AVEZ vs. Apeks Preview & Prediction - Free CS:GO Betting Picks 7/31

AVEZ and Apeks are set to square away in the Group B Opening Matches of the Eden Arena Malta Vibes Cup 5. The 16 participants are broken into four double-elimination groups where the Opening Matches are single map matches while the rest in each group are best of three. Each of the top two teams in each group will advance to the single-elimination Playoffs stage to compete for their share of $40,000 USD. These teams have played a total of five maps against each other with all of those meetings being back in May, and Apeks won four of the five maps.

The 53rd ranked Polish squad of AVEZ is a tough team, but they can be inconsistent from time to time. They have won three of their last five with wins over BIG Academy, lvlUP and Tikitakan, and their 2-0 sweep over Tikitakan in their last series was their first sweep in a while. KEi is the team's statistical leader, but Kylar, byali and Markos aren't bad either and nawrot has his days as well. Dust2, Mirage and Inferno have been thorns in the side of AVEZ, but they are much better than average on each of the other maps in competition.

Their opponent for this match will be the 60th ranked Norwegian team of Apeks. Their roster is one of the most experienced in the professional scene as their five players have an average age of 25.1 years. It's been a while since Apeks played professionally however as their last two matches were forfeits in early July and their last contest they actually played was on June 30th. It's worth noting that the team was showing signs of improvement before their break, but the lack of play time is concerning.

Pick: AVEZ Spread -2.5 Rounds (+100 @ Bovada)

Load up with this play because this one is a no-brainer to me. I'll say that Apeks did look as though they were playing better, but they've since been on a hiatus which has lasted over a month. AVEZ hasn't been exactly the most consistent, but they have big wins over BIG Academy and Tikitakan recently which are no slouches. AVEZ's players have been played 19 games since the Apeks players last competed professionally which gives me extreme confidence. I expect Apeks to be a little rusty, and I expect AVEZ to take advantage of this and win with a score of at least 16-13 with ease.