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One more match will determine if Olympic medal dreams for the United States continue or come to an abrupt end.
The United States enters the final day of the preliminary round in a near must-win match versus Argentina to qualify for the quarterfinals. Check out all the Olympics indoor men’s volleyball matches to follow Saturday night and Sunday morning and how to follow the matches live.
United States (2-2, 6 points Pool B) vs Argentina (2-2, 5 points Pool B)
Match vitals: 9:45 p.m. (7:45 a.m. CST Sunday) in Tokyo, Japan
Follow live: Live stats, Live video
World rankings: United States (No. 5); Argentina (No. 8)
Olympic all-time series: United States leads 3-1
Olympic appearances: United States (1964, 1968, 1984, 1988, 1992, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020); Argentina (1984, 1988, 1996, 2000, 2004 2012, 2016, 2020)
Olympic medals: United States (1984 gold, 1988 gold, 1992 bronze, 2008 gold, 2016 bronze); Argentina (1988 bronze)
NCAA players on U.S. roster: Matt Anderson (Penn State 2006-08); Micah Christenson (USC 2012-15); TJ DeFalco (Long Beach State 2016-19); Kyle Ensing (Long Beach State 2016-19); Max Holt (Penn State 2006-09); Thomas Jaeschke (Loyola 2013-15); Garrett Muagututia (UCLA 2007-10); Taylor Sander (BYU 2011-14); Erik Shoji (Stanford 2009-12); Kawika Shoji (Stanford 2007-10); David Smith (UC Irvine 2004-07); Mitch Stahl (UCLA 2014-17)
NCAA players on Argentina roster: None
What to know: It all comes down to the finale of the preliminary round. Both the United States and Argentina will face each other needing a victory to secure a berth in the quarterfinals and remain in medal contention. The United States enters in fourth place and holds the final quarterfinals berth from Pool B. However, the team needs to beat fifth-place Argentina to clinch its fifth consecutive trip to the Olympics quarterfinals. This match-up will feature two of the top offensive players during the preliminary round. Argentina opposite Bruno Lima has a tournament-best 78 kills with 22 kills in a near-upset, five-game loss to Brazil earlier this week. Outside attacker Taylor Sander leads the United States and is in the tournament’s top 10 with 56 kills on a .420 attack percentage. The former BYU All-American has double-digit kills in every match so far during the preliminary round, including 16 kills in a four-game loss to Brazil on Friday. Along with Sander, setter Micah Christeonson leads the Olympics with 208 assists and has guided the U.S. offense to more than a .400 attack percentage in three of the team’s first four matches. Argentina and the United States have split their last two meetings. Argentina upset the United States in five games at the 2019 FIVB World Cup, while the United States in the most recent meeting beat Argentina in the FIVB Volleyball Nations League earlier this year. However, both teams rested multiple starters in that Volleyball Nations League match.
Canada (2-2, 7 points Pool A) vs. Poland (3-1, 10 points Pool B)
Match vitals: 9 a.m. (7 p.m. CST Saturday) in Tokyo, Japan
Follow live: Live stats, Live video
World rankings: Canada (No. 10); Poland (No. 2)
Olympic appearances: Canada (1976, 1984, 1992, 2016, 2020); Poland (1968, 1972 1976, 1980, 1996, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020)
Olympic medals: Canada (none); Poland (1976 gold)
NCAA players on Canada roster: None
NCAA players on Poland roster: None
Brazil (3-1, 8 points Pool B) vs. France (2-2, 7 points Pool B)
Match vitals: 11:05 a.m. (9:05 p.m. CST Saturday) in Tokyo, Japan
Follow live: Live stats, Live video
World rankings: Brazil (No. 1); France (No. 5)
Olympic appearances: Brazil (1964, 1968, 1972, 1976, 1980, 1984, 1988, 1992, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020); France (1988, 1992, 2004, 2016)
Olympic medals: Brazil (1984 silver, 1992 gold, 2004 gold, 2008 silver, 2012 silver, 2016 gold); France (none)
NCAA players on Brazil roster: None
NCAA players on France roster: Kevin Tillie (UC Irvine 2012-13)
Russia (3-1, 9 points Pool B) vs. Tunisia (0-4, 1 point Pool B)
Match vitals: 2:20 p.m. (12:20 a.m. CST Sunday) in Tokyo, Japan
Follow live: Live stats, Live video
World rankings: Russia (No. 3); Tunisia (No. 16)
Olympic appearances: Russia (1964, 1968, 1972, 1976, 1980, 1988, 1992, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020); Tunisia (1972, 1984, 1988, 1996, 2004, 2012, 2020)
Olympic medals: Russia (1964 gold, 1968 gold, 1972 bronze, 1976 silver, 1980 gold, 1988 silver, 2000 silver, 2004 bronze, 2008 bronze, 2012 gold); Tunisia (none)
NCAA players on Russia roster: None
NCAA players on Tunisia roster: None
Italy (3-1, 8 points Pool A) vs. Venezuela (0-4, 0 points Pool A)
Match vitals: 4:25 p.m. (2:25 a.m. CST Sunday) in Tokyo, Japan
Follow live: Live stats, Live video
World rankings: Italy (No. 9); Venezuela (No. 33)
Olympic appearances: Italy (1976, 1980, 1984, 1988, 1992, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020); Venezuela (2008, 2020)
Olympic medals: Italy (1984 bronze, 1996 silver, 2000 bronze, 2004 silver, 2012 bronze, 2016 silver); Venezuela (none)
NCAA players on Italy roster: None
NCAA players on Venezuela roster: None
Japan (2-2, 6 points Pool A) vs. Iran (2-2, 5 points Pool A)
Match vitals: 7:40 p.m. (5:40 a.m. CST Sunday) in Tokyo, Japan
Follow live: Live stats, Live video
World rankings: Japan (No. 11); Iran (No. 12)
Olympic appearances: Japan (1964, 1968, 1972, 1976, 1984, 1988, 1992, 2008, 2020); Iran (2016, 2020)
Olympic medals: Japan (1964 bronze, 1968 silver, 1972 gold); Iran (none)
NCAA players on Japan roster: None
NCAA players on Iran roster: None