NBC has decided to right their wrongs (though a little bit late), by airing the USA vs. Finland Semifinal on Friday LIVE on all coasts. I do feel bad for already taped TV Hosts, Bonnie Hunt and Ellen, who will be pushed back to their normal time slots for the day here in the Bay Area.

Even though we will now see it live, the tables have suddenly turned on the USA. When it looked at one time the US had the easier road to the Gold Medal Game, now it looks the uprising Canadians will coast into the Final.

Slovakia upset Sweden late last night… and that means Canada will face a 7-seed Slovak team, and the US will face the 4-seed Finland squad.

Either way, The USA will have a tough time winning gold in these Olympics. The Canadian team is too strong right now, and it will take a work of art to knock these guys off their game now.

Ultimately, though, this country should be proud of a Silver effort, when no one thought they make the medal round anyway.

-dan.

Either way, I always have trouble trying to decipher the TV schedule, so I spend some time sifting through it, to find when the really important stuff is on. As with the 2008 Summer Olympics, things will change as we go along, so I will try to keep it updated.

Mostly, I will focus on USA team sports (with Canada included for Hockey) with some highlighted individual events. Some networks will actually air items live and I will try to designate those here as well. Hopefully, this helps your Olympic games watching experience.

So this is for all of us on the Left Coast! To get this schedule by Day… CLICK HERE

Networks: NBC11, USA, CNBC, MSNBC  (All Times Pacific; TD = Tape Delay)

ICE HOCKEY

USA Men

Tues 2/16         vs. Switzerland 12:00pm   TV: USA (LIVE)

Thurs 2/18        vs. Norway 12:00pm   TV: USA (LIVE)

Sun 2/21          vs. Canada   4:45pm     TV:  MSNBC (LIVE)

Canada Men

Tues 2/16         vs. Norway 4:30pm TV: CNBC (LIVE)

Thurs 2/18       vs. Switzerland 4:30pm   TV:  CNBC (LIVE)

Sun 2/21          vs. USA  4:45   TV: MSNBC (LIVE)

Elimination Round

Tues 2/23         USA vs.  TBA, if needed   12:00pm   TV: USA (LIVE)

Canada vs. TBA, if needed   4:30pm    TV: CNBC (LIVE)

Quarterfinals (if teams qualify)

Wed 2/24         USA vs. TBA 12:00pm   TV: NBC (TD, will air at 3:00pm)

Canada vs. TBA  4:30pm    TV: CNBC (LIVE)

Semifinals

Fri 2/26            USA vs. TBA 12:00pm   TV: NBC (TD, will air at 3:00pm)

Canada vs. TBA  6:30    TV: CNBC (LIVE)

Medal Round

Sat 2/27           Bronze Medal   Game 7:00pm   TV: MSNBC (LIVE)

Sun 2/28          Gold Medal Game 12:15pm       TV: NBC (TD, airs at 3:15; there is no reason to believe they will change this to LIVE)

USA Women

Sun 2/14          vs. China  12:00pm       TV: USA (LIVE) (replay at midnight MSNBC)

Tues 2/16         vs Russia  2:30pm    TV: MSNBC (LIVE)

Thurs 2/18       vs. Finland 2:30pm   TV: MSNBC (LIVE)

Medal Round

Mon 2/22         Women’s Semifinal 12:00pm    TV: USA(LIVE)

Women’s Semifinal  5:00pm   TV: CNBC (LIVE)

Thurs 2/25        Women’s Bronze 11am    TV: MSNBC (LIVE)

Women’s Gold  3:30pm   TV:  MSNBC (LIVE)

Team USA Curling:

Tues. 2/16:      Men vs Germany  9:00am    TV: USA (LIVE)

Women vs. Japan 2:00pm     TV: CNBC (LIVE)

Men vs Norway 7:00 pm    TV: CNBC; 7:00pm-2:00pm (TD)

Wed. 2/17:       Women vs. Germany 9:00am  TV: USA (LIVE)

Men vs. Switzerland  2:00pm  TV CNBC (LIVE)

Thurs. 2/18:     Men vs. Denmark    9:00am    TV: USA (LIVE)

Women vs. Denmark   2:00pm   TV: CNBC (LIVE)

Fri. 2/19           Women vs. Russia  9:00am   TV: USA (LIVE)

Men vs. France 2:00pm    TV: CNBC (LIVE)

Sat 2/20           Men vs. Sweden  9:00am    TV: MSNBC (LIVE)

Women vs Great Britain 2:00pm    TV: CNBC (LIVE)

Sun 2/21          Women vs. Canada 9:00am    TV: MSNBC (LIVE)

Men vs. Great Britain 2:00pm   TV: CNBC (LIVE)

Women vs. Sweden 7:00pm    TV: CNBC (LIVE)

Mon. 2/22        Men vs Canada 9:00am  TV: USA (LIVE)

Men vs. China   7:00pm   TV: CNBC (LIVE)

Tue 2/23          Women vs. China   9:00am   TV: USA (LIVE)

Women vs. Switzerland 7:00 pm   TV: MSNBC (LIVE)

Playoffs:

Thurs 2/25        Women’s Semifinals 9:00am TV: USA (LIVE)

Men’s Semifinals 2:00pm   TV: CNBC (LIVE)

Fri 2/26            Women’s Bronze  9:00am   TV: USA (LIVE)

Women’s Gold   3:00pm TV: CNBC (LIVE)

Sat 2/27           Men’s Bronze  9:00 am   TV: USA (LIVE)

Men’s Gold    3:00pm     TV: CNBC (LIVE)

Figure Skating: (not one live event for the west coast here.)

Sun 2/14          Pairs—Short Program 4:30pm  TV: NBC (TD, actual air 7:30pm)

Mon 2/15         Pairs—Free Skate and Medals 5:00pm     TV: NBC (TD, airs 8:00pm)

Tues 2/16         Men—Short Program 4:15pm    TV: NBC (TD, airs 8:00pm)

Thurs 2/18       Men—Free Skate and Medals 5:00pm   TV NBC (TD, airs 8:00pm)

Friday 2/19      Ice Dance Session 1 4:45pm   TV: NBC (TD, airs 8:00pm)

Sunday 2/21     Ice Dance Session 2  4:15pm   TV: NBC (TD, airs 7:15 pm)

Monday 2/22   Ice Dance Ses 3 and Medals 4:45pm   TV: NBC (TD, airs 8:00pm)

Tues 2/23        Women—Short Program  4:30   TV: NBC (TD, airs 8:00pm)

Thurs 2/25        Women—Free Skate and Medals 5:00pm  TV: NBC (TD, airs 8:00pm)

Sat 2/27           Exhibition Gala    4:30pm   TV: NBC (TD, airs 8:00pm)

Most of the other events you can find on NBC throughout the day, but remember anything on NBC is likely three hours after the event occurred.

GO TEAM USA!

-dan.



TIME – NETWORK -EVENT

note: these are for TEAM USA only (except for Men’s Ice Hockey, where I have included Canada)

Friday February 12
7:30pm - NBC - Opening Ceremony

Sunday February 14
12:00pm - USA – Women’s Hockey vs. China
7:30pm - NBC – Figure Skate: Pairs Short Program

Monday February 15
8:00pm -  NBC - Figure Skating: Pairs Free Skate and Medals

Tuesday February 16
9:00am - USA - Men’s Curling vs. Germany
12:00pm - USA - Men’s Hockey vs. Switzerland
2:00pm - CNBC - Women’s Curling vs. Japan
2:30pm - MSNBC - Women’s Hockey vs. Russia
4:30pm - CNBC - CAN Men’s Hockey vs. Norway
8:00pm - NBC - Figure Skating: Men’s Short Program
9:30pm-2am - CNBC-  Men’s Curling vs Norway (TD)

Wednesday February 17
9:00am - USA - Women’s Curling vs. Germany
2:00pm - CNBC - Men’s Curling vs. Switzerland

Thursday February 18
9:00am - USA - Men’s Curling vs. Denmark
12:00pm - USA-  Men’s Hockey vs. Norway
2:00pm - CNBC-  Women’s Curling vs. Denmark
2:30pm - MSNBC - Women’s Hockey vs. Finland
4:30pm - CNBC - CAN Men’s Hockey vs. Switzerland
8:00pm - NBC - Figure Skating: Men’s Free Skate and Medals

Friday February 19
9:00am - USA - Women’s Curling vs. Russia
2:00pm - CNBC - Men’s Curling vs. France
8:00pm - NBC - Figure Skate: Ice Dance Session 1

Saturday February 20
9:00am - MSNBC - Men’s Curling vs. Sweden
2:00pm - CNBC - Women’s Curling vs. Great Britain

Sunday February 21
9:00am - MSNBC - Women’s Curling vs. Canada
2:00pm  - CNBC - Men’s Curling vs. Great Britain
4:45pm - MSNBC - Men’s Hockey vs. CAN Men’s Hockey
7:00pm - CNBC -  Women’s Curling vs. Sweden
7:15pm - NBC – Figure Skate: Ice Dance Session 2

Monday February 22
9:00am - USA - Men’s Curling vs. Canada
12:00pm - USA -  Women’s Hockey vs. TBA (Semifinal)
7:00pm - CNBC - Men’s Curling vs. China
8:00pm - NBC -  Figure Skate: Ice Dance Session 3 and Medals

Tuesday February 23
9:00am  - USA - Women’s Curling vs. China
12:00pm - USA -  USA Men’s Elimination Round Game (if needed)
4:30pm  - CNBC -  CAN Men’s Elimination Round Game(if needed)
7:00pm - MSNBC - Women’s Curling vs. Switzerland
8:00pm - NBC - Figure Skate: Women’s Short Program

Wednesday February 24
3:00pm - NBC - USA Men’s Hockey Quarterfinal
4:30pm  - CNBC - CAN Men’s Hockey Quarterfinal

Thursday Februry 25
9:00am - USA – Women’s Curling Quarterfinals
11:00am  - MSNBC - Women’s Hockey Bronze
2:00pm - CNBC - Men’s Curling Quarterfinals
3:30pm - MSNBC – Women’s Hockey Gold
8:00pm - NBC - Figure Skate: Women’s Free Skate and Medals

Friday February 26
9:00am - USA - Women’s Curling Bronze
3:00pm - NBC - USA Men’s Hockey Semifinal (if still alive)
3:00pm - CNBC - Women’s Curling Gold
6:30pm - CNBC - CAN Men’s Hockey Semifinal (if still alive)

Saturday February 27
9:00am - USA - Men’s Curling Bronze
3:00pm - CNBC - Men’s Curling Gold
7:00pm - MSNBC - Men’s Hockey Bronze
8:00pm - NBC - Figure Skate: Champions Gala

Sunday February 28
3:15pm - NBC - Men’s Hockey Gold
(could be LIVE at 12:15, but no sign of that yet)
7:00pm - NBC – Closing Ceremony

Hope this is Helpful for some of the sports.  TD = Tape Delay

TO DOWNLOAD AND PRINT THIS SCHEDULE… CLICK HERE

For a listing of this schedule by sport, CLICK HERE

-dan.

After being tested by Japan yesterday and just squeaking out a 4 to 1 extra-inning win, the American girls lost the gold medal game to the same Japanese team 3 to 1.

Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not taking anything away from team Japan and what they and their star pitcher Yukiko Ueno have accomplished. After losing in 9 innings(international softball games go 7 innings) yesterday to USA, they beat Australia in another marathon match 4 to 3 in twelve innings to earn their spot in the gold medal game. Ueno not only pitched in each of the three games, but pitched every inning in Japan’s three game gold medal run.

But if you watched the championship game you know that the US women had every opportunity to win this game and squandered each one. In the first inning the ladies from the United States had the bases loaded and failed to score a single run. After that first inning, the United States offense looked flat and completely confident at the plate.

Japan was able to score two runs in the forth inning but Crytal Bustos did what she does and hit a opposite field home run to narrow the Japanese to one run in the button of the inning. After Bustos’ solo shot (Bustos has been dubbed the “Babe Ruth of Softball”) the US seemed to regain their confidence and in the sixth inning had the bases loaded again with only one out. But the US ladies again let a “golden” opportunity slip away with two infield pop-ups to end the sixth inning still trailing by one.

In the top of the seventh the Americans committed two errors and Japan was able to push their lead to 3 to 1. After that the US women had lost all momentum and eventually the game. The US women’s softball team had won 22 straight games before losing what might be the very last softball game played in Olympic competition.

Softball was voted out of the 2012 games by the International Olympic Committee stating that the world was not competitive enough in the sport with a select few countries, namely Australia and the United States who have won medals every year the soprt has been held in the Olympics. Australia won the bronze in Beijing and this is the first time the United States has not won the gold.

-Shawn.

In 2005 the International Olympic Committee (IOC) voted on weather baseball should be admitted in the 2012 Games. The news has only become highly publicized because of the Beiging Games, but by a vote of 46 to 42 the IOC decided to exclude baseball from the London Games. Also excluded from the London Games, by a vote of 47 to 43, was softball. Despite the similarity of the two sports, and the fact they are both out in 2012, the reasons for the two sports dismissal are quite different.

The main reason for baseball’s ousted,the IOC says, there is not proper representation of the worlds finest athletes in the Olympics. The main culprit for this…drum-roll…Major League Baseball (MLB)! The IOC claims that because the MLB has such a diverse group of of the sports talent, that the league should suspend play so the world can be better represented during the Olympics. The Japanese baseball league, also known as Nippon Professional Baseball, is already suspending its play for the Olympics so why not MLB??? I will tell you why…$$$, and who can blame them.

Remember the 2006 World Baseball Classic? Major League Baseball finally let its players participate in a international baseball tournament because the tourney took place just prior to its pre-season (the Baseball World Cup has been going on since 1938 and MLB players have never been permitted to play) . Do you remember what happen afterthat tourney? Major league players started the season on the disabled list. Pitchers came into camp with thrown-out arms and bum-shoulders, and some field players were already complaining of bumps and bruises. If I am a baseball owner and am spending $20 million dollars for a player like Alex Rodriguez, I want him playing FOR ME! And if he does get hurt it better be while busting his hide in winning my team win a championship!

Don’t get me wrong, I am all for representing your country and all, but if I have that much money invested in anything, I am going to protect my investment. You might be saying; “Well what about the NBA, they let their players play in the Olympics?” Well, their season is just concluding, the players bodies are already battle ready and if injured they have a lot of time to heal before the start of next season. An injured baseball player would have to go back to potential playoff race!!!

Softball was dismissed for a totally different reason then baseball. The IOC deemed that the rest of the world was not competitive enough with a select few countries, the USA being one of them. Softball has been a sport in the Olympics since the 1996 Atlanta Games and the United States and Australia have won a medal in every game since (USA has always won gold).

Even though the reasons for the veto of these sports seem legitimate, many reports suggest a European influence within the IOC might also be to blame. The two sport are primarilyplayed in the Americas and Asia and the two sports were invented in the USA.

Baseball was introduced in the 1984 Los Angeles Games and became a medaling event in 1992. The Beijing Games hosted 28 events and the London Games intended to do the same. Some of the events listed to fill-in are golf, karate, rugby, squash and roller sports (whatever those are).

Baseball and softball can be reinstated into the 2016 games and will be voted on by the IOC in 2009.

-Shawn.

Dan’s take:

The NHL always allows for an Olympic Break and I think it’s a nice change of pace every four years. I will say that Hockey has a different talent pool than Baseball or Softball, but the players genuinely WANT to play for their countries.  I like the idea of the league itself giving the players the time to take part in some national pride.

While there’s no doubt the big business of baseball in the States controls this decision, I don’t think it’s that big a risk. The players could just as easily injure themselves in the ten games they’re playing on their respective MLB club.

Equally as frustrating is the lack of exposure baseball is getting at the games. I find it very hard to find a game to watch, and many times not at the time or place that NBC lists them. Softball is getting better props and getting live coverage everyday. San Francisco Giant Nate Schierholtz deserves more.

-Dan.

BASEBALL: The US Team is off today and is preparing for a match up with China early tomorrow morning. Standings remain the Same. See below.

BASKETBALL: The US WOMEN took it to New Zealand this morning 96-60. The win keeps TEAM USA undefeated heading into the knockout rounds.

FINAL STANDINGS

Team	Pld	W	L	PF	PA	Avg	Pts
USA	5	5	0	491	276	2	10
China	5	4	1	358	346	0.986	9
Spain	5	3	2	350	354	1.009	8
Czech Republic	5	2	3	353	326	1.174	7
New Zealand	5	1	4	320	423	0.795	6
Mali	5	0	5	255	402	0.644	5

Beating out the Chinese Team sets up a date with Korea on Tuesday.

KNOCKOUT BRACKET

Quarterfinals (2008-08-19)

Semifinals (2008-08-21)

Gold medal game (2008-08-23)

A2

Russia

B3

Spain

B1

USA

A4

Korea

B2

China

A3

Belarus

Bronze medal game

A1

Australia

B4

Czech Republic

The Men will conclude their round robin play with Germany tomorrow at 5:00am.

BEACH VOLLEYBALL: One women’s team is eliminated in the Quest for Sandy Gold in Beijing. The duo of Nicole Branagh and Elaine Youngs fell in straight sets to the Chinese in their quarterfinal matchup. Misty May and Kerri Walsh had no problems with one Brazilian team and now will face the other team in the Semi-Finals.

UPDATED BRACKET:

Quarterfinals							Semifinals							Gold Medal Game
	1	Tian Jia – Wang (CHN)	21	21
	14	Schwaiger – Schwaiger (AUT)	12	12
								1	Tian Jia – Wang (CHN)
								4	Xue – Zhang Xi (CHN)
	5	Branagh – Youngs (USA)	17	13
	4	Xue – Zhang Xi (CHN)	21	21
	10	Barnett – Cook (AUS)	22	14
	6	Talita – Renata (BRA)	24	21
								6	Talita – Renata (BRA)
								2	Walsh – May-Treanor (USA)						Bronze Medal Game
	3	Larissa – Ana Paula (BRA)	18	15
	2	Walsh – May-Treanor (USA)	21	21

The Men’s Quarterfinal matches are set for Tonight and Tomorrow Morning.

FOOTBALL: The Women’s Semifinal Matchup with Japan is on deck tomorrow at 5:00am.

FIELD HOCKEY: We’re still waiting to see what happens against Great Britain tomorrow as the US Women fight to keep their medal round hopes alive. That game coming up tomorrow at 3:00am.

SOFTBALL: TEAM USA in yet Another Mercy Rule win. They beat up on the Netherlands 8-0 (5 inn.) They will wrap up their Round Robin play against China tonight at 9:00pm. PST. TEAM USA has already clinched their spot in the Elimination Round . The USA has wOn the Gold Medal every year since Softball has been played at the Olympics.

Team	W	L	RS	RA	WIN%	GB	Tiebreaker
United States	6	0	44	1	1.000	-	-
Japan	5	1	17	13	.833	1	-
Australia	4	2	21	9	.667	2	-
Canada	3	3	17	17	.500	3	-
China	2	4	19	12	.333	4	-
Chinese Taipei	2	4	8	19	.333	4	-
Venezuela	2	4	13	26	.333	4	-
Netherlands	0	6	4	46	.000	6	-

GYM VOLLEYBALL: TEAM USA has already played Poland in Women’s Volleyball but I won’t spoil it, since it hasn’t aired on NBC yet. The Men’s team will take on Japan tomorrow morning.

-Dan.

BE SURE TO CHECK OUT A GREAT ARTICLE HERE ON THE BULLET: SPIKING THE COMPETITION by SHAWN CAMILLERI

(Also available below this post)

Let’s do the roundup:

BASEBALL: It’s a victory for TEAM USA! The R,W, and B beat our neighbors to the North 5-4 last night. Brian Barden went 2-for-5 with a double and a homerun. The win brings the USA into the mix in the standings again.

Team	W	L	RS	RA	WIN%	GB	Tiebreaker
Cuba	4	0	17	12	1.000	-	-
South Korea	3	0	14	10	1.000	½	-
United States	2	2	23	17	.500	2	-
Japan	2	2	17	10	.500	2	-
China	1	2	12	23	.333	2½	-
Canada	1	3	20	13	.250	3	-
Chinese Taipei	1	3	13	15	.250	3	-
Netherlands	1	3	6	22	.250	3	-

Up Next for TEAM USA is China very early Monday Morning.

—–

BASKETBALL: Team USA cannot be beat in these Olympics it seems. Both the Women and Men’s teams destroying Spain. The Boys beat the current world champions, 119-82. They will take the #1 seed into the knockout round no matter how they far against Germany on Monday

Team	Pld	W	L	PCT	PF	PA	Avg	PD	Pts
USA	4	4	0	1.000	409	297	1.377	+112	8
Spain	4	3	1	.750	320	319	1.003	+1	7
Greece	4	2	2	.500	324	298	1.087	+26	6
China	4	2	2	.500	289	309	0.935	-20	6
Germany	4	1	3	.250	273	284	0.961	-11	5
Angola	4	0	4	.000	271	379	0.715	-108	4

Tournament knockout bracket to be completed by Monday. The U.S. Women to take on New Zealand early tomorrow. .

—–

BEACH VOLLEYBALL:

The Men’s Round of 16 match results are in. Rogers/Delhausser(#1 seed) began the tourney against Switzerland. They won in three sets. The Gibbs/Rosenthal duo easily dispatched Spain in 2 Sets. So NOW the tournament bracket.

Quarterfinals

Semifinals

Gold Medal Game

Klemperer – Koreng (GER)

Rogers – Dalhausser (USA)

Nummerdor – Schuil (NED)

Geor – Gia (GEO)

Ricardo – Emanuel (BRA)

Gibb – Rosenthal (USA)

Bronze Medal Game

M. Araujo – Fabio Luiz (BRA)

Gosch – Horst (AUT)

TEAM 1 is scheduled at 7 PM tomorrow night.

BEACH VOLLEYBALL – WOMEN: The Two team’s Quarterfinal matches are set for later tonight and early tomorrow morning. Both teams will look to advance to the Semifinals. See the Bracket below.

—–

FOOTBALL: The big game between USA and JAPAN in the Women’s Semifinal will go off tomorrow at 5:00am PST. As mentioned TEAM USA already beat Japan in the tournament. The win could set up a gold medal match with Brazil or Germany.

—–

FIELD HOCKEY: The U.S and New Zealand was a crucial match for Team USA as they need a full six points to even have potential into the Medal round. They got the effort they needed. USA destroys New Zealand 4-1. USA’s Keli Smith scores two goals in the win: 1 Field Goal and one off a Penalty Corner.

Updated Standings

Team	Pts	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
Germany	9	4	3	0	1	11	8	+3
Argentina	8	4	2	2	0	10	5	+5
Great Britain	7	4	2	1	1	7	9	−2
USA	5	4	1	2	1	9	8	+1
Japan	4	4	1	1	2	5	6	−1
New Zealand	0	4	0	0	4	4	10	−6

Now, the United States plays England, so if they win outright they would leapfrog the Brits. They would need a big victory over GB and a loss by Argentina who wraps up their play against Argentina. It doesn’t look good, but if New Zealand can beat Argentina 1-0. The US would only need to beat England by 5. HA!

—–

SOFTBALL: The US team gets another Mercy Rule win. They beat up on Chinese Taipai 7-0 in 5 innings late last night. Jennie Finch on the Bump for TEAM USA, Jessica Mendoza hits a homerun in the 3rd inning, part of a 5-run 3rd for USA.

Team	W	L	RS	RA	WIN%	GB
United States	5	0	36	1	1.000	-
Japan	4	1	12	11	.800	1
Australia	3	2	17	9	.600	2
Canada	3	2	17	13	.600	2
China	2	3	18	10	.400	3
Venezuela	2	3	11	21	.400	3
Chinese Taipei	1	4	6	18	.200	4
Netherlands	0	5	4	38	.000	5

USA has clinched a spot in the Semi-finals. The Softball page playoff system is different but an interesting twist in this tournament. (though, it really won’t affect the USA too much if they win out.)

—–

GYM VOLLEYBALL:

MEN: Check out Shawn’s Article Below as he discusses the great journey of the US Men’s Volleyball team. The Men swept China in dominating fashion and now have a match with japan to wrap up round robin play. The US Men are already into the knockout round by way of their 4-0 record.

Rk	Team	Points	Played	Won	Lost	PW	PL	Ratio	SW	SL	Ratio
1	United States	8	4	4	0	385	320	1.203	12	4	3.000
2	Italy	7	4	3	1	332	297	1.117	10	4	2.500
3	Bulgaria	6	4	2	2	348	358	0.972	7	8	0.875
4	China	6	4	2	2	341	385	0.886	7	10	0.700
5	Venezuela	5	4	1	3	339	353	0.960	7	9	0.778
6	Japan	4	4	0	4	341	373	0.914	4	12	0.333

Shouldn’t be a problem for the men who have secured a top seed in the tournament.

WOMEN: The women are 3-1 in their respective pool and will qualify for the knockout round, just maybe not as dominating as the men. They wrap up their round-robin with Poland.

Rk	Team	Points	Played	Won	Lost	PW	PL	Ratio	SW	SL	Ratio
1	Cuba	8	4	4	0	351	312	1.125	12	3	4.000
2	United States	7	4	3	1	357	338	1.056	9	7	1.286
3	China	6	4	2	2	391	341	1.147	10	7	1.43
4	Japan	6	4	2	2	337	313	1.077	7	8	.875
5	Poland	5	4	1	3	338	343	0.985	7	9	0.778
6	Venezuela	4	4	0	4	203	320	0.649	1	12	0.008

-Dan.

yahoo images

With Micheal Phelps dominating the Olympics and headlines since the start of the Beijing games, many other great story lines are being lost in his wash.

Take the U.S. Men’s Volleyball team. Undoubtedly the saddest story to come out of this years games was the attack on the in-laws of Men’s Volleyball Coach Hugh McCutcheon, Todd and Barbara Bachman. Todd Bachman was killed during the attack and Barbara was stabbed but is now in a Minnesota hospital in fair condition after undergoing eight hours of surgery in Beijing.

Coach McCutcheon missed the first three games of these Olympics to be by his family’s side during this time, something even the biggest sport fan can appreciate. During the three-game span his team had gone undefeated winning each match in dominating fashion. McCutcheon was back on the sideline Saturday morning to see his boys take on host team China in a sold out Beijing Institute of Technology Gymnasium.

When introduced, the pockets of American fans spread out throughout the crowd gave McCutcheon a standing ovation. Despite the sentimental reunion, many volleyball experts wondered if the reunification of coach and team would hurt the play of the U.S. team. Not even picked to be a serious medal contender, many believed the spectacular play of the American team to be rooted from a “win one for the gipper” mentality the team had picked up since the tragedy of their coach (the incident happened the first day of the games).

The Americans showed no signs of a reunion hangover as they easily dispatched their opponents in a convincing sweep 25-22, 25-12, 25-18. During the match the U.S. team wrote “TB” and “BB” on their sneakers in honor of there coach’s family.

After the match, and many hugs and high-fives, Coach Mccutcheon said it was his mother-in-law who was the biggest proponent that he stay in Beijing saying “She was extremely encouraging. She was adamant that I stay. She assured me she’s going to be good.”

The U.S. team has clinched their way into the Quarterfinals of the Olympic games but still have one more preliminary game against Japan on Monday, August 18th.

-Shawn.

BASEBALL: A marathon game between Cuba and the United States hands the Red, White and Blue their second loss. The defending Gold Medal winner Cubans scored two runs in the top of the 11th to win it. I still have not seen a baseball game on TV, It’s starting to piss me off. If NBC can’t stick to it’s schedule how does it expect us all to stick around for it’s coverage.

LATEST STANDINGS:

Team	W	L	RS	RA	WIN%	GB	Tiebreaker
Cuba	3	0	16	12	1.000	-	-
South Korea	2	0	9	7	1.000	½	-
Japan	2	1	14	5	.667	1	-
China	1	1	8	17	.500	1½	-
United States	1	2	18	13	.333	2	-
Canada	1	2	16	8	.333	2	-
Chinese Taipei	1	2	13	14	.333	2	-
Netherlands	0	3	0	18	.000	3	-

Top Four Advance to knockout round.

—–

BASKETBALL: Only the women have played Spain so far and this wasn’t much of a contest. USA’s Lisa Leslie with a double-double and the USA Women are on autopilot as they head into the Quarterfinals. Up next: New Zealand Sunday morning.

Team	Played	Won	Lost	PF	PA	Avg	Points
USA	4	4	0	395	216	1.876	8
China	4	3	1	279	303	0.894	7
Spain	4	2	2	271	307	1.009	6
Czech Republic	4	2	2	290	247	1.174	6
New Zealand	4	1	3	260	327	0.795	5
Mali	4	0	4	228	334	0.630	4

Nothing more can happen in this group, so the New Zealand game is pretty minor.

—–

BEACH VOLLEYBALL: The women’s beach volleyball Round of 16 is underway, and the USA didn’t disappoint. Both teams demolished the opposition and it’s startiong to look really good for the American teams. The draw for the knockout tournament is in. May-Traenor and Kerri Walsh should have smooth sailing and could face Branagh and Youngs for the Gold.

Quarterfinals							Semifinals							Gold Medal Game
	2	Tian Jia – Wang (CHN)
	14	Schwaiger – Schwaiger (AUT)
	5	Branagh – Youngs (USA)
	4	Xue – Zhang Xi (CHN)
	10	Barnett – Cook (AUS)
	6	Talita – Renata (BRA)
															Bronze Medal Game
	3	Larissa – Ana Paula (BRA)
	1	Walsh – May-Treanor (USA)

The Men’s side of the coin has set them up for Round of 16 play before we get to the eight-team bracket. One pair gets Switzerland and the Other, Spain. shouldn’t be a problem for the USA who should advance into the bracket easily.

—–

FOOTBALL: or Soccer. The US Women scored in Extra Time to catapult them into a semifinal matchup with Japan. The US Women have already defeated Japan 1-0, That was back on August 9th. Either way, the game should be a nice test before the US women go for the GOLD.

The Bracket:

Quarterfinals

Semifinals

Gold medal match

F1

Brazil

2

G2

Norway

1

F1

Brazil

F2

Germany

E2

Sweden

0

F2

Germany

2

G1

USA

2

E3

Canada

1

G1

USA

Bronze medal match

G3

Japan

E1

China PR

0

G3

Japan

2

—–

FIELD HOCKEY: The US women have the weak New Zealand sqaud next. They will need a victory here and over Great Britain to have hopes of advancing to the Medal Round.

—–

SOFTBALL: Two big wins, first over Japan and then over the rain-shortened game against Canada. UP next Chinese Taipei.

Team	W	L	RS	RA	WIN%	GB
United States	4	0	29	1	1.000	-
Canada	3	1	17	11	.750	1
Japan	3	1	9	11	.750	1
Australia	2	2	9	9	.500	2
China	2	2	18	7	.500	2
Chinese Taipei	1	3	6	11	.250	3
Venezuela	1	3	9	21	.250	3
Netherlands	0	4	4	30	.000	4

It’s almost disgusting how good TEAM USA is….

—–

GYM VOLLEYBALL: The Men’s win over Bulgaria clinches their spot in the Quarterfinals. They have two more matches against China and Japan.

MEN’S VOLLEYBALL:

Rk	Team	Played	Won	Lost	Points
1	United States	3	3	0	6
2	Italy	3	2	1	5
3	Bulgaria	3	2	1	5
4	China	3	2	1	5
5	Venezuela	3	0	3	3
6	Japan	3	0	3	3

WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL:The women’s only loss to Cuba will be okay as the girls clinch semifinals as well. They escaped a brutle slug-fest against China, a 5 set nail biter goes to the Americans.

Rk	Team	Played	Won	Lost	Points
1	Cuba	4	4	0	8
2	United States	4	3	1	7
3	China	4	2	2	6
4	Japan	4	2	2	6
5	Poland	4	1	3	5
6	Venezuela	4	0	4	4

Enough!

-Dan.

Let’s start with

BASEBALL: Two rain delays left the game with a USA lead 7-0 into the bottom of the ninth. The excessive rain forced officials to call the game with the Netherlands rallying. Nevertheless, USA gets it’s first win of the tournament and is now set to face Cuba later today.

Standings

Team	W	L	RS	RA	WIN%	GB	Tiebreaker
Cuba	2	0	11	8	1.000	-	-
South Korea	1	0	8	7	1.000	½	-
Canada	1	1	16	7	.500	1	-
United States	1	1	14	8	.500	1	-
Japan	1	1	8	5	.500	1	-
Chinese Taipei	1	1	6	6	.500	1	-
China	0	1	0	10	.000	1½	-
Netherlands	0	2	0	12	.000	2	-

Top Four teams qualify for Medal round.

========================================================

BASKETBALL: Both teams are crushing opponents and the Men seem to have the Redeem Team mentality locked up. No one has been close to either team in round-robin team. Is there any competition in this tournament. Up Next both teams to face Spain over the next two days.

USA MEN and WOMEN have qualified for the Quarterfinals already.

MEN STANDINGS:

Team	Pld	W	L	PCT	PF	PA	PD	Pts
USA	3	3	0	1.000	290	215	+75	6
Spain	3	3	0	1.000	238	200	+38	6
Germany	3	1	2	.333	218	225	-7	4
Greece	3	1	2	.333	222	237	-15	4
China	3	1	2	.333	230	254	-24	4
Angola	3	0	3	.000	210	277	-67	3

WOMEN STANDINGS:

Team	G	W	L	Pts
USA	3	3	0	6
China	3	2	1	5
Spain	3	2	1	5
Czech Republic	3	1	2	4
New Zealand	3	1	2	4
Mali	3	0	3	3

========================================================

BEACH VOLLEYBALL-WOMEN: We’re in the playoffs now and the USA teams have dominated the fields here as well. The May-Treanor/Walsh team has been superb as expected.

FINAL STANDINGS – WOMEN

Pool B

Rk	Team	Points	Won	Lost	PW	PL	SW	SL
1	Walsh – May-Treanor (USA)	6	3	0	126	85	6	0
2	F. Grasset – L. Peraza (CUB)	5	2	1	116	116	4	2
3	Håkedal – Tørlen (NOR)	4	1	2	108	111	2	4
4	Teru Saiki – Kusuhara (JPN)	3	0	3	88	126	0	6

Pool E

Rk	Team	Points	Won	Lost	PW	PL	SW	SL
1	Branagh – Youngs (USA)	6	3	0	139	129	6	1
2	Pohl – Rau (GER)	5	2	1	117	115	4	2
3	Esteves Ribalta – M. Crespo (CUB)	4	1	2	130	117	3	4
4	Kadijk – Mooren (NED)	3	0	3	107	132	0	6

PLAYOFFS:

Team 1 will face Belgium in a round of 16 match.

Team 2 will face Cuba.

BEACH VOLLEYBALL-MEN: The Playoffs are ahead as well, here. Not quite as dominating a performance as on the women’s side. But the Gibbs/Rosenthal team should make a case for Gold in Beijing.

FINAL STANDINGS – MEN

Pool F

Rk	Team	Points	Won	Lost	PW	PL	SW	SL
1	Gibb – Rosenthal (USA)	6	3	0	142	111	6	1
2	Asahi – Shiratori (JPN)	4	1	2	147	151	3	5
3	Boersma E. – Ronnes (NED)	4	1	2	125	137	3	4
4	Brink – Dieckmann Ch. (GER)	4	1	2	106	121	2	4

Pool B

Rk	Team	Points	Won	Lost	PW	PL	SW	SL
1	Samoilovs – Pļaviņš (LAT)	5	2	1	139	134	4	3
2	Rogers – Dalhausser (USA)	5	2	1	121	92	4	2
3	Heyer – Heuscher (SUI)	4	1	2	120	129	3	4
4	Conde – Baracetti (ARG)	4	1	2	99	124	2	4

Playoff matchups have not been determined.

========================================================

FOOTBALL: or Soccer. Well, the Men are done as they faded to Nigeria early yesterday morning. The women are still alive and have a date with Canada early Friday.Tough break for the men who really needed a win or draw against Nigeria.

WOMAN’S KNOCKOUT BRACKET

Quarterfinals

Semifinals

Gold medal match

F1

Brazil

G2

Norway

E2

Sweden

F2

Germany

G1

USA

E3

Canada

Bronze medal match

E1

China PR

G3

Japan

WOMEN’S FINAL STANDINGS

Group G

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
USA	3	2	0	1	5	2	+3	6
Norway	3	2	0	1	4	5	−1	6
Japan	3	1	1	1	7	4	+3	4
New Zealand	3	0	1	2	2	7	−5	1

MEN’S FINAL STANDINGS

Group B

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
Nigeria	3	2	1	0	4	2	+2	7
Netherlands	3	1	2	0	3	2	+1	5
USA	3	1	1	1	4	4	0	4
Japan	3	0	0	3	1	4	−3	0

========================================================

FIELD HOCKEY: The USA Women are in trouble if they can’t pull off two straight wins and somehow wiggle their way back into contention. It was  virtual must-win against Germany yesterday and Team USA floundered to a 4-2 loss. A controversial missed call noted by NBC commentators would not have made a difference in this loss. Up next: NEW ZEALAND.

Pool B

Team	Pts	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
Germany	9	3	3	0	0	11	4	+7
Argentina	5	3	1	2	0	6	5	+1
Japan	4	3	1	1	1	4	4	0
Great Britain	4	3	1	1	1	5	8	−3
USA	2	3	0	2	1	5	7	−2
New Zealand	0	3	0	0	3	3	6	−3

Looking at the standings, It doesn’t look good for a medal round as only the top two will advance to the knockout stage.  With 2 wins, Team USA would have 8 points and would leapfrog England. Japan and Argentina still both have to play Germany, so it’s not completely unheard of.

========================================================

SOFTBALL: The rain quieted the matchup between USA and Canada last night, so there isn’t much here.  They will play a double header today.

Team	W	L	RS	RA	WIN%	GB
Japan	3	0	9	4	1.000	-
Canada	2	0	15	3	1.000	½
United States	2	0	14	0	1.000	½
China	2	1	18	6	.667	1
Australia	1	2	6	8	.333	2
Chinese Taipei	1	2	5	8	.333	2
Netherlands	0	3	4	22	.000	3
Venezuela	0	3	1	21	.000	3

Nothing to be too worried about, here though. The USA should make the top four in this group and advance to the Semi-Finals.

========================================================

GYM VOLLEYBALL:

Admittedly, I haven’t been paying as close attention to the indoor volleyball, but the United States is in the mix here. Both the MEN and WOMEN were off yesterday. The men played earlier this morning against Bulgaria, but will not air on NBC until tonight, so I will not spoil.

For updated Men’s Standings, go here

WOMEN’S STANDINGS

Pool A

Rk	Team	Points	Played	Won	Lost	PW	PL	Ratio	SW	SL	Ratio
1	Cuba	6	3	3	0	276	251	1.100	9	3	3.000
2	China	5	3	2	1	288	230	1.252	8	4	2.000
3	Japan	5	3	2	1	266	238	1.118	7	5	1.400
4	United States	5	3	2	1	246	235	1.047	6	5	1.200
5	Poland	3	3	0	3	263	299	0.880	4	9	0.444
6	Venezuela	3	3	0	3	159	245	0.649	1	9	0.111

Top four teams advance so USA is on the fringe but still hanging on. They will play China in the early morning hours tomorrow.

THAT’S ALL FROM HERE. WOMEN’S SOCCER LIVE ON USA TOMORROW MORNING 3:00am!!!

-Dan

Standings and Brackets courtesy: Wikipedia.