to Pettway, a sophomore who responded by smashing through the Ole Miss defense with his 240-pound body time after time.Auburn (6-2, 4-1 Southeastern Conference) won its fifth straight, while Ole Miss (3-5, 1-4) lost its third in a row.NO. 16 OKLAHOMA 56, KANSAS 3NORMAN, Okla. -- Baker Mayfield passed for 236 yards and four touchdowns and Oklahoma overcame a sluggish to take sole possession of first place in the Big 12.Receiver Dede Westbrook extended his hot streak for the Sooners, scoring on a 71-yard punt return and a 41-yard catch as Oklahoma won its 13th straight Big 12 game.Losses by West Virginia and Baylor earlier Saturday put Oklahoma (6-2, 5-0) into the lead in the conference. Oklahoma is 5-0 in Big 12 play for the first time since 2004 and for the fourth time ever. On all three previous occasions, Oklahoma went 8-0 in league play, winning titles in 2000 and 2004.Oklahoma limited Kansas (1-7, 0-5) to 170 yards, the fewest by an opponent this season. Jordan Evans 33-yard third-quarter interception return for a touchdown meant the Sooners defense outscored Kansas.Kansas has lost 17 straight Big 12 games and 39 straight road games overall.SOUTH CAROLINA 24, NO. 18 TENNESSEE 21COLUMBIA, S.C. -- Jake Bentley two touchdown passes, Rico Dowdle ran for 127 yards and another score, and South Carolina handed Tennessee its third straight loss.The Gamecocks (4-4, 2-4 Southeastern Conference) had struggled on offense much of the season and were expected to be a comfortable bounce-back win for the powerhouse Vols (5-3, 2-3) after consecutive losses to No. 9 Texas A&M and No. 1 Alabama.Instead, South Carolinas defense bottled up the Vols most of the game, holding them to 251 yards of offense. Joshua Dobbs threw for only 120 yards and was picked off twice by cornerback Jamarcus King, the final time with 3:50 left in the game and Tennessee needing a dramatic rally.Tennessee got a final chance with 35 seconds left and drove to the South Carolina 41. But Aaron Medleys desperation, 58 yard field goal attempt was well short on the final play.NO. 24 PENN STATE 62, PURDUE 24WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- Saquon Barkley ran for 207 yards and two touchdowns, Trace McSorley threw three scoring passes, and Penn State had a 24-point third quarter.The Nittany Lions (6-2, 4-1 in the Big Ten) converted an interception, a fumbled punt and a failed onside kick into third-quarter touchdowns on their way to a fourth consecutive victory, They snapped a seven-game road losing streak dating to 2014.Tied at 17 through two quarters, the Nittany Lions outscored Purdue (3-5, 1-4) 24-7 in the third. McSorley threw a 1-yard touchdown pass to Chris Godwin and for 21 yards to Miles Sanders for another.Barkley padded the lead with 13:56 left on a career-best 81-yard run along the right sideline. It was the longest touchdown run by a Nittany Lion since Larry Johnsons 84-yarder in 2002 against Illinois.---More AP college football: -www.collegefootball.ap.org ' ' '