Summer Olympics 2021: What to Watch for on Day 12 in Tokyo
The knockout round begins for the U.S. women's basketball team on a busy Day 12 of the Tokyo Summer Olympics.
Along with Team USA's quarterfinal clash against Australia, men's beach volleyball and women's indoor volleyball are both preparing to trim the field from eight to four. Baseball is moving one step closer to medal action, and women's golf starts too.
Key medal events include track and field—which has five golds to award—and women's park skateboarding.
Because of the 13-hour difference between Tokyo and the Eastern time zone, live events run from Tuesday evening into Wednesday morning in North America. All times listed are ET.
This is your guide to Day 12 at the Tokyo Olympics.
Start Times and TV Info for Notable Events
Athletics (Track and Field)
Women's 400-meter hurdles: 10:30 p.m. ET Tuesday, NBC
Men's 200-meter final: 8:55 a.m. ET Wednesday, Peacock
Baseball
Round 2 Repechage: United States vs. Dominican Republic, 11 p.m. ET Tuesday, NBCOlympics.com
Basketball
Women's quarterfinals: United States vs. Australia, 12:40 a.m. ET Wednesday, USA
Golf
Women's Round 1: 6:30 p.m. ET Tuesday, Golf Channel
Skateboarding
Women's park final: 11:30 p.m. ET Tuesday, CNBC
Men's Beach Volleyball
Coverage begins 8 p.m. ET Tuesday, CNBC
Women's Indoor Volleyball
Coverage begins 8 p.m. ET Tuesday, USA
Quarterfinals for Team USA, Women's Basketball
So far, so good. Pressure starts now.
Team USA defeated Nigeria, Japan and France in the preliminary round, continuing a pair of remarkable streaks. The women's national team has not lost in pool play since 1976, and the program has earned 52 consecutive wins at the Olympics.
While this roster is incredibly talented—especially in the post—the results aren't as dominant as usual.
Team USA has a plus-37 point differential, which creates a feeling in the middle of satisfactory and uneasy. Several countries have steadily closed the gap on the Americans—a terrific thing for the sport, but a stressor for U.S. fans in the knockout round.
Next up for the United States is Australia, which finished 1-2 in pool play but advanced on a tiebreaker. The game is slated for a 12:40 a.m. ET tip Wednesday morning.
The other quarterfinals include China vs. Serbia, Japan vs. Belgium and Spain vs. France.
USA Baseball Aiming to Avoid Elimination
After a frustrating 7-6 loss to Japan in the quarterfinals, the United States baseball team is living on the edge.
In the Round 2 repechage—the loser's bracket, perhaps a more familiar term—Team USA will challenge the Dominican Republic.
Similar to Japan in the USA's recent game, the Dominican Republic edged Israel 7-6 behind a ninth-inning comeback. Jose Bautista, a six-time All-Star with the Toronto Blue Jays, who crushed 344 homers in his MLB career, ripped a walk-off single.
Along with Bautista, the Dominican Republic roster includes former MLB players Melky Cabrera and Emilio Bonifacio.
Boston Red Sox prospect Triston Casas smacked his second homer of the Olympics during the loss to Japan. He leads the United States with six RBI, while former MLB first baseman/outfielder Tyler Austin has a team-high .429 average.
First pitch is scheduled for 11 p.m. ET Tuesday. And the loser is playing for bronze.
Start of Women's Golf Tournament
Nelly Korda, the world's top-ranked player, leads the 60-player field into the women's golf tournament.
Korda headlines the U.S. contingent, which also features Danielle Kang, Lexi Thompson and Nelly's sister Jessica Korda. Team USA is expected to have strong competition from South Korea, which boats four of the world's top-six golfers.
The field includes several more LPGA major winners, including Canada's Brooke Henderson, the Philippines' Yuka Saso, New Zealand's Lydia Ko and Thailand's Patty Tavatanakit.
Day 12 brings the first of the four-round tournament. The opening tee time is 6:30 p.m. ET Tuesday.
Team USA is looking for a podium sweep in golf after Xander Schauffele earned the gold medal in the men's competition.
Quarterfinals for Men's Beach, Women's Indoor Volleyball
Whether you prefer sand or a hard surface for volleyball, Day 12 has a flurry of critical matches for you.
Anders Mol and Christian Sorum headline the men's quarterfinals on the beach. The top-ranked Norwegian pair—which didn't lose a set in the preliminary round—takes on Konstantin Semenov and Ilya Leshukov of the Russian Olympic Committee.
Full schedule:
- Semenov/Leshukov (ROC) vs. Mol/Sorum (Norway): 8 p.m. ET Tuesday
- Plavins/Tocs (Latvia) vs. Alison/Alvaro Filho (Brazil): 9 p.m. ET Tuesday
- Thole/Wickler (Germany) vs. Krasilnikov/Stoyanovskiy (ROC): 8 a.m. ET Wednesday
- Cherif/Ahmed (Qatar) vs. Nicolai/Lupo (Italy): 9 a.m. ET Wednesday
Meanwhile, the women's tournament continues inside Ariake Arena. The U.S. women's national team, which won Pool B, is set to play the Dominican Republic in the quarterfinals.
Full schedule:
- South Korea vs. Turkey: 8 p.m. ET Tuesday
- Dominican Republic vs. United States: 12 a.m. ET Wednesday
- Serbia vs. Italy: 4 a.m. ET Wednesday
- Brazil vs. ROC: 8:30 a.m. ET Wednesday
Women's Park Skateboarding Final
Do you remember being 15 years old? Probably! Were you a favorite to win a gold medal at the Olympics? Probably not!
However, that's the storyline for the women's park final. The 2019 world champion in park skateboarding, Misugu Okamoto is hoping to win another gold for Japan.
Since the event is new to the Olympics, here's a quick overview. From the preliminary heats through the final, the competition covers about four hours. The heats—four of them—are slated to start at 8 p.m. ET Tuesday, and the final is 11:30 p.m. ET.
Japan already won street on both the men's and women's side, so Okamoto can continue a dominant run for the host nation.
Oh, and 13-year-old Sky Brown will represent Great Britain. On a skateboard, if you're good enough, you're old enough.
Medal Events in Track and Field
Team USA is hoping for a golden start to Day 12's slate.
Current world-record holder Sydney McLaughlin and 2016 gold medalist Dalilah Muhammad are in the 400-meter hurdles final, along with teammate Anna Cockrell. They finished with the first-, second- and fifth-fastest times, respectively, in the semifinals.
The next morning, eight men have the opportunity to replace Jamaican legend Usain Bolt atop the 200-meter podium. Bolt won gold in 2008, 2012 and 2016 before retiring. Team USA has 2019 world champion Noah Lyles, Erriyon Knighton and Kenny Bednarek in the final.
Also in Wednesday's session, 2016 bronze medalists Emma Coburn (3,000-meter steeplechase) and Clayton Murphy (men's 800-meter) are aiming for a higher finish.
The full schedule of medal events:
- Women's 400-meter hurdles: 10:30 p.m. ET, Tuesday
- Women's 3,000-meter steeplechase: 7 a.m. ET Wednesday
- Men's hammer throw: 7:15 a.m. ET Wednesday
- Men's 800-meter final: 8:05 a.m. ET Wednesday
- Men's 200-meter final: 8:55 a.m. ET Wednesday