VCT NA Stage 1 Challengers betting picks – Saturday, March 5

ESB’s free esports betting picks for Saturday, March 5, include on a pair of VALORANT Champions Tour (VCT) 2022 North America Stage 1 Challengers matches. Here are our selections for NRG vs Knights and 100 Thieves vs XSET, with top odds courtesy of BetOnline.


Like the latest Valorant esports betting odds suggest, there isn’t much to separate NRG and Knights, as they’re both in a tough spot after failing to deliver across the opening three rounds. NRG have yet to win a match (0-3), whereas Knights have picked up only one series (1-2).

Record-wise, NRG are in a worse spot, but that figure doesn’t tell the whole story. Had a few rounds gone their way, NRG could easily be 2-1 right now, with wins against Version1 and Sentinels. But we must also show some respect for Knights who showed up last week when they swept RISE 2-0.

This match can go either way, but we’re leaning more towards NRG. A small play on NRG to sweep Knights (+250) might be worth a shot, but we’re happy with the price we’re getting on the moneyline.



100 Thieves were just a few rounds away from securing their first victory of the tournament on Sunday, but they ended up losing against Luminosity with 9-13, 13-9, 12-14. Still, the team played decent, considering this roster has been together for less than a week.

With a 1-2 record, XSET should feel calm, knowing that their only two defeats so far came against Cloud9 (1-2) and The Guard (1-2) – two of the strongest teams in the league. Now XSET need just one more game to lock a playoffs spot, and we can be sure they’ll look to seal the deal on Saturday.

100 Thieves have enough talent to be competitive, but they’ll likely need a bit more time to form a strong synergy. XSET have looked better so far, and we have no reason to doubt them.