Spirit

What decided the map

Spirit started CT rounds with simultaneous utility pressure on both edges of the map, repeating a framework familiar from their previous Mirage games.
Utility was thrown into A Ramp and B Apartments in 7 of 8 rounds, and into Palace in 6 of 8; 34 of 54 throws came in the first 20 seconds. Spirit had previously used a package with Molotovs in A Ramp at 0:06 and B Apartments at 0:14, a Molotov in Top Mid at 0:12, and a smoke in Palace at 0:12.
R15R18
After the break, Spirit made the first contact an almost guaranteed win condition.
Spirit won 7 opening duels across 8 CT rounds and converted all 7 — 100% conversion against the Mirage baseline of 67%. The openings were split between sh1ro — 3, tN1R — 2, and donk — 2.
R14R15R16R17R18R19
BIG's attack invested in setting up Mid, but most of the losses came from an A group that was difficult to recover.
BIG used utility in Window in 7 of 8 T rounds and in Jungle in 6 of 8, but Palace Interior and A Site each accounted for 12 of 40 deaths. Only 25% of deaths were traded in each of these areas, and 0 of 3 in Palace Alley.
R13R15R18

What they did differently

Spirit on attack: rounds R2, R3, R12 match none of their own 84 rounds on this map from the last 8 matches — 0.47, 0.34, 0.48 against their usual 0.60 — biggest change: routes out of spawn, spacing between players, zones taken early · won 1 of 3
BIG on attack: rounds R18, R19 match none of their own 67 rounds on this map from the last 8 matches — 0.58, 0.54 against their usual 0.73 — biggest change: zones taken early, spacing between players · won 0 of 2

How to use this

Against Spirit

Wait out the first layer of defensive utility and prepare a second hit after 0:20: Spirit used 34 of 54 CT grenades in the opening phase, covering A Ramp and B Apartments especially often.
Prepare a dedicated flash or wallbang for sh1ro's move into Palace Interior around 0:22–0:25: previously, he appeared there 4 times at around 0:22, and on this map he opened round 14 at 0:25.
When executing onto A, keep a player to control Catwalk: magixx usually starts on B Site — 32 of 61 rounds — and in round 18 he reached the decisive contacts through Apartments and Catwalk.

Against BIG

Against BIG's attack, keep a second Molotov or smoke for Palace Interior closer to the minute mark: this area accounted for 12 of 40 of their T-side deaths, with only 25% traded.
After BIG's early smokes in Window, do not automatically give up Jungle and Connector: Window received utility in 7 of 8 T rounds, but the team won only one opening duel in the half.
On the T side, check Palace Interior early: tabseN had previously moved there at around 0:20, while gr1ks often works with the AWP from Ticket or Window and secured 4 of BIG's 7 CT openings on this map.

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How it looked

R13 · 1:30
BIG failed to convert their only opening
BIG smoked Window and Connector at 0:46, after which JDC delivered their only opening kill of the entire attack — from Top of Mid at 1:02. The continuation through B Short and Ladder left JDC untraded after contact with tN1R from A Site, and the advantage disappeared. The rotation into Palace Interior also failed to create a stable advantage: sh1ro met gr1ks and tabseN there, while donk held his position near Ticket. The round showed the main problem with BIG's half: even a rare successful start did not give them a controlled next contact.
Steps12345
R15 · 1:40
Familiar utility setup locked down Palace
Spirit repeated their previous CT package at almost the same timings: a Molotov in A Ramp at 0:05, a Molotov in Top Mid at 0:11, and a Molotov in B Apartments at 0:14. While BIG again showed presence at Window and Connector, sh1ro from A Site and donk from Jungle met the group in Palace Interior and created a 5 vs 3 advantage; both deaths went untraded. BIG managed to restore a 3 vs 3, but sh1ro had already changed his angle to Ticket and stopped A Site again. The early setup gave Spirit a player advantage and allowed the AWPer to change his point of impact twice within the same round.
After this opening (11 similar rounds on the map on a force buy): the hit goes A in 100% against the map's usual 63%; the bomb goes down in 91% of rounds against 51%; the attack takes the round in 82% against 47%.
Steps12345
R18 · 1:08
B anchor magixx completed the A retake
Spirit again invested in both edges at once: tN1R threw a Molotov, smoke, and grenade into A Ramp from 0:06 to 0:15, while magixx sent a Molotov and smoke into B Apartments at 0:13 and 0:17. BIG quickly traded tN1R's opening in Connector, and by 0:49 the attack had a 2 vs 1 situation. The last player was magixx, who started the round on B Site — his frequent position in 32 of Spirit's previous 61 CT rounds on Mirage. He retained access to Apartments and Catwalk, killed tabseN on A Site with a grenade, and after the plant stopped gr1ks on Stairs, preserving the flawless conversion of CT openings.
After this opening (6 similar rounds on the map on an eco): the hit goes A in 100% against the map's usual 64%; the attack takes the round in 67% against 26%; first contact at 32.9s against the usual 22.1s.
Steps123456

The opening as a prediction

R15
After this opening (11 similar rounds on the map on a force buy): the hit goes A in 100% against the map's usual 63%; the bomb goes down in 91% of rounds against 51%; the attack takes the round in 82% against 47%.
R14
After this opening (18 similar rounds on the map on an eco): the hit goes A in 100% against the map's usual 64%; the bomb goes down in 11% of rounds against 37%; the attack takes the round in 0% against 26%.
R18
After this opening (6 similar rounds on the map on an eco): the hit goes A in 100% against the map's usual 64%; the attack takes the round in 67% against 26%; first contact at 32.9s against the usual 22.1s.

Team habits and markers

roles, setups, signature spots — expand

CT61 rounds · 6 maps

AWP: sh1ro — 35 of 61 rounds; positions: Jungle, Window
setup 2 A + 2 B + 1 Mid — 20 of 61
setup 2 A + 1 B + 2 Mid — 10 of 61
sh1ro moved into Palace Interior — 4 times, around 0:22 (he was the AWPer)
magixx moved into Apartments — 3 times, around 0:23

T71 rounds · 6 maps

AWP: sh1ro — 33 of 71 rounds; positions: T Spawn, A Ramp
setup 1 A + 1 B + 3 Mid — 12 of 71
setup 2 B + 3 Mid — 11 of 71
donk moved into A Site — 2 times, around 0:22; the AWPer was positioned at A Ramp in these rounds
donk moved into Catwalk — 1 time, around 0:22; the AWPer was positioned at Top Mid in these rounds

BIG

CT70 rounds · 6 maps

AWP: gr1ks — 23 of 70 rounds; positions: Ticket, Window
setup 2 A + 2 B + 1 Mid — 21 of 70
setup 2 A + 1 B + 2 Mid — 9 of 70
tabseN moved into Palace Interior — 5 times, around 0:20; the AWPer was positioned at A Site in these rounds
faveN moved into Palace Interior — 2 times, around 0:23; the AWPer was positioned at B Site in these rounds

T50 rounds · 6 maps

AWP: gr1ks — 3 of 50 rounds; positions: Side Alley
setup 4 A + 1 Mid — 6 of 49
setup 2 A + 3 Mid — 6 of 49
JDC moved into Middle — 2 times, around 0:23; the AWPer was positioned at Side Alley in these rounds
tabseN moved into Middle — 1 time, around 0:24
never moved into A Site (their opponents — 3 times)

Marks show the 20-second position, “×N” a signature spot.

Map numbers

Team and side	Rounds	Opening duels won	Conversion	Median	Trades	Main utility zone
Spirit T	5/12	5	80%	0:20	15%	Window · 19
Spirit CT	8/8	7	100%	0:43	33%	B Apartments · 13
BIG T	0/8	1	0%	1:02	22%	Window · 13
BIG CT	7/12	7	86%	0:48	13%	B Apartments · 14

Conversion — rounds won after winning the opening duel; trades — deaths avenged within five seconds.

Pistol rounds

R1 — Spirit (T)
R13 — Spirit (CT)

Streaks

Spirit — 3 rounds in a row (R3–R5)
BIG — 5 rounds in a row (R6–R10)
Spirit — 8 rounds in a row (R13–R20)

Rounds thrown away

R18 — T lost the round holding a 84% chance
R6 — T lost the round holding a 79% chance
R13 — T lost the round holding a 70% chance
R4 — CT lost the round holding a 89% chance

Broken economy

R6 — Spirit lost a full buy against a force buy

Bottom line

Spirit survived an inconsistent attack and returned after the side switch to a familiar CT playbook that BIG never stretched across the map. More concerning for BIG than the final score was the geography of the loss: the Mid setup was repeated, but eight attacks produced no rounds, while Palace Interior and A Site accounted for 60% of all deaths on the side.

How the map went