2018 Houston Outlaws season
# 2018 Houston Outlaws season

The 2018 Houston Outlaws season was the first season of the Houston Outlaws's existence in the Overwatch League. Outlaws qualified for the Stage 1 playoffs but fell to the London Spitfire in the semifinals. The team did not qualify finished with a regular season record of 22–18, missing the season playoffs.

## Preceding offseason

On October 31, 2017, Houston Outlaws announced their inaugural season roster, consisting of the following players:

* Matthew "Clockwork" Dias
* Lucas "Mendokusaii" Håkansson
* Jiri "LiNkzr" Masalin
* Jake "Jake" Lyon
* Austin "Muma" Wilmot
* Matt "Coolmatt" Iorio
* Shane "Rawkus" Flaherty
* Christopher "Bani" Benell
* Daniel "Boink" Pence
* Alexandre "SPREE" Vanhomwegen

## Regular season

### Review

On January 11, the Outlaws played their first regular season Overwatch League match, a 3–2 loss to the Philadelphia Fusion. One week later, on January 17, Houston claimed their first victory after sweeping the Shanghai Dragons 4–0. Houston went on to qualify for the Stage 1 playoffs but fell to the London Spitfire in the semifinals.

Houston entered their last regular season match against the New York Excelsior needing a win to keep their season playoff hopes alive. The Outlaws had a 2–1 lead after three matches, but New York won the next three straight to take the win 3–2. The team finished with a regular season record of 22–18.

## Final roster

### Transactions

Transactions of/for players on the roster during the 2018 regular season:

* On February 16, Outlaws signed Russell "FCTFCTN" Campbell.
* On March 30, Outlaws signed Jung "ArHaN" Won-hyeop.

## Standings

### League

| Pos | Div | Teamvte | Pld | W | L | PCT | MW | ML | MT | MD | Qualification |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | ATL | New York Excelsior | 40 | 34 | 6 | 0.85 | 126 | 43 | 4 | +83 | Advance to season playoffs semifinals |
| 2 | PAC | Los Angeles Valiant | 40 | 27 | 13 | 0.68 | 100 | 64 | 7 | +36 | Advance to season playoffs semifinals |
| 3 | ATL | Boston Uprising | 40 | 26 | 14 | 0.65 | 99 | 71 | 3 | +28 | Advance to season playoffs quarterfinals |
| 4 | PAC | Los Angeles Gladiators | 40 | 25 | 15 | 0.63 | 96 | 72 | 3 | +24 | Advance to season playoffs quarterfinals |
| 5 | ATL | London Spitfire | 40 | 24 | 16 | 0.60 | 102 | 69 | 3 | +33 | Advance to season playoffs quarterfinals |
| 6 | ATL | Philadelphia Fusion | 40 | 24 | 16 | 0.60 | 93 | 80 | 2 | +13 | Advance to season playoffs quarterfinals |
| 7 | ATL | Houston Outlaws | 40 | 22 | 18 | 0.55 | 94 | 77 | 2 | +17 | |
| 8 | PAC | Seoul Dynasty | 40 | 22 | 18 | 0.55 | 91 | 78 | 3 | +13 | |
| 9 | PAC | San Francisco Shock | 40 | 17 | 23 | 0.43 | 77 | 84 | 5 | −7 | |
| 10 | PAC | Dallas Fuel | 40 | 12 | 28 | 0.30 | 58 | 100 | 7 | −42 | |
| 11 | ATL | Florida Mayhem | 40 | 7 | 33 | 0.18 | 42 | 120 | 5 | −78 | |
| 12 | PAC | Shanghai Dragons | 40 | 0 | 40 | 0.00 | 21 | 141 | 2 | −120 | |

## Game log

### Preseason

2018 preseason game log :

Preseason (0–2)

1

December 7

Dallas Fuel

3

2

Houston Outlaws

Burbank, CA

2

December 8

Seoul Dynasty

2

1

Houston Outlaws

Burbank, CA :

### Regular season

2018 game log (Regular season record: 22–18) :

Stage 1 (7–3)

1

January 11

Philadelphia Fusion

3

2

Houston Outlaws

Burbank, CA

2

January 13

New York Excelsior

3

1

Houston Outlaws

Burbank, CA

3

January 17

Houston Outlaws

4

0

Shanghai Dragons

Burbank, CA

4

January 18

Dallas Fuel

0

4

Houston Outlaws

Burbank, CA

5

January 25

Houston Outlaws

4

0

Florida Mayhem

Burbank, CA

6

January 27

Los Angeles Gladiators

0

4

Houston Outlaws

Burbank, CA

7

January 31

Houston Outlaws

3

1

San Francisco Shock

Burbank, CA

8

February 02

Seoul Dynasty

3

2

Houston Outlaws

Burbank, CA

9

February 08

London Spitfire

1

3

Houston Outlaws

Burbank, CA

10

February 10

Houston Outlaws

3

2

Boston Uprising

Burbank, CA :

Stage 2 (5–5)

11

February 22

Houston Outlaws

3

2

London Spitfire

Burbank, CA

12

February 24

Boston Uprising

0

4

Houston Outlaws

Burbank, CA

13

March 01

Houston Outlaws

2

3

Philadelphia Fusion

Burbank, CA

14

March 03

Houston Outlaws

0

4

New York Excelsior

Burbank, CA

15

March 08

Houston Outlaws

0

4

Los Angeles Valiant

Burbank, CA

16

March 09

Florida Mayhem

2

3

Houston Outlaws

Burbank, CA

17

March 15

Houston Outlaws

2

3

Los Angeles Gladiators

Burbank, CA

18

March 17

San Francisco Shock

3

1

Houston Outlaws

Burbank, CA

19

March 22

Shanghai Dragons

0

4

Houston Outlaws

Burbank, CA

20

March 22

Houston Outlaws

3

1

Seoul Dynasty

Burbank, CA :

Stage 3 (4–6)

21

April 05

London Spitfire

2

3

Houston Outlaws

Burbank, CA

22

April 07

Houston Outlaws

0

4

Boston Uprising

Burbank, CA

23

April 12

Philadelphia Fusion

3

2

Houston Outlaws

Burbank, CA

24

April 14

New York Excelsior

3

2

Houston Outlaws

Burbank, CA

25

April 19

Houston Outlaws

3

1

Florida Mayhem

Burbank, CA

26

April 21

Houston Outlaws

3

0

Dallas Fuel

Burbank, CA

27

April 25

Los Angeles Valiant

1

3

Houston Outlaws

Burbank, CA

28

April 27

Los Angeles Gladiators

3

2

Houston Outlaws

Burbank, CA

29

May 02

Houston Outlaws

2

3

San Francisco Shock

Burbank, CA

30

May 05

Seoul Dynasty

4

0

Houston Outlaws

Burbank, CA :

Stage 4 (6–4)

31

May 17

Houston Outlaws

4

0

London Spitfire

Burbank, CA

32

May 18

Boston Uprising

1

3

Houston Outlaws

Burbank, CA

33

May 23

Houston Outlaws

1

3

Los Angeles Gladiators

Burbank, CA

34

May 25

San Francisco Shock

4

0

Houston Outlaws

Burbank, CA

35

June 01

Houston Outlaws

3

0

Shanghai Dragons

Burbank, CA

36

June 02

Florida Mayhem

1

3

Houston Outlaws

Burbank, CA

37

June 06

Dallas Fuel

1

3

Houston Outlaws

Burbank, CA

38

June 09

Houston Outlaws

0

4

Los Angeles Valiant

Burbank, CA

39

June 14

Houston Outlaws

3

1

Philadelphia Fusion

Burbank, CA

40

June 15

Houston Outlaws

2

3

New York Excelsior

Burbank, CA :

### Playoffs

2018 playoff game log :

Stage 1 Playoffs (0–1)

Semifinals

February 10

London Spitfire

3

1

Houston Outlaws

Burbank, CA :

