London Olympics 2012: The Most-Watched Event In U.S. Television History, According To NBC

Despite the constant chatter about frustrating tape-delays and uneven coverage, NBC has announced that the 2012 London Olympics is the most-viewed event in U.S. television history, as ESPN's Darren Rovell reports. Roughly 219.4 million Americans tuned into the Olympics on NBC at some point over the past two-plus weeks.

NBC opted to broadcast many of the key events from London, including the Opening and Closing Ceremonies, on tape delay, much to the chagrin of people around the country. Viewers often made their complaints loud and clear through social media and the like, but they still turned on their televisions in droves.

Those tuning into the Games were treated to some truly fantastic stories, from Usian Bolt to Michael Phelps to the U.S. women's soccer team, so it's not surprising that so many Americans took it in. Even with the events streaming live online, people took to their televisions in record numbers.

Stay with this StoryStream for more London coverage, and head over to SB Nation's Olympic hub for more analysis on the 2012 Summer Games.

Kevin Love, Olympic Gold Medalist And Part-Time Party Pooper

With London Olympics Completed, What Are We Looking Forward To In Sochi?

The summer games are over. Thankfully. It is now time to turn our eyes to the real Olympics, those that happen in the cold.

London Olympics Medal Count: Minnesotans Help Team USA Reign Supreme

The 2012 London Olympics went about as well as they could for the majority of Minnesota's athletes considering Kevin Love, Seimone Augustus, Lindsay Whalen and Maya Moore will all return stateside with gold medals. The success athletes representing Minnesota had in London was replicated by Team USA, too, as the Americans led the final medal count.

Team USA ended up winning 104 total medals in London, including 46 gold, edging out China for top honors as they finished with 87 total medals -- including 38 golds. The top five was rounded out with Russia, Great Britain and Germany.

Apart from the basketball players mentioned above, Minnesotan's that helped Team USA to the medal lead included Lindsey Berg in women's indoor volleyball (silver), Rachel Bootsma in the 400 meter medley relay (gold), Kelci Bryant in the 3 meter synchronized diving competition (silver), Megan Kalmoe in quad sculls rowing (bronze) and fencer Susie Scanlan in team epee (bronze).

For a complete breakdown, visit Sports Illustrated's medal count tracker.

For more on the Olympics, check out SB Nation's London 2012 Olympics hub.

And now let's watch the final 8-bit medal count video. Enjoy!

London Olympics 2012: U.S. Medal Count Tops All For Ffith Straight Games

When it comes to the 2012 Summer Olympics athletes from the University of Minnesota were among the most successful in the Big Ten. Athletes that are either currently or formerly on Big Ten teams won a total of 27 medals at the Olympics, and four of them came from former Golden Gophers. As Off Tackle Empire notes, Minnesota was one of just three schools to have two gold medalists:

Minnesota

GOLD
Lindsay Whalen - USA Women's Basketball
Barbora Spotakova - Czech Republic Women's Javelin

SILVER
Kelci Bryant - USA Women's Diving: 3m Synchronized Springboard
Lindsey Berg - USA Women's Volleyball

Whalen was part of a women's USA basketball team that continued a string of dominance that goes back to the 1996 games in Atlanta. As a percentage, Minnesota had the highest percentage of athletes that medaled in the Big Ten, as four of its five athletes will return home with a medal.

All-in-all, Minnesota athletes greatly helped the United States earn 104 medals. Seimione Augustus and Maya Moore of the Lynx were part of the women's basketball gold medal win. Susie Scanlan won bronze with the United States women's team épée in fencing. Finally, Megan Kalmoe won bronze in women's quadruple sculls rowing.

Stay with this StoryStream for more London coverage, and head over to SB Nation's Olympic hub for more analysis on the 2012 Summer Games.

Final Medal Count 2012: Team USA Easily Wins Overall Medal Race At Summer Games

To cap off a brilliant performance at the 2012 Summer Olympics, Team USA wrapped up a complete domination of the rest of the world on Sunday by reigning supreme in the overall medal count.

With 104 total medals amassed, including 46 gold, in just 302 events, the Americans were hands down the most prolific country from London, as only China and Russia were able to mound a respectable fight for the overall lead. A gold medal in men's basketball in a hotly-contested game on Sunday ultimately signaled the end of the United States' successful trip overseas, as both the men's and women's squads from Team USA claimed a first-place finish on the hardwood.

Here are the results of the final medal count:

1. United States, 104 (46 gold, 29 silver, 29 bronze)

2. China, 87 (38, 27, 22)

3. Russia, 82 (24, 25, 33)

4. Great Britain, 65 (29, 17, 19)

5. Germany, 44 (11, 19, 14)

Stay with this StoryStream for more London coverage, and head over to SB Nation's Olympic hub for more analysis on the 2012 Summer Games.

London Olympics 2012: Team USA Takes Men's Basketball Gold Medal Over Spain, 107-100

The United States proved once again that it is the best basketball nation in the world on Sunday from London, as Team USA's men's squad reigned supreme over Spain in the gold medal game, 107-100.

Against a tough Spanish team featuring a number of dangerous interior players, Minnesota Timberwolves forward Kevin Love once again proved pivotal in the victory with nine points and nine rebounds. Matching his output from Friday's semifinal victory over Argentina, Love was strong on the glass en route to snatching three offensive rebounds despite playing just 18 minutes in the contest.

After wrapping up the first quarter with an eight point lead, the Americans played dead even basketball with the Spaniards over the following two quarters, and held a narrow 83-82 lead heading into the fourth. In the end, though, Team USA's scoring trio of Kevin Durant (30 points), LeBron James (19 points) and Kobe Bryant (17 points) was simply too much firepower for Spain to overcome down the stretch.

To cap off an impressive tournament where they quite literally roughed up teams from the perimeter, the Americans drained 15 three-pointers on Sunday compared to just seven for Spain. With a gold medal in both the men's and women's events this year, it's clear that the United States remains a step ahead of the rest of the world on the hardwood.

Stay with this StoryStream for more coverage of local athletes in London, and be sure to check out SB Nation's Olympic hub for more news from the Summer Games.

2012 London Olympics: USA Men's Basketball Leads Spain By One At Half

Through its seven games at the 2012 Olympics, the US Men's Basketball team has made a habit of letting teams hang around before pulling away with sheer firepower, and Sunday's gold medal game against Spain has been no different.

The US leads Spain, 59-58, at halftime, but the big story thus far: fouls. Spain's coach left Marc Gasol in after he picked up his third foul with more than six minutes remaining in the second quarter, but Marc picked up his fourth foul with more than half the quarter still remaining. It's a big loss for the Spaniards--they'll likely be without the younger Gasol for much of the second half and will need big minutes from Serge Ibaka and Fernando Reyes.

Both teams have combined to make 34 field goals, while 33 fouls have been called all told. Spain is getting the recipe needed to beat the US--hot three-point shooting and strange refereeing--and they still trail.

The Timberwolves' Kevin Love turned in nine points and six rebounds (5/6 FT) in the first half, while Kevin Durant leads the US with 17 points. Spain's Juan Carlos Navarro, who'd made only six threes all tournament, made his first three attempts and leads all scorers with 19, while Rudy Fernandez has 12.

For more coverage of today's final events, stick with this StoryStream, or head over to SBNation's Olympics hub.

London 2012 Closing Ceremony: TV Coverage, Streaming, Live Updates And More

After the 2012 London Olympics come to an end Sunday, the Closing Ceremony will provide a fitting end to the games, with musical acts The Who, George Michael, Annie Lennox, and Muse, among others, set to perform. All athletes will enter the Olympic Stadium for the 'after-party,' which will also feature the Men's Marathon medal ceremony.

Finally, the ceremony will serve as the official hand-off to Rio de Janeiro for the 2016 summer games, and the flame at London's Olympic Stadium will be extinguished.

NBC, after opting not to live-stream the spectacular Opening Ceremony, will stream the closing ceremonies live online beginning at 3 pm CT on NBCOlympics.com. The network will show the ceremonies on NBC's primetime coverage across all time zones beginning at 6 pm CT.

For the live stream, check out NBC's online listings here, or stick with SBNation for live coverage of the event.

Stay with this StoryStream for coverage of the remainder of Sunday's events, or head over to SBNation's Olympics hub.

2012 London Olympics: Sunday Daily Preview

The 2012 Summer Olympics wrap up Sunday, but not before the US Men's Basketball team tries to defend its 2008 gold in Beijing in a rematch against an always-tough Spain, with tipoff set for 10 am ET.

The USA's 'Redeem Team' took gold in 2008 with a 118-107 win over Spain, but the 2012 version of the US team is different, and perhaps better, than that team. It will be a tall order (sorry) to contend with Pau and Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka inside with only Tyson Chandler as the true center on the US roster.

Timberwolves forward has been a pleasant surprise for Coack K's squad, as he's averaged 12 points and 7 rebounds in just under 17 minutes per game. His efficiency and ability to stretch the floor makes Love especially valuable in the FIBA game.

Men's volleyball wraps up with Brazil, who beat the US, and Russia duking it out for gold, while men's water polo will feature Croatia and Italy in the gold medal game.

The USA wrapped up a win in the complete medal count over China with less than a full day of competition left. A complete medal count can be found here.

NBC will stream all of today's events live on NBCOlympics.com, as long as viewers have login information to their TV provider. Otherwise, NBC will broadcast various events thoughout the day on its family of networks.

For coverage of the remainder of this year's Olympics, stick with this StoryStream, or head over to SBNation's Olympics hub.

Medal Count 2012: Team USA Leads With 102 Total Medals After 15 Days

The United States pushed its overall medal count to 102 on Saturday with three more first place finishes, with only 15 events remain to be completed at the 2012 Summer Olympics from London.

Looking to add yet another gold medal on the 16th and final day of competition will be Minnesota's Kevin Love and the men's basketball team against a very tough opponent in Spain. Love and company will hope to follow in the footsteps of the women's team, who brought home their own gold with a strong showing in Saturday's gold medal game.

In addition to the three golds, Team USA also chipped in three silver and two bronze medals on day 15, and now leads China by exactly 15 medals with only 15 competitions left to be decided.

Here are the leaders in the overall medal count:

1. United States, 102 (44 gold, 29 silver, 29 bronze)

2. China, 87 (38 gold, 27 silver, 22 bronze)

3. Russia, 78 (21 gold, 25 silver, 32 bronze)

4. Great Britain, 62 (28 gold, 15 silver, 19 bronze)

5. Germany, 44 (11 gold, 19 silver, 14 bronze)

Stay with this StoryStream for more coverage of local athletes at the Olympics, and be sure to check out SB Nation's Olympic hub for more news and analysis from London.

London 2012 Olympics: U.S. Women's Basketball Wins Gold Medal With 86-50 Victory Over France

The United States women's basketball team has just won the gold medal, with an absolutely dominating victory over France at the 2012 London Olympics. After one quarter, Team USA led by just five points, but kicked it into high gear from there en route to a crushing 86-50 win.

It looked like it might be competitive after that first quarter, especially when France took the lead after a three-point jumper from Edwige Lawson-Wade that made the score 13-11. But that was really the only point in which France had the lead outside of scoring first to start the game. But the second quarter saw the U.S. outscore France 17-10, and they really picked up in the next quarters, outscoring France 49-25 in the second half.

Minnesota Lynx players Maya Moore, Seimone Augustus and Lindsay Whalen all played a part in Team USA's win, though they didn't provide as much an impact as they hoped they would. Moore had six points on the night, but also grabbed seven rebounds. Augustus contributed eight points and a rebound, while Minnesota native Whalen had an off-night, scoring three points and only shooting 1-for-3 on the day.

Be sure to stay locked right here with this StoryStream for more coverage of Minnesota athletes at the Summer Games. Also head over to SB Nation's Olympic hub for more coverage from London.

London Olympics 2012: USA Women's Basketball Goes For Gold Agasint France

The USA Women's basketball team used a strong second half performance to beat Australia 86-73 in the semifianls to advance to Saturday's gold medal game in the 2012 Olympics.

Team USA will try to earn their fifth straight gold medal in the event when they take on France. The French team rolled past Russia 81-64 in the semis to earn a shot at their first Olympic medal in women's basketball.

Minnesota Lynx players Maya Moore, Seimone Augustus and Lindsay Whalen remain part of the playing rotation for Team USA and will certainly play a strong role in trying to keep Team USA's gold medal streak alive. For an excellent preview of the game, check out SB Nation's Swish Appeal.

The game will be televised live on NBC at 3:00 p.m. ET.

Be sure to stay locked right here with this StoryStream for more coverage of Minnesota athletes at the Summer Games. Also head over to SB Nation's Olympic hub for more coverage from London.

2012 Olympics Medal Count: Team USA Extends Overall Lead On China

As the 2012 London Olympic Games begin to wind down, the United States continues to earn medals and has stretched its lead over second place China to 13. Team USA earned four medals on Friday, the fourteenth day of competition, winning gold medals in the women's 4x100m relay and men's 74kg freestyle wrestling. The United States now has 94 medals total, 41 gold, 26 silver and 27 bronze.

Here ares the top 10 countries on the medal leaderboard after Friday's events:

1. United States (94)
2. China (81)
3. Russia (63)
4. Great Britain (57)
5. Germany (42)
6. Japan (35)
7. Australia (31)
8. France (30)
9. South Korea (27)
10. Italy (21)

For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation Denver. For comprehensive coverage of the 2012 London Games, visit SB Nation's Olympics news hub. Stay up to date on the medal count with Sports Illustrated's tracker.

Stay right here with this StoryStream for more coverage of local athletes in London. Also be sure to visit SB Nation's Olympic hub for continuous coverage throughout the 2012 Summer Games.

London 2012: Team USA Men Cruise Into Gold Medal Game With 26-Point Blowout Of Argentina

As expected, Team USA's men's basketball team asserted its dominance on Friday from London with a 109-83 victory over Argentina in the semifinals.

Now just one win away from claiming the 20th American gold medal in Olympic basketball history, the stage is now set for Team USA to take on a dangerous Spanish team on Sunday for the ultimate prize in Olympic men's basketball. Spain edged Russia 67-59 earlier in the afternoon in a hotly-contested showdown to open the day's action.

Although Friday's semifinal started a tad slow for the United States with only a seven-point halftime lead, a barrage of three-pointers led by Carmelo Anthony helped Team USA pull away in the final period. In addition to finishing the game hitting 64 percent of their two-pointers, the Americans drained 18 of their 42 three-point attempts and completely negated Argentina's outstanding inside-outside duo of Manu Ginobili and Luis Scola.

Once again proving his worth at the Olympic level, Minnesota Timberwolves big man Kevin Love provided another impressive performance with nine points and nine rebounds despite playing only 15 minutes. Love also chipped in a blocked shot and tied for a team-high with three fouls drawn.

Stay right here with this StoryStream for more coverage of local athletes in London. Also be sure to visit SB Nation's Olympic hub for continuous coverage throughout the 2012 Summer Games.

London Olympics 2012: American Wrestler Sam Hazewinkel Eliminated In Round Of 16 Of Men's 55kg Freestyle

Team USA member Sam Hazewinkel fell short in his bid to medal in the 55kg men's freestyle wrestling event on Friday evening in London, as the Minnesota native fell on class points, 3-1, to Kazakhstan's Daulet Niyazbekov in the round of 16.

The 121-pound Hazewinkel was bested on technical points in the opening round, 3-1, and was then taken down, 2-0, in the second round by a much more aggressive Niyazbekov on all fronts. Hailed as the only second-generation U.S. wrestler in Olympic history, the 28-year-old Hazewinkel, who actually graduated from the University of Oklahoma, had to settle for an earlier than anticipated exit from this year's event.

In the gold medal match, Russia's Dzhamal Otarsultanov edged Vladimer Khinchegashvili of Georgia with a 3-1 victory. Otarsultanov took down Niyazbekov in the semifinals with an impressive performance to reach the final match, and became the fourth Russian team member to pick up a gold thus far in a wrestling event.

For more coverage of local athletes at the 2012 Summer Games, stay with this StoryStream. Be sure to check out SB Nation's Olympic hub for more news and analysis from London.

Olympics 2012: Mariana Pajon Captures Women's BMX Gold Medal; Alise Post Falls In Semifinal

On Friday, Mariana Pajon of Colombia captured the gold medal in the women's BMX final finishing the course in 37.706 seconds. The native of Medellín managed to finish in the top-3 in each heat of the event, earning the top spot in both the semifinal and final rounds.

Behind Pajon, Sarah Walker of New Zealand finished with a time of 38.133 seconds good enough to earn the silver medal, while Laura Smulders recorded a time of 38.231 seconds, earning the bronze.

Alise Post represented the United States but was eliminated in the semifinal round of heats after earning the eight seed out of 16 seeds in the opening round. The St. Cloud native finished with 18 overall points in the semifinal round, which was three points above the qualifying mark of 15 in her heat group.

Be sure to stay locked right here with this StoryStream for more coverage of Minnesota athletes at the Summer Games. Also head over to SB Nation's Olympic hub for more coverage from London.

Team USA Vs. Argentina: Preview, TV Time And More

Every single Summer Olympics, Team USA goes in expecting a gold medal in basketball. They've certainly had the all-time pedigree to go with the swagger, and Team USA in general has picked up 90 medals already this Olympics, so the basketball one should be an easy get, at least in the mind of analysts.

Many people felt the same way in 2004, but the dream was ruined by the eventual gold medalist Argentinians, who knocked out the United States in the semifinals. It's eight years later and the rematch is finally about to arrive on Friday night as Kevin Love and the rest of the strong Team USA squad will take on the still strong Argentinians. Team USA has yet to lose a game this Olympics, with only Lithuania coming close to taking them down so far.

The winner of Friday's match will face off against the winner of the earlier Russia-Spain match up in the gold medal game.

The game will be at North Greenwich Arena in London at 4:00 p.m. ET. You can see coverage of the game live on NBCOlympics.com as well as NBC's Olympic Basketball channel.

Be sure to stay locked right here with this StoryStream for more coverage of Minnesota athletes at the Summer Games. Also head over to SB Nation's Olympic hub for more coverage from London.

London 2012 - Preview, Medal Count For August 10

If the United States have been waiting to get their revenge for 2004, Friday will be the day they've been waiting for. Team USA Basketball will face off against 2004 gold medalists Argentina in the same game that the Argentinians knocked them out of that year, the semifinals. After Russia and Spain duke it out for a spot in the basketball finals at noon, Team USA and Argentina will tip off at 4:00 p.m. ET.

Men's soccer will also come close to finishing with the bronze medal game between South Korea and Japan being another headliner on the day. Plenty of track and field, BMX and other semifinals and finals will fill out the day.

It's been a good last few days for the United States, who have pulled ahead convincingly in the medal count race to take a 90-80 lead over second place China. A full medal count can be found here, though as the number of available medals quickly starts to dwindle -- combined with many of them being in sports that China are unlikely to see any silverware in such as Boxing -- it will look more and more like a win for the Americans is inevitable.

As per usual, you can see most Olympic events live as they happen on NBColympics.com, provided you are allowed to view their streams considering their specific specifications. Many events will also be appearing, albeit on tape delay, on the NBC family of channels all day.

2012 Summer Olympics Medal Count: United States Extends Lead With 90 Overall Medals

The United States continued collecting medals at the 2012 London Olympics while maintaining their perch at the top of the medal count. The USA Women's soccer team added a gold medal to the count with their exciting 2-1 win over Japan.

Other highlights from Thursday's action for Team USA included earning a gold and silver medal in the men's decathlon. Favorite Ashton Eaton won the gold along with the title as "World's Greatest Athlete" while teammate Trey Hardee finished second to pick up the silver medal.

Also, in women's boxing, middleweight Claressa Shields won the USA team's first-ever gold medal in the event.

The top five in the most up-to-date medal count:

1. United States, 90 (39 gold, 25 silver, 26 bronze)
2. China, 80 (37, 24, 19)
3. Russia, 56 (12, 21, 23)
4. Great Britain, 52 (25, 13, 14)
5. Germany, 37 (10, 16, 11)

Be sure to stay locked right here with this StoryStream for more coverage of Minnesota athletes at the Summer Games. Also head over to SB Nation's Olympic hub for more coverage from London.

2012 London Olympics: U.S. Women's Basketball Advances To Gold Final

Though the Minnesota Lynx representatives on the United States' women's basketball team didn't particularly shine in their semifinal matchup against Australia, they helped get the job done, leading the U.S. to a gold medal matchup with an 86-73 victory on Thursday at the 2012 London Olympics.

Lindsay Whalen, a Minnesota native, went 2-for-6 on the night and only had six points to her name, and will certainly be looking to do better in her next outing. Maya Moore from the Lynx had nine points on the night, with 4 rebounds, shooting 4-for-10. As a whole, the U.S. team only shot 45 percent on the night - it was a pretty ugly game.

Still, Australia fared worse, shooting 43 percent. Diana Taurasi and Tina Charles led the way for the U.S. team with 14 points apiece, while Sue Bird had 13 of her own.

The U.S. team will be taking on the winner of the Russia vs. France matchup which starts at 4:00 p.m. eastern on Thursday.

For more Olympics coverage, you can stick with this SB Nation Minnesota stream, or check out SB Nation's Olympic hub.

London 2012: USA, Japan Square Off Again

The United States and Japan will play Thursday in the gold match in women's soccer.

The U.S., which has won back-to-back Olympic gold medals, lost to Japan in the 2011 Women's World Cup.

The game is a hot ticket in soccer-loving England, where a record crowd is expected to turn up. From Reuters:

A crowd of at least 83,000 is guaranteed after fans snapped up 5,000 tickets following the defending champions' dramatic 4-3 extra-time win over Canada and world champions Japan's enthralling 2-1 win over France in the semi-finals on Monday.

The Olympic women's soccer attendance record was set in 1996 when 76,489 fans watched the final between the United States and China at the Sanford Stadium in Athens, Georgia.

The game is set for 7:45 p.m. London time, which is 1:45 p.m. Central.

Canada took an early 1-0 lead over France in the bronze medal match.

For more Olympics coverage, you can stick with this SB Nation Minnesota stream, or check out SB Nation's Olympic hub.

London 2012: USA, Australia Renew Women's Hoops Rivalry

This matchup is becoming tradition. So, too, is the result.

The United States and Australia will play in the semifinals in women's basketball Thursday. The game will take place at 5:00 p.m. London time, or 10 a.m. Central.

The US and Australia have quite the history in Olympics hoops. The two teams played in the gold medal game in 2000, 2004 and 2008. The US won each game, the closest victory coming by 11 points (2004) and the biggest by 27 (2008).

Those wins are part of the United States' 38-game Olympic winning streak that has spanned four gold medals.

Thursday's winner will play either France or Russia in the gold medal game Saturday.

Minnesota Lynx players Maya Moore, Lindsay Whalen and Seimone Augustus are on the United States squad. None is averaging double figures, but with the extreme parity of the squad, only three players are. Diana Taurasi and Angel McCoughtry lead the team with 12.7 points per game.

For more Olympics coverage, you can stick with this SB Nation Minnesota stream, or check out SB Nation's Olympic hub.

London Olympics 2012: Men's Basketball Schedule Update

With the conclusion of Wednesday's quarterfinal action in men's basketball at the London Olympics, we now know what the semifinals will look like.

The United States, of course featuring the Minnesota Timberwolves' Kevin Love, have drawn Argentina in the semis after defeating Australia 119-86. Argentina squeaked by Brazil with an 82-77 win on Wednesday.

Russia, featuring two Timberwolves in Andrei Kirilenko and Alexey Shved, will be matched up against Spain. Russia beat Lithuania 83-74 to advance, while Spain edged France 66-59 in a chippy affair.

Russia vs. Spain is scheduled for 11:00 a.m. CT on Friday. Team USA vs. Argentina will take place after that -- it is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. CT.

For maximum Minnesota relevance, root for the United States and Russia on Friday. The gold and bronze medal games will be played on Sunday.

Be sure to stay locked right here with this StoryStream for more coverage of Minnesota athletes at the Summer Games. Also head over to SB Nation's Olympic hub for more coverage from London.

London Olympics 2012: Timberwolves' Kevin Love Is Putting Up Numbers For Team USA

2012 Olympics Medal Count: United States No. 1 With 81 Overall

The United States is once again sitting atop the medal count rankings on Wednesday, thanks to seven Track and Field medals, including gold medal performances from Brittney Reese, Allyson Felix and Aries Merritt.

Reese became the second American to win a gold medal in women's long jump, Felix won the women's 200 meters and Merritt won the men's 110m hurdles. American Jason Richardson stood next to Merritt at the podium with a silver medal in that same event. Lashinda Demus won a silver medal in the women's 400m hurdles

Carmelita Jeter took home a bronze in the 200 meters and Janay DeLoach won bronze in the long jump.

The top five in the most up-to-date medal count:

1. United States, 81 (34 gold, 22 silver, 25 bronze)
2. China, 77 (36, 22, 19)
3. Russia, 52 (11, 19, 22)
4. Great Britain, 48 (22, 13, 13)
5. Germany, 32 (7, 15, 10)

Be sure to stay locked right here with this StoryStream for more coverage of Minnesota athletes at the Summer Games. Also head over to SB Nation's Olympic hub for more coverage from London.

London Olympics 2012: St. Cloud's Alise Post Happy To Finish Top-8

St. Cloud's Alise Post finished eighth in her BMX seeding run on Wednesday to determine her starting position on Friday's quarterfinals. She had a time of 39.890 seconds, which will put her in the first heat.

Post said she liked the course and, though she wasn't wholly satisfied with her performance, she achieved what she set out to in making the top eight, via Rachel Blount of the Star Tribune:

"I definitely think I could have been more aggressive out there,'' said Post, currently sixth among elite women in the International Cycling Union's rankings. "I definitely think there is a lot of room for improvement, which is good. I really wanted to be in the top eight, and I made that, so I'm happy with that.''

Each heat of eight riders will do four runs on Friday in the semifinals and the top four will advance to the finals, scheduled for later that day.

Be sure to stay locked right here with this StoryStream for more coverage of Minnesota athletes at the Summer Games. Also head over to SB Nation's Olympic hub for more coverage from London.

Team USA Vs. Australia Final Score: United States Advances To Semifinal With 119-86 Victory

On Wednesday, the United States advanced to the semifinal round of the 2012 Olympic Men's Basketball Tournament with a commanding win over Australia, 119-86.

Team USA managed to score at least 28 points in each quarter with Kobe Bryant recording a team-high 20 points in a little under 20 minutes of playing time. In addition, Lebron James added a triple-double with 11 points, 14 rebounds and 12 assists while playing a team-high 30:03.

Minnesota Timberwolves all-star forward Kevin Love registered 10 points, shooting 67% from the field and 50% from the free throw line. He also added 11 rebounds (eight of which were offensive boards).

The win sets up a rematch against Argentina on Friday and if it is anything like Monday's game, things are bound to get chippy, especially considering a berth to the gold medal game is on the line.

Be sure to stay locked right here with this StoryStream for more coverage of Minnesota athletes at the Summer Games. Also head over to SB Nation's Olympic hub for more coverage from London.

London Olympics 2012: Russia Takes Down Lithuania 83-74

Most people in America are probably going to wait until the evening to get their Olympic basketball fix, as Team USA takes on the Australians in the final quarterfinals match of the evening. They missed out though if they didn't turn on the early game between Russia and Lithuania, which provided some great basketball as Russia eventually took an 83-74 win in a game that was closer for most of it than the final score would indicate.

Russia got some assistance from two Timberwolves players, with the game MVP probably being new Wolves forward Andrei Kirilenko. Andrei put up a team high 19 points for the Russians in38 minutes of time on the court, a point total only matched by Rimantas Kaukenas of Lithuania during the game. Alexey Shved also got some good minutes on the court, putting up four points and six assists in 28 minutes.

Three more basketball games await in the quarterfinals on Wednesday, hopefully they'll all provide the same good play that the morning game did, right up until and during Team USA's match at 5:15 p.m. Eastern time.

Be sure to stay locked right here with this StoryStream for more coverage of Minnesota athletes at the Summer Games. Also head over to SB Nation's Olympic hub for more coverage from London.

London 2012: Daily Preview For Wednesday

Team USA Basketball are the top story for the United States on Wednesday as another day of Olympic action begins. The Yanks will play Australia in their first quarterfinal match at 5:15 p.m. ET with the other three quarters games taking place before. 25 medal matches throughout the various sports will also fill the day with plenty of intrigue.

The medal count race is currently being won by China once again, with 73 medals. The United States are right behind with 71 -- you can see a full, updated medal count here.

As per usual, all of the events for Wednesday can be watched live on NBCOlympics.com as long as you fit their requirements for streaming on their site. You can also check out everything on the NBC family of channels, though most of it will be on the usual tape delay.

Be sure to stay locked right here with this StoryStream for more coverage of Minnesota athletes at the Summer Games. Also head over to SB Nation's Olympic hub for more coverage from London.

How To Watch Team USA Basketball Vs. Australia Live

The quest for a gold medal will continue for Timberwolves star Kevin Love and the rest of Team USA Basketball on Wednesday. After going undefeated in pool play the States will face off against Australia, and should be the heavy favorite as usual in the quarterfinals.

The USA steamed through group play as was expected of them, with their only close call being a 99-94 match against Lithuania. Australia went 3-2 in their group matches, dropping decisions to Spain and Brazil, but put a beatdown on the host nation and beat the favored Russians to advance. They will be playing the final basketball match of the day so they'll know who will be in the semifinals with them by the time their game is through if they can beat the Aussies.

The game will be at North Greenwich Arena in London at 5:15 p.m. ET. You can see coverage of the game live on NBCOlympics.com as well as NBC's Olympic Basketball channel.

Be sure to stay locked right here with this StoryStream for more coverage of Minnesota athletes at the Summer Games. Also head over to SB Nation's Olympic hub for more coverage from London.

London Medal Count 2012: Team USA Remains In 2nd Place Overall After 11 Days Of Competition

With exactly 200 of the 302 scheduled events at the 2012 Summer Olympics already a thing of the past, frontrunners Team China and the United States have already combined to win a medal in more than 71% of all competitions.

But after being edged by their Chinese counterparts in golds after a flurry on day 11, the United States now finds itself in a minor hole with a three-medal deficit. While they also trail in the overall gold medal count 34-30, the Americans had one of their weaker performances on Tuesday by only acquiring one gold, a first-place finish from Aly Raisman in women's floor exercise.

Here is the updated medal count through 11 days of events:

1. China, 73 (34 gold, 21 silver, 18 bronze)

2. United States, 70 (30, 19, 21)

3. Great Britain, 48 (22, 13, 13)

4. Russia, 48 (10, 18, 20)

5. Japan, 29 (2, 13, 14)

A full, updated medal count can be found here.

For more coverage of local athletes at this year's Summer Games, stay with this StoryStream. Also be sure to check out SB Nation's 2012 Olympic hub.

Team USA Vs. Canada Final Score: United States Women Advance To Hoops Semifinal With Win Over Canada, 91-48

On Tuesday, the United States Women's Basketball team defeated Team Canada in the quarterfinal round of the 2012 Olympics by a final score of 91-48.

Form the start, Team USA dominated their neighbors to the north by jumping out to a 19-8 lead after the first quarter and 42-21 lead at halftime. With the exception of the first quarter, the United States scored at least 20 points in each quarter.

Minnesota Lynx players Maya Moore, Seimone Augustus and Lindsay Whalen all contributed to the Team USA win, with Moore contributing 11 points in close to 25 minutes played, Augustus putting up nine points in 20:48 played and Whalen registering five points in 17:18 played.

With the win, Team USA will advance to the semifinals on Thursday to take on Australia.

Be sure to stay locked right here with this StoryStream for more coverage of Minnesota athletes at the Summer Games. Also head over to SB Nation's Olympic hub for more coverage from London.

London 2012: Women's Hoops Team To Face Canada In Quarterfinals

The United States women's basketball team will play Canada Tuesday in the quarterfinals -- the first round of single-elimination games.

The US finished atop Pool A with a 5-0 record, while Canada was fourth place in Pool B at 2-3.

Tuesday's North America showdown starts at 2:00 p.m. in London, or 8 a.m. Central.

The US women's team rolled through pool play largely unchallenged. Its narrowest margin of victory was 25 points (against Croatia), and its most recent game, versus China, ended in a 48-point blowout, 114-66. The US beat Turkey, which finished second in Pool A, by 31 points.

A trio of Minnesota Lynx players -- Lindsay Whalen, Seimone Augustus and Maya Moore -- have played big rolls for Team USA. Each player is logging more than 18 minutes per game in the Olympics (only one US player is averaging more than 23 minutes), and each is averaging between 7.4 and 10.0 points.

The US-Canada winner will play the winner of China and Australia on Thursday.

For more Olympics coverage, you can stick with this SB Nation Minnesota stream, or check out SB Nation's Olympic hub.

Team USA Vs. Argentina Final Score: United States Returns To Form By Defeating Argentina, 126-97

On Monday, The United States Men's Basketball team rebounded from a close-call against Lithuania on Saturday by dominating Argentina in the final game of group play, 126-97.

While the final score may have displayed a comfortable margin, the USA looked to be in a similar struggle leading by a single point at half-time.

However, after a dominating third quarter which saw the United States outscore their opponents by a margin of 42-17, Team USA re-established the impressive style of play that was expecting of them.

Kevin Durant ended with a game-high 28 points in 22:16 played, while Chris Paul finished with 17 points in a team-high 25 minutes played. Lebron James also added 18 points in 21:28 minutes played, while Minnesota Timberwolves star Kevin Love contributed 13 points in 15:21 played.

Team USA finished the group stage as the top team winning all five games and collecting all ten possible points. They will open the quarterfinal stage of the tournament on Wednesday against Australia.

Read more on the Olympics at our StoryStream and the Olympic hub page. Be sure to subscribe to the SB Nation Youtube Channel for video commentary. Canis Hoopus is your source for news and notes on the Timberwolves.

London Olympics 2012: Minnesota's Chas Betts Eliminated In Greco-Roman Wrestling

Minnesota hasn't had many of its athletes perform well at the 2012 London Olympics, mostly riding on Susie Scanlan's performance to help the women's team epee to a bronze medal for the United States. One of its athletes, Chas Betts, who was a graduate from the St. Michael-Albertville High School, was eliminated on Monday from the Greco-Roman wrestling Round of 16.

Betts lost to Cuba's Pablo Shorey Hernandez, and was officially eliminated form the 185-pound competition when Shorey Hernandez lost in the quarterfinals. The Pioneer Press had a quote from Betts in which he said the experience at the Olympics was "amazing and kind of unreal," and followed up by saying he took a lot from this experience, even if he didn't take a medal.

Betts was the U.S. representative in the Greco-Roman 84kg by winning the 2012 Olympic Team Trials with a win over Jordan Holm on April 22. Four years prior, Betts came in fourth at those same trials.

Be sure to stay locked right here with this StoryStream for more coverage of Minnesota athletes at the Summer Games. Also head over to SB Nation's Olympic hub for more coverage from London.

London 2012: Daily Preview, Medal Count

Kevin Love and the USA Men's Basketball Team will be one of the headliners as the Olympics move into their 10th day. With the group stage starting to wind down, the men will face Argentina in one of the more hyped games of the tournament. The US Women's soccer team will also be in action in an even more important match, facing Canada in the semifinal for a chance at earning a berth in the final against either France or Japan.

Of course, there will also be plenty of the other usual fare, with tons of track and field, cycling, wrestling and other events to fill the day up.

Currently, the medal count is in China's favor once again, as they inched ahead of the Americans late on Sunday. Their lead is small, currently sitting at 62-60. Host nation Great Britain is still holding their own with 37 medals, good for third place. A full, up to date medal count can be found here.

As per usual, most events can be watched live on NBCOlympics.com as long as you fit the qualifications that they have for showing the streams on your computer. The NBC family of channels will continue to show events on tape delay as well -- the schedules for those events being shown can be found on the same site.

Be sure to stay locked right here with this StoryStream for more coverage of Minnesota athletes at the Summer Games. Also head over to SB Nation's Olympic hub for more coverage from London.

London Olympics 2012 Medal Count: China Passes Team USA On Day 10

The United States' overall lead int he medal count at the 2012 Summer Olympics was short-lived. China moved back in front on Sunday after 161 of 302 total events, taking a 61-60 overall lead and 30-28 lead in gold medals. A gold-silver finish in the women's 3-meter springboard diving contest continued China's dominance in that area and move the Chinese back in front.

The U.S. won a pair of gold medals on Sunday. Venus and Serena Williams winning in women's doubles tennis. Team USA member Sanya Richards-Ross narrowly edged the field for a win in the women's 400m event in track and field.

Here are the current medal leaders:

1. China, 61 (30 gold, 17 silver, 14 bronze)

2. United States, 60 (28, 14, 18)

3. Great Britain, 37 (16, 11, 10)

4. Russia, 35 (4, 16, 15)

5. Japan, 27 (2, 12, 13)

Stick with this SBNation Minnesota StoryStream, or head over to SBNation's dedicated Olympic hub for all Olympics news and info.

2012 London Olympics: Serena And Venus Williams Win Third Straight Women's Doubles Gold

Serena and Venus Williams took their third consecutive gold medal in women's doubles Sunday with a straight-sets victory over the Czech duo of Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Hradecka.

The Williams sisters now are the only tennis players in Olympic history with four gold medals. Serena earned her first singles gold Saturday with an easy win over Russia's Maria Sharapova.

It took Serena and Venus just over an hour and a half at the All England Club to dispatch the Czechs, 6-4, 6-4, on their way to an unprecedented third consecutive doubles gold medal.

Serena and Venus hit 35 winners (12 unforced errors) compared to the Czechs' 26 (11 errors) and won a solid 78 percent of their first serve points, while the Czechs won just 66 percent of those points. Hlavackova and Hradecka failed to win a single break point in their four tries, while the Williams' took two of six.

Stick with this SBNation Minnesota StoryStream, or head over to SBNation's dedicated Olympic hub for all Olympics news and info.

2012 Summer Olympics Day 9 Preview: TV Info, Online Streaming And More

With the United States and China in a dead heat for the medal lead, day nine of the 2012 Summer Games should prove pivotal with a number of key events set to conclude.

As always the action will be spread out through NBC's network of stations, while certain events will also be made available through live streams at NBC's official Olympics website.

Here is the television schedule for day nine of competition (All times Central):

3 a.m. - 6 p.m. (NBCSN)

• Men's Badminton Singles: China vs. South Korea (3:00 a.m.)
  
• Cycling (4:00 a.m.)
  
• Men's Badminton Doubles: Malaysia vs. South Korea (5:30 a.m.)
  
• Tennis: Mixed Doubles Final (6:00 a.m.)
  
• Women's Volleyball: China vs. Korea (7:30 a.m.)
• Synchronized Swimming (9:00 a.m.)
• Shooting: Men's Pistol Final (10:50 a.m.)
• Tennis: Women's Doubles Final (11:15 a.m.)
• Women's Beach Volleyball: Quarterfinals (1:00 p.m.)
• Badminton Singles: China Vs. Malaysia (2:00 p.m.)
• Women's Weightlifting (2:30 p.m.)
• Women's Volleyball: Italy vs. Russia (3:15 p.m.)
• Women's Volleyball: Brazil vs. Serbia (4:00 p.m.)

5 a.m. - 5 p.m. (NBC)

• Women's Track and Field (5:00 a.m.)
  
• Men's Tennis Final (8:00 a.m.)
  
• Women's Basketball: China vs. USA (10:30 a.m.)
  
• Equestrian (12:30 p.m.)
  
• Women's Water Polo: Quarterfinals (1:00 p.m.)
  
• Women's Volleyball: USA vs. Turkey (2:00 p.m.)
• Women's Cycling Final (3:30 p.m.)
• Women's Beach Volleyball: Quarterfinals (4:00 p.m.)

6 a.m. - 5 p.m. (MSNBC)

• Men's Tennis Bronze Match (6:00 a.m.)
  
• Men's Table Tennis: Team Quarterfinals (8:00 a.m.)
  
• Women's Water Polo: Quarterfinals (8:45 a.m.)
• Wrestling: Greco Roman Qualifying (11:15 a.m.)
• Women's Beach Volleyball: Quarterfinal (12:00 p.m.)
• Men's Field Hockey: Great Britain vs. Australia (1:00 p.m.)
• Women's Water Polo Quarterfinal (2:30 p.m.)
• Wrestling: Greco Roman Finals (3:20 p.m.)
• Women's Handball: Denmark vs. France (4:15 p.m.)

7:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. (CNBC)

• Women's Boxing: Elimination Bouts (7:30 a.m.)
  
• Men's Boxing: Quarterfinal Bouts (2:30 p.m.)

Be sure to stay locked right here with this StoryStream for more coverage of Minnesota athletes at the Summer Games. Also head over to SB Nation's Olympic hub for more coverage from London.

Summer Olympics 2012 Medal Count: Team USA Continues To Lead Overall After 8 Days

The neck-and-neck race between the United States and China continues at the 2012 Summer Olympics, as the two dominant countries each racked up a total of 11 medals on day eight to expand their respective leads.

Ahead by just one medal at the moment, the United States added another five golds on Saturday alone, including a win in women's singles from tennis player Serena Williams and a doubles tennis championship from brothers Mike and Bob Bryan. The Americans also picked up another huge performance in fencing, as Team USA brought home gold in the women's team epee event over Russia.

Here are the leaders through eight days:

1. United States, 54 (26 gold, 13 silver, 15 bronze)

2. China, 53 (25, 16, 12)

3. Great Britain, 29 (14, 7, 8)

4. Russia, 28 (3, 15, 10)

5. Japan, 24 (2, 10, 12)

A full medal count tracker from Sports Illustrated can be found here.

Stay with this StoryStream for more coverage of local athletes at this year's games, and be sure to check out SB Nation's Olympic hub for more coverage from London.

London Olympics 2012: United States Takes Bronze In Women's Team Epee

The United Stated added another tick to their medal count, though it was only a bronze one, in the latest fencing event to come to an end. The U.S. took bronze in the Women's Team Epee on Saturday, with China besting South Korea in the finals 39-25 to get the gold. South Korea made it to the finals with a 45-36 trumping of the U.S, while China made it by beating Russia in a narrow 20-19 affair.

Minnesota native Susie Scanlan was bested twice against South Korea, surrendering five touches to Shin A Lam while only managing three of her own and giving up seven touches to Choi Injeong while managing five of her own. She did not take part in the match against Russia for the bronze medal, which the U.S. won 31-30.

She did, however, take part in the United States' quarterfinal victory over Italy which advanced them to the game against South Korea. She got four touches against Rossella Fiamingo while surrendering three touches and five touches against Nathalie Moellhausen, while surrendering three touches. Mara Navarria bested her six touches to four, but the U.S. still walked away with a 45-35 victory in that match.

Read more on the Olympics at our StoryStream and the Olympic hub page. Be sure to subscribe to the SB Nation Youtube Channel for video commentary.

Team USA Vs. Lithuania Final Score: Americans Escape, Win 99-94

Team USA was on the verge of losing to Lithuania when Linas Kleiza gave his country a two-point lead with five minutes to go in the final period. But LeBron James put the Americans on his back in the waning minutes of the game and Team USA escaped with a narrow 99-94 victory in London on Saturday.

James and Carmelo Anthony each scored 20 points to lead USA in the win. Kleiza, however, led all scorers with 25 points. Kevin Durant and Deron Williams were also double-digit scorers with 16 and 12 points, respectively.

Kevin Love only scored seven points, but pulled down a game-high eight rebounds.

That was, in a lot of ways, an unnecessary scare for Team USA and they face Argentina next.

Read more on the Olympics at our StoryStream and the Olympic hub page. Be sure to subscribe to the SB Nation Youtube Channel for video commentary. Canis Hoopus is your source for news and notes on the Timberwolves.

2012 Olympic Basketball: Russia Defeats Spain In London, 77-74

Russia defeated Spain at the London Olympic Games on Saturday, 77-74. Timberwolves players Andrei Kirilenko and Alexey Shved only combined for eight points in the game, but Vitaliy Fridzon's 24 points led the way for Russia in the winning effort.

Pau Gasol scored a team-high 20 points for Spain, while his brother Marc and Rudy Fernandez chipped in 10 points apiece. The Spaniards had the opportunity at the end of the game to either tie or take the lead, but there was a broken play that failed to go the length of the court.

Russia and Spain were close in most statistical categories, but Russia had the advantage in assists with 19 compared to Spain's 12.

Read more on the Olympics at our StoryStream and the Olympic hub page. Be sure to subscribe to the SB Nation Youtube Channel for video commentary. Canis Hoopus is your source for news and notes on the Timberwolves.

Team USA Vs. Lithuania Halftime Score: Americans Lead, 55-51

Team USA came out firing against the Lithuania, which decided it's going to force the Americans to beat them with jump shots as they've packed the middle of the half court in their zone defense. As a result, Team USA is 6-for-19 from 3-point range, while giving up 56 percent shooting on the other end. Team USA leads Lithuania 55-51 at halftime.

Carmelo Anthony's hot shooting continues with 14 halftime points to lead the Americans. Minnesota Timberwolves star Kevin Love has chipped in five points and five rebounds (three of them offensive) in 7:41 of action.

Linus Kleiza leads all scorers with 16 points on six-of-11 shooting at halftime. Team USA did manage to limit their turnovers to five in the first half, while Lithuania recorded nine.

With all of their sharp shooters, the Americans could easily catch fire in the second half.

Read more Olympic coverage at our StoryStream and SBNation.com. Also be sure to subscribe to the Youtube Channel for video commentary.

London Olympics 2012: Saturday Schedule, TV Info, Online Streaming And More

Michael Phelps is in action one last time on Saturday at the 2012 Summer Olympics. The owner of the record for Olympic medals, who won his 17th gold medal on Friday, is part of a heavily favored American team in the 4x100m individual medley relay. It will be his last ever appearance as a competitor at the games.

Also in action on Saturday is the Team USA men's basketball team, taking on Lithuania. Beach volleyball, men's tennis, soccer and long list of other events are on the schedule as well. Fans can watch many of those events online via NBCOlympics.com.

To help you tune in to the action, here are some highlights from the day's television schedule (all times Eastern):

4 a.m. - 8 p.m. (NBCSN)

• Track & Field: Women's Triathlon (4 a.m.)
  
• Men's Basketball: Russia vs. Spain (6:15 a.m.), USA vs. Lithuania (9:30 a.m.)
  
• Beach Volleyball: Elimination Round (8 a.m.)
• Cycling: Track Events (9 a.m.)
  
• Tennis: Men's Doubles Gold Medal Final (11:30 a.m.)
• Women's Field Hockey: USA vs. New Zealand (2 p.m.)
• Equestrian: Jumping Qualifying (3:30 p.m.)
• Women's Shooting: Trap Final (4:30 p.m.)
• Men's Volleyball: Brazil vs. Serbia (5 p.m.)

7 a.m. - 6 p.m. (MSNBC)

• Men's Soccer: Quarterfinals (7 a.m., 9:30 a.m., Noon, 2:30 p.m.)
• Men's Water Polo: Qualifying (8:45 a.m.)
• Badminton: Women's Singles Gold Medal Match (11:15 a.m.), Women's Doubles Gold Medal Match (1:45 p.m.)
• Men's Weightlfting: 94 kg Gold Medal Final (4:15 p.m.)
• Track & Field: Men's 20K Walk (4:45 p.m.)

8:30 - 11:30 a.m. (CNBC)

• Men's Boxing: Round of 16 Bouts (light flyweight and light welterweight classes)
  

9 a.m. - 6 p.m. (NBC)

• Tennis: Women's Singles Gold Medal Match (9 a.m.)
• Women's Gymnastics: Trampoline Gold Medal Final (11 a.m.)
  
• Track & Field: Qualifying Men's 100M and 400M, Women's Pole Vault (11:15 a.m., 1:30 p.m.), Men's 10,000M Gold Medal Final (4:15 p.m.)
  
• Men's Volleyball: USA vs. Russia (11:45 a.m.)
• Cycling: Track Gold Medal Final (2 p.m.)
• Men's Water Polo: USA vs. Serbia (2:45 p.m.)
• Rowing: Gold Medal Finals (3:45 p.m.)
  
• Beach Volleyball: Elimination Round (5 p.m.)

3:30 - 6:30 p.m. (CNBC)

• Round of 16 Bouts (light flyweight, light welterweight, and light heavyweight classes)
  

8 p.m. - Midnight (NBC)

• Swimming: Gold Medal Finals (Men's 4x100 medley relay, 1500m freestyle; Women's 4x100 medley relay, 50m freestyle)
  
• Track & Field: Gold Medal Finals (Women's 100m, heptathlon; Men's long jump)
  
• Beach Volleyball: Elimination Round
  
• Women's Diving: Springboard Semifinal

12:30 - 1:30 a.m. (NBC)

• Track & Field: Women's Discuss Gold Medal Final
  
• Cycling: Track Events

Stay right here with this StoryStream for more coverage of local athletes at the Summer Games. Also be sure to check out SB Nation's Olympic hub for more analysis from London.

London Medal Count 2012: United States Holds Narrow Lead After 7 Days

Along with retaining the overall lead with a combination of 43 gold, silver and bronze medals acquired, the United States also managed to overtake China in gold medals on Friday with a strong seventh day of competition.

Despite losing a small amount of ground as China added eight total medals to the United States' six, the Americans picked up golds from Michael Phelps in the 100m butterfly, Missy Franklin in the women's 200m backstroke and Katie Ledecky in the 800m freestyle on Friday. Phelps, who picked up his record-setting 17th career gold with the impressive victory, will have a final chance to medal on Saturday in the men's 4x100m individual medley relay.

Here are the current leaders after seven days, and with 111 of the 302 events decided:

1. United States, 43 (21 gold, 10 silver, 12 bronze)

2. China, 42 (20, 13, 9)

3. Russia, 23 (3, 12, 8)

4. Great Britain, 22 (8, 6, 8)

5. Japan, 21 (2, 8, 11)

A full medal count tracker from Sports Illustrated can be found here.

Stay right here with this StoryStream for more coverage of local athletes at the Summer Games. Also be sure to check out SB Nation's Olympic hub for more analysis from London.

London 2012 - Friday Preview, Medal Count

The flurry of finals events in the past couple of days has provided tons of excitement and tons of medals as well, giving the USA a huge boost in the medal count after being led by China in just about every category for the first few days of the games.

Going into Friday, the Americans have finally caught up and are in the medal count lead with 37 overall medals, while China now has only 34. The Americans have also caught up in total golds won, both they and China currently have 18 top medals -- the Americans can thank a huge boost from Thursday's swimming competitions for their sudden jump in that category.

A full medal count tracker from SportsIllustrated can be found here.

Track and field events begin on Friday, with soccer, water polo and others providing plenty of quarter and semi-final events during the course of the day. 27 different events are seeing their finals on Friday, with several more swimming finals in the books -- something that should be of great interest to the Americans. The full schedule for the Olympics on Friday can be found here.

As per usual, you can see the games live on NBColympics.com, assuming that you fit their qualifications to access their stream services. The games will also be shown on tape delay on the entire NBC network of channels on television.

For more coverage of local athletes at this year's games, stay with this StoryStream. Be sure to check out SB Nation's 2012 Olympics hub for more London Games news and analysis.

London Olympics 2012: Team USA Demolishes Nigeria In Record-Setting Route, 156-73

In what may go down as the most prolific performance in Olympic basketball history, the United States' men's team flat-out destroyed Nigeria on Thursday in a 156-73 victory.

Along with shattering the previous Olympic high of 138 points in a game set by Brazil in 1988, Team USA was absolutely unconscious from behind the three-point line as nine separate players manage to hit a three. Minnesota Timberwolves forward Kevin Love turned in yet another strong performance with 15 points and six rebounds as well, in addition to finishing 3-for-6 from the perimeter.

The night's unquestioned MVP in the 83-point blowout, however, was Carmelo Anthony, who furthered the trend of accurate American outside shooters by draining 10 of his 12 long-range attempts en route to 37 points. Powered by Anthony's monster effort, Team USA finished the game shooting an insane 64.4% (29-for-45) on its three-pointers alone, a fact made even more impressive when you consider that Olympic games are only 40 minutes long.

Next up for the United States is a Saturday afternoon date with a dangerous Lithianian team. From there, Team USA will wrap up its group stage with Argentina the following Monday.

For more coverage of local athletes at this year's games, stay with this StoryStream. Be sure to check out SB Nation's 2012 Olympics hub for more London Games news and analysis.

Medal Count 2012: United States Jumps Into 1st Place Overall With 37 Medals

After five days of looking up at China in the standings, the United States finally took the overall medal lead at the 2012 Summer Games on Thursday with an impressive day six showing.

Among the six golds picked up by the Americans was a first place finish in women's judo for the first time in Olympic history, along with the record-setting 16th career gold medal for men's swimmer Michael Phelps with a 200m individual medley title. In addition, 16-year-old Gabby Douglas earned her first career individual medal with an impressive gold in the women's individual all-around gymnastics final.

Here's a look at the leaders in the medal count thus far:

1. United States, 37 (18 gold, 9 silver, 10 bronze)

2. China, 34 (18, 11, 5)

3. Japan, 19 (2, 6, 11)

4. Germany, 17 (4, 8, 6)

5. Russia, 17 (3, 6, 8)

Make sure to stay with this StoryStream for more coverage of local athletes at this year's games. Also head over to SB Nation's 2012 Olympics hub for more news and analysis from London.

London Olympics 2012: Russia Scores Last-Second Win Over Brazil In Basketball

The Minnesota Timberwolves have had very solid representation in the 2012 London Olympics thus far, with Andrei Kirilenko and Alexey Shved providing some stellar play with Russia's basketball team. Russia's first game was a blowout win over Great Britain in which Kirilenko scored 35 points and Shved added 16 of his own. Both added 16 and 14 points respectively in their second game, against China - another win.

Game 3 was an intense affair against Brazil, and once again, Kirilenko and Shved were the star players. Brazil took a 20-15 lead into the second quarter, but were out-scored in that frame 25-12. That second quarter was the deciding factor, as Brazil won the third and fourth quarters as well, albeit by small margins. Russia still was able to take the win, and they did it in exciting fashion.

Shved moved the ball inbounds to Vitaly Fridzon, who sunk a three pointer with one second left to put Russia ahead. The final score was 75-74 in favor of Russia.

Kirlenko shot 5-for-9 with a three pointer and made eight free throws out of 13. He accounted for 19 points overall, while Shved scored 17 points. Shved made 7-for-15 with two of his seven three-pointers. Timofey Mozgov had 18 points in Russia's win, as well.

For more coverage of local athletes at the 2012 Summer Games, stay with this StoryStream. For more news and analysis from London, check out SB Nation's Olympic hub or watch SB Nation's YouTube channel:

London Olympics 2012: Kevin Love And Team USA To Face Nigeria

Kevin Love and the United States men's basketball team will play against Nigeria at 4:15 p.m. CT on Thursday.

Love is coming off a 16-point performance in a 110-63 win over Tunisia on Tuesday in which he briefly scared Minnesota Timberwolves fans with an apparent knee injury. It turned out not to be anything serious, as he returned to the game.

The United States is 2-0 in pool play. It won its first game 98-71 against France. Love scored 14 points in 14 minutes.

Love took advantage of his off day on Wednesday, visiting the home of Arsenal, Emirates Stadium and coming away with an honorary jersey.

Nigeria beat Tunisia 60-56 in its first game and lost 72-53 to LIthuania in its second game. The team features NBA journeyman Ike Diogu, who finished last season playing in China.

For more coverage of local athletes at the 2012 Summer Games, stay with this StoryStream. For more news and analysis from London, be sure to visit SB Nation's Olympic hub.

London Olympics 2012: Timberwolves' Kirilenko, Shved And Russian Team To Face Brazil

Russia's men's basketball team, featuring two Minnesota Timberwolves in Andrei Kirilenko and Alexey Shved, will go up against Brazil at 10:45 a.m. CT on Thursday in London.

Kirilenko and Shved have both been impressive in Olympic action thus far. Russia's first game was a 95-75 blowout victory over Great Britain in which Kirilenko scored 35 points on 14-for-17 shooting and Shved added 16 points and 13 assists.

Game No. 2 against China was another win and it was almost exactly as one-sided, 73-54. Kirilenko finished with 16 points and Shved had 14.

Brazil also has two victories under its belt, as they beat Australia 75-71 and Great Britain 67-62. Members of the Brazilian team in the NBA include the Wizards' Nene, the Pacers' Leandro Barbosa, Cleveland's Anderson Varejao and Tiago Splitter of San Antonio.

For more coverage of local athletes at the 2012 Summer Games, stay with this StoryStream. For more news and analysis from London, check out SB Nation's Olympic hub or watch SB Nation's YouTube channel:

London Olympics 2012: U.S. Women's Basketball Team Blows Out Turkey, Remains Undefeated

The U.S. women's basketball team notched another blowout win on Wednesday in London, dominating Turkey 89-58 in Olympic action. Angel McCoughtry led the way with 18 points and Tina Charles added 16.

As for the Minnesota Lynx players on the roster, Lindsay Whalen was their third leading scorer with 14 points and, along with McCoughtry and Charles, tied for the lead in rebounding with seven boards. Seimone Augustus finished with 10 points and Maya Moore had five points and five rebounds.

The U.S. bench, led by McCoughtry and Whelan, built a lead in the second quarter and put the game away in the third.

The United States will next play Friday against the Czech Republic. The team will have an off-day on Thursday and finish up pool play on Friday against a Chinese club that is also 3-0.

For more coverage of local athletes at the 2012 Summer Games, stay with this StoryStream. For more news and analysis from London, check out SB Nation's Olympic hub or watch SB Nation's YouTube channel:

Olympics 2012: Megan Kalmoe, Team USA Earn Bronze In Women's Quadruple Sculls

On Wednesday, the United States added another medal to the nation's overall medal count thus far at the 2012 Olympic Games in London, when the United States women's rowing team earned bronze in the Women's Quadruple Sculls.

Minnesota native, Megan Kalmoe was part of the four woman team, which included Adrienne Martelli, Kara Kohler and Natalie Dell.

The bronze medal performance in the women's quad was the United States' first medal in rowing in the 2012 games and it's second ever in the event (the first time came in 1984, when the USA earned a silver medal).

Via NBC Olympics:

"It was a great race," said Dell. "We just kind of went on trust every stroke, because this is our first regatta together. I don't know what Adrienne was doing (at stroke), but it was great. We kind of died in the last five hundred meters. I feel like we had nothing left."

For more 2012 Olympics coverage, stay with this StoryStream. For more news and analysis on the Summer Games from London, head over to SB Nation's Olympics hub, or watch SB Nation's YouTube channel:

Olympics 2012: China Leads USA For Overall Medal Count

As the fourth day of the 2012 Olympics comes to a close, China and the United States continue to battle for the overall medal count lead, with China edging Team USA by a single medal thanks to the seven medals the nation picked up on Wednesday.

Team USA continued to dominant in the swimming pool as the Women's 4x200 Relay Team earned Gold thanks to a come-from-behind victory. Nathan Adrian also won Gold in the Men's 100-Meter Freestyle.

In total, the United States has earned an amazing 18 medals through swimming events, which (with the exception of China) is more medals than any other nation has earned in all of the combined events in the Olympics, thus far.

However, the Chinese have also been dominant in the swimming pool, virtually owning every diving competition and added another Gold from the diving board when their men's synchronized diving team won the 3-Meter Synchronized Diving event.

Here's a look at the complete medal count to this point:

1. China, 30 (17 gold, 9 silver, 4 bronze)
2. United States, 29 (12, 8, 9)
3. Japan, 17 (2, 4, 11)
4. France, 13 (5, 3, 5)
5. Germany, 13 (3, 8, 2)

For more 2012 Olympics coverage, stay with this StoryStream. For more news and analysis on the Summer Games from London, head over to SB Nation's Olympics hub, or watch SB Nation's YouTube channel:

London 2012: Preview, Medal Count For August 1

A host of events in the water will be getting gold medalists on August 1 as several swimming, diving and rowing competitions will be decided on Wednesday along with more Judo and Weightlifting events to continue the themes of the past several days. There are also plenty of other semifinal and group stage events to keep the day full.

The current medal count has the Americans at the top with 25, though China is nipping at their heels with 24. China also holds the most gold medals throughout the competition.

Here's a list of all the events that will find gold medalists on Wednesday:

As usual, streaming is available on NBC's website if you have the proper credentials and the games are being shown on tape delay as well across the NBC network of channels.

For more coverage of local athletes at the 2012 Summer Games, stay with this StoryStream. For more news and analysis from London, be sure to visit SB Nation's Olympic hub.

Minnesota Native Megan Kalmone Helps USA Win Bronze Medal In Quadruple Sculls Event

There has been some Olympic silverware provided for Minnesotans already in the 2012 London Olympics with University of Minnesota diver Kelci Bryant earning herself a gold medal in the synchronized diving event along with her partner Abigail Johnson back on Sunday.

Now there's another Minnesota name on the medal count list, with Minneapolis native Megan Kalmone a part of the American squad who took home the bronze medal in the Quadruple Sculls rowing event on Tuesday. The third place finish came behind Germany, who have traditionally dominated that event and lost the gold medal for only the second time since the quad sculls was added to the Olympic rowing events back in 1988, and the gold medal winning Ukraine.

The winning time for the Ukranians was 6 minutes, 35.93 seconds.

For more coverage of local athletes at the 2012 Summer Games, stay with this StoryStream. For more news and analysis from London, be sure to visit SB Nation's Olympic hub.

London Olympics 2012: Team USA's Kevin Love Scores 16 Points In 110-63 Blowout Of Tunisia

Although he provided a few minutes of sheer horror for Minnesota Timberwolves fans after leaving the game with a right knee injury, Kevin Love bounced back to lead his Team USA men's basketball squad past Tunisia on Tuesday night in blowout fashion, 110-63.

Love went down in the second half after falling awkwardly on a rebound, and briefly sent Twitter into a state of flux about his potentially serious injury. But after a huge block by teammate Andre Iguodala forced the entire Team USA bench, including an exuberant Love, to its feet in complete chaos, it became clear that the T-Wolves star would be just fine.

In addition to finishing 3-for-4 shooting inside the arc, Love managed to go 3-for-5 from three-point range as well on Tuesday to further showcase his all-around game. Now 2-0 and currently the only team in Group A with four total points, the U.S. will face Nigeria in the final basketball game of the evening scheduled from London on Thursday.

For more 2012 Olympics coverage, stay with this StoryStream. Also be sure to check out SB Nation's dedicated Olympic hub for more coverage of the London Summer Games.

Olympics Medal Count 2012: United States Tied For Overall Lead With 23 Medals

Despite a day where the United States brought home four golds and one silver medal, the Americans remain in a tie with China for the overall medal lead after four days of the 2012 Summer Games.

Two individual American gold medalists stood out on Tuesday in a big way, as women's swimmer Allison Schmitt reigned supreme in the 200m freestyle with an Olympic Record time of 1:53.61, while U.S. shooter Vincent Hancock narrowly edged competition in the men's skeet event. Schmitt, who has qualifying in the 4x200m freestyle relay on Wednesday, has now claimed three of the United States' 23 total medals thus far after four days of competition.

Here's a complete look at the medal count thus far:

1. China, 23 (13 gold, 6 silver, 4 bronze)

2. United States, 23 (9, 8, 6)

3. Japan, 13 (1, 4, 8)

4. France, 11 (4, 3, 4)

5. South Korea, 8 (3, 2, 3)

For more 2012 Olympics coverage, stay with this StoryStream. Also be sure to check out SB Nation's dedicated Olympic hub for more coverage of the London Summer Games.

Team USA: Kevin Love Getting Comfortable With Team USA

Despite playing sparingly -- and not all that well -- in pre-Olympic tune-ups, Kevin Love appears to be heading in the right direction for Team USA, according to an article fro, ESPN.com.

The article, by ESPN's Marc Stein, said that Love's production in the final exhibition against Spain, and then in the first Olympic game against France, is a sign that he is becoming a bigger part of the team. That's good news for the height-starved Team USA, which lost Dwight Howard and Blake Griffin to injuries, but also for Love, who was having a hard time sniffing the court earlier this summer.

As a sign of Love's metamorphosis, Stein points to a rather commonplace layup Love had against Spain:

That didn't stop Krzyzewski from leaping off the hardwood and vigorously swinging his right fist as if the two points had just clinched a championship for Duke.

"I didn't see it with my own eyes, but I heard about it," Love said. "He told me about it, actually. We were on the free throw line [at a recent] practice, and he asked me if I saw him."

The fact that Krzyzewski was so eager to discuss the scene with Love should tell you that the coach clearly doesn't see it as an overreaction. As he explains it now, heading into Tuesday's Group A game against overmatched Tunisia, Coach K got caught up in the moment and lost track of how little was actually at stake at that juncture because he'd been wanting so badly to see something happen on the floor -- anything -- to get a struggling Love going.

That appears to have happened. Love played 14 minutes against France and scored 14 points.

Team USA plays Tunisia on Tuesday at 10:15 p.m. London time, or 4:15 p.m. Central. A complete Team USA schedule can be found here.

For more coverage of local athletes at the 2012 Summer Games, stay with this StoryStream. For more news and analysis from London, check out SB Nation's Olympic hub or watch SB Nation's YouTube channel:

London 2012: Kevin Love, Team USA Headline Tuesday's Events

Team USA will play its second game of the Olympics at 10:15 London time, or 4:15 Central, but there are plenty of events in the meantime.

There are currently 16 events taking place, ranging from men's and women's badminton to women's laser radial sailing.

Here is a complete schedule with all of Tuesday's action.

Germany, which dominated equestrian events in Beijing in 2008, captured Tuesday's first gold medal in equestrian's team jumping event. It was Germany's first gold of the Olympics; they claimed three equestrian golds in Beijing.

The United States women's basketball team -- which features Minnesota Lynx players Maya Moore, Seimone Augustus and Lindsay Whalen -- will play Turkey on Wednesday at 4:15 Central.

For more coverage of local athletes at the 2012 Summer Games, stay with this StoryStream. For more news and analysis from London, check out SB Nation's Olympic hub or watch SB Nation's YouTube channel:

London Olympics 2012: Andrei Kirilenko, Russia Roll Past China

Minnesota Timberwolves forward Andrei Kirilenko scored 16 points and grabbed nine rebounds in Russia's 73-54 win Tuesday over China.

Alexey Shved, another Minnesota off-season acquisitions, had 14 points and six assists for Russia.

Kirilenko, who also had four steals and hit 7 of 12 field goal attempts, signed a two-year, $20 million deal with Minnesota last week after playing in Moscow last season.

Speaking with reporters in London, Kirilenko said he was using the Olympics to get ready for his re-entry in to the NBA.

From the Associated Press:

"For me, it looks like European flavor on the team," said Kirilenko, referring to Ricky Rubio, Nikola Pekovic, himself and [Alexey] Shved. "For me right now, it's pretty much the same type of team-building. A lot of European guys, a lot of guys who can run the floor. Alexey is another big, big plus."

Shved is a versatile combo guard who dominated the pace of play Sunday, finding Kirilenko time and again for lob passes and backdoor cuts.

"I said prepare right now for Minnesota, that's how you're going to find me," Kirilenko said. "I think he's doing a good job. Last year we played together. We've got connection. He knows when I'm going to cut. I know when he going to start driving so I give him space. But we have to adjust to Rick's system anyway."

With the win, Russia sits atop Group B, which along with China also includes Spain, Brazil, Australia and Great Britain. Russia will next play Brazil on Thursday.

London Olympics 2012: Kevin Love And U.S. Basketball Team To Face Tunisia

The Minnesota Timberwolves' Kevin Love and Team USA will go up against Tunisia on Tuesday at 5:15 p.m. ET. It likely will not be much of a challenge for the United States, but it will represent another chance for Love to assert himself after his strong showing on Sunday against France.

Love scored 14 points in 14 minutes in the first game, which got him out of the slump he'd been in during the weeks leading up to the Olympics, via Ian Thomsen of Sports Illustrated:

"Early on, I couldn't really find myself in the offense -- or the defense, for that matter,'' he said. "I don't know if 'bummed' is the right word, but I think I was just a little confused. I was working so hard to be in this position to make a big impact on this team.''

Love met with coach Mike Krzyzewski before the team's final exhibition last week against Spain in Barcelona.

"He still needs everybody to bring their same egos and swagger that they have from their respective [NBA] teams back in the States," Love said. "He wants us to bring that back to the court but wrap it around a team mentality.

It's important to bring that team mentality every game, but America won't face a serious test until its final game of the preliminary round on Monday against Argentina. After the Tunisia game, Love and co. will face Nigeria on Thursday and Lithuania on Saturday.

For more coverage of local athletes at the 2012 Summer Games, stay with this StoryStream. For more news and analysis from London, be sure to visit SB Nation's Olympic hub.

London Olympics 2012: Russian Timberwolves Andrei Kirilenko And Alexey Shved Face China On Tuesday

If you're a Minnesota Timberwolves observer, you should be paying attention to Russia's basketball team in the 2012 Olympics to see new Wolves Alexey Shved and Andrei Kirilenko. The next chance to see them play is at 4:00 a.m. ET on Tuesday against China.

In their first game on Sunday, Kirilenko and Shved both put on a show against Great Britain in a 95-75 win. Kirilenko was dominant with 35 points on an absolutely ridiculous 14-for-17 from the field, plus four rebounds, three blocks and two steals. Shved finished with 16 on 6-for-11 shooting and had 13 assists, three more than the entire British squad. He also had six rebounds, three steals and a block.

The Chinese team lost 97-81 to Spain in its first game, but got a standout performance from Yi Jianlian. The forward who spent 2011-2012 with the Dallas Mavericks scored 30 points on 13-for-19 shooting and grabbed 12 rebounds while battling the Spanish frontline of Serge Ibaka, Pau Gasol and Marc Gasol.

For more coverage of local athletes at the 2012 Summer Games, stay with this StoryStream. For more news and analysis from London, be sure to visit SB Nation's Olympic hub.

Olympic Rowing 2012: St. Paul's Megan Kalmoe And U.S. Advance To Final In London

Megan Kalmoe of St. Paul is headed to the finals of the women's quadruple sculls competition in London, as she and the U.S. rowing team placed second of six teams in the repechage race on Monday.

The United States boat needed to finish in the top four to advance to the finals of the competition and it placed second with a time of 6:19.49. Australia finished first at 6:18.80. Great Britain was third at 6:21.65. China came fourth at 6:21.98.

Those four teams will compete against the Ukraine and Germany in the final on Wednesday. Those teams won the first two heat races on Saturday.

Kalmoe grew up in South St. Paul and attended St. Croix Falls High School in Wisconsin.

For more coverage of local athletes at the 2012 Summer Games, stay with this StoryStream. For more news and analysis from London, be sure to visit SB Nation's Olympic hub.

Olympic Basketball: Team USA, Featuring Trio Of Minnesota Lynx Players, Takes Care Of Angola

The men get most of the attention, but Team USA is pretty good for both genders as America tries to rack up the medal count at the 2012 London Olympics. It seems as though the women might be on their way, too, as a heavy dose of players with Minnesota connections trounced Angola 90-38 on Monday afternoon.

All three members of the Minnesota Lynx competing at the Olympics -- Lindsay Whalen, Seimone Augustus and Maya Moore -- each played at least 18 minutes in their second victory during pool play in London. Augustus was the team's second-leading scorer with 13 points while Moore chipped in 10 and Whalen, a Hutchinson native, scored nine points to complement her four assists.

Team USA is now off until Wednesday when they'll play a fellow undefeated team in China. The Chinese squad defeated Angola 72-50, for what it's worth.

For more coverage of local athletes at the 2012 Summer Games, stay with this StoryStream. For more news and analysis from London, be sure to visit SB Nation's Olympic hub.

2012 Olympics Medal Count: United States Ties For Medal Lead

On Monday afternoon, the United States tied China for the medal count lead with both nation's currently possessing a total of 17 medals thus far in the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

The U.S. vaulted back to the top of the leaderboard thanks to an impressive set of swimming performances -- as well as the synchronized diving performance of the University of Minnesota's Kelci Bryant, who earned the USA a silver medal.

Matt Grevers and Missy Franklin both brought home gold for the United States by winning in the 100-meter backstroke for the men and women, respectively. In addition to Grevers, Nick Thorman brought home the silver medal in the men's 100-meter backstroke, as did Rebecca Soni in the women's 100-meter breaststroke.

However, the day was not without some disappointment.

Ryan Lochte failed to medal in the men's 200-meter freestyle finishing in fourth place.

Here's a complete look at the medal count thus far:

1. China, 17 (9 gold, 5 silver, 3 bronze)
2. United States, 17 (5, 7, 5)
3. Japan, 11 (1, 4, 6)
4. Italy, 8 (2, 4, 2)
5. France, 7 (3, 1, 3)

Other notables: The only team beyond that top five with three gold medals is North Korea; Great Britain moved into a five-way tie for ninth with its third medal; Moldova still has one bronze medal.

You can find a more viewer-friendly medal count right here:

For more coverage of local athletes at the 2012 Summer Games, stay with this StoryStream. For more news and analysis from London, be sure to visit SB Nation's Olympic hub.

London 2012: Monday Preview And Medal Count

On Sunday, Kelci Bryant of the University of Minnesota helped the USA win their first diving medal in 12 years. Monday, the U.S. Men's diving team will get their chance to make some noise of their own.

China is currently atop the medal standings with 12, but the Americans are right behind with 11. They'll have a good shot to boost their medal count by a lot with plenty of swimming, an event that the Americans have done very well at recently, headlining the tail end of the day.

Here's all of the events that will take place on Monday:

For more coverage of local athletes at the 2012 Summer Games, stay with this StoryStream. For more news and analysis from London, be sure to visit SB Nation's Olympic hub.

University Of Minnesota Diver Kelci Bryant Wins Synchronized Diving Silver Medal

A long standing drought of medals for the United States in diving events was broken by a diver from the University of Minnesota on Sunday, Kelci Bryant. Along with her partner Abigail Johnston, Bryant took home the silver medal in Sunday's 3-meter synchronized diving event.

Though there will still be plenty more chances during the games for the Americans to pick up some more medals in the diving competitions, the first one was special because the USA hadn't earned a medal in any diving since the Sydney games in 2000:

Johnston and Kelci Bryant finished second with 321.90 points, ending the country's diving medal drought that extended to the 2000 Sydney Games. It was the first Olympic synchro medal for the Americans.

"Our curse is out of the way," said Bryant, who finished fourth in springboard synchro with a different partner in Beijing.

The Chinese team of Wu Minxia and He Zi took home the gold medal in the event, continuing their dominance of the sport in recent years. The Bronze medal went to Emilie Heymans and Jennifer Abel, a Canadian duo.

For more coverage of local athletes at the 2012 Summer Games, stay with this StoryStream. For more news and analysis from London, be sure to visit SB Nation's Olympic hub.

London Olympics 2012 Medal Table: U.S. Second After Two Days

The second day of competition is over at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London and the United States stands in second place in terms of total medals, just one behind China.The Chinese have earned a total of 12 medals through two days, six of them being gold. The United States is only one medal behind them overall, but the Americans have just three gold medals.

No residents of Minnesota earned medals on Sunday but swimmer Rachel Bootsma placed 11th in the semifinals of the women's 100-meter backstroke:

Bootsma, of Eden Prairie, finished 11th in Sunday night’s semifinals of the women’s 100-meter backstroke at London’s Aquatics Centre. Only the top eight advanced to Monday’s finals. With little energy left after her standout performance at last month’s Olympic trials, Bootsma finished the semifinals in 1 minute, 00.04 seconds, .01 slower than her time in Sunday morning’s qualifying heats.

For more coverage of local athletes at the 2012 Summer Games, stay with this StoryStream. For more news and analysis from London, be sure to visit SB Nation's Olympic hub.

London Olympics 2012: Andrei Kirilenko, Alexey Shved Lead Russia Over Great Britain, 95-75

Two future Minnesota Timberwolves players got off to a brilliant start at the 2012 Summer Olympics on Sunday afternoon in London, as Alexey Shved and Andrei Kirilenko each led Russia to a comfortable 95-75 win over Great Britain in their opening game.

The 6-foot-6 Shved signed a three-year, $10 million deal with the Timberwolves on July 23, and gave fans a glimpse of his raw potential by dishing out 13 assists in Sunday's victory. The 23-year-old point guard also scored 16 points, grabbed three steals, hit a pair of three-pointers and still found time to haul down six rebounds in the win.

The unquestioned star of the game, however, was the versatile Kirilenko, who poured in a game-high 35 points on 13-for-15 shooting. Kirilenko blocked three shots on defense and utilized the lackadaisical Olympic foul limit by getting whistled seven times and staying in the game. With both men playing at an extremely high level right out of the gate, it appears the Russian team could be a sleeper to take down the Americans in this year's competition.

For more coverage of local athletes at the 2012 Summer Games, stay with this StoryStream. For more news and analysis from London, be sure to visit SB Nation's Olympic hub.

2012 London Olympics: USA Men's Basketball Rolls Over France By 27

The USA men's basketball team opened up their slate with a predictable win over France on Sunday, as forward Kevin Love chipped in 14 points to lead the Americans to a convincing 98-71 victory.

Love saw just 14 minutes of action on the floor but managed to post the second-highest scoring total on his team after Kevin Durant's 22 points. Although the United States shot worse than their opponents from the field (49 percent to 55 percent), Team USA's athleticism on the offensive glass came through in spades as they doubled Frances' offensive rebounding output.

Although it took until the second half for Team USA to break the game open, it employed a balanced attack of all 12 players to stifle a French team that included former Minnesota Timberwolves target Nicolas Batum and NBA champion Tony Parker. The United States will now get set to face Tunisia on Tuesday in a game that may just well be over by halftime.

For more Olympics coverage of local athletes, stay with this StoryStream. For more news and analysis of the Summer Games, head over to SB Nation's Olympics hub.

2012 London Olympics: USA Men's Basketball Leads France By 16 At Half

After a tough first quarter, the USA Men's Basketball team used a 30-15 second quarter run to gain some breathing room at halftime. Kevin Durant led the Americans with 15 points, and Tyson Chandler and Carmelo Anthony both grabbed seven rebounds.

With three minutes gone in the third quarter, the Americans have pushed their lead to 22 points at 60-38, though Chandler just picked up his second foul.

Foul trouble will be a key issue in the second half for the USA. Anthony and Russell Westbrook both have three fouls, while Kobe Bryant, Lebron James, Chris Paul, Deron Williams and Kevin Love all have two. Players are disqualified in FIBA play after five fouls.

The Timberwolves' Love put together a solid first half after Chandler and Anthony ran into foul trouble, with seven points and a steal.

The USA has done a good job on the offensive glass, and the French have yet to make a three-pointer. Tony Parker has six points for the French.

The game is being televised live on NBC Sports Network.

For all your Olympics news, stick with this SBNation Minnesota StoryStream, or head over to SBNation's dedicated Olympics hub.

London Olympics 2012: USA Men's Basketball Begins Quest For Another Gold Medal

The USA Men's Basketball team begins Group A play against Tony Parker's France team at 9:30 am Eastern Sunday, and the USA is 15-1 all-time in Olympic opening games (only loss: 2004 to Puerto Rico). The French, with the NBA's Nicolas Batum, Boris Diaw and Kevin Seraphin, among others, will provide a good test for the Americans.

Kevin Love of the Minnesota Timberwolves fell a bit out of favor with the coaching staff during the USA's five game exhibition schedule leading up to these Olympic games, but on paper, he's a prototypical FIBA forward with his ability to stretch the floor. He might be pressed into early duty if center Tyson Chandler continues to struggle with foul trouble.

Phil Dalhausser and Todd Rogers, the dominant American beach volleyball duo, are also set to begin their run for a second consecutive Olympic gold Sunday at 5 pm ET against a Japanese duo.

The American Men's Volleyball team also start play against a tough Serbian squad at 11:45 am ET Sunday. The USA's first two games in group play are crucial if they hope to advance towards the medal rounds.

For a complete event listing, NBC's Olympic site has you covered. TV listings can be found here.

Stick with this SBNation Minnesota StoryStream for all your 2012 Olympics coverage, or head over to SBNation's dedicated Olympic hub.

2012 London Olympics: Medal Count After Day 1

With an impressive start out of the gate, it was China who took an early advantage in the medal lead after the first day of the 2012 London Olympics.

Winners of 51 gold medals at the 2008 Summer Games in Beijing, the Chinese team picked up four golds (and six total medals) on Saturday alone to jump out in front of their competitors. Italy put forth a valiant effort on the day with five medals of their own to claim second place early on, as their two golds are second to only China thus far.

Team USA remains in third place after a strong opening day that saw American swimmer Ryan Lochte cruise to gold in the men's 400 meter individual relay, despite the fact that fan favorite Michael Phelps fell short of his bid to medal in the same event.

Here are the standings after day one:

1. China - 6 total (4 Gold, 0 Silver, 2 Bronze)

2. Italy - 5 total (2 Gold, 2 Silver, 1 Bronze)

3. United States - 5 total (1 Gold, 2 Silver, 2 Bronze)

4. South Korea - 3 total (1 Gold, 1 Silver, 1 Bronze)

5. Brazil - 3 total (1 Gold, 1 Silver, 1 Bronze)

For more coverage of local athletes at the 2012 Olympics, stay with this StoryStream. For more coverage of the London Games, head over to SB Nation's Olympic hub.

Summer Olympics 2012 Recap: Team USA Adds 5 Medals On Day 1 Of Games

Day one of the 2012 London Summer Games came and went on Saturday, as Team USA kicked things off rather nicely with five total medals to take third place overall. The Americans picked up their first gold of the event from Ryan Lochte in the men's swimming 400 meter individual medley, as fan favorite Michael Phelps, the world record holder in the 400m, finished fourth.

The men's archery team fell to Italy in the finals to walk away with a silver, while 400 meter individual medley women's swimmer Elizabeth Beisel followed Lochte's lead and also put forth a strong effort en route to her own silver medal. The women's 4x100 freestyle relay team of Natalie Coughlin, Lia Neal, Allison Schmitt, Missy Franklin and Jessica Hardy also took bronze, marking the 12th career medal in Coughlin's illustrious Olympic career.

Team USA's final bronze medal was earned by Peter Vanderkaay in the 400 meter freestyle event, which helped to cap off a strong opening day for American swimmers. In addition to the medalists, Team USA's women's soccer squad also took the field on Saturday for a key 3-0 victory over Columbia.

For a full listing of Saturday's events, go here. For a complete tally of the medals acquired by each country, use SI.com's Medal Tracker.

For more coverage of local athletes at the 2012 Olympics, stay with this StoryStream. For more coverage of the London Games, head over to SB Nation's Olympic hub.

2012 Olympics: Ryan Lochte Wins Gold In 400 IM, Michael Phelps Finishes Fourth

Though it wasn't quite the showdown it was supposed to be, the men's 400 IM is now in the books at the 2012 Olympic Games. Ryan Lochte blew out the entire field, winning the gold medal by over three seconds with a time of 4:05.18.

Brazil's Thiago Pereira finished in second place to earn the silver medal with a time of 4:08.86, while Japan's Kosuke Hagino earned the bronze medal with a time of 4:08.94.

Michael Phelps finished a disappointing fourth, losing to Lochte by over four seconds. Phelps' official time was 4:09.28.

While the loss is certainly disappointing for Phelps, he'll have plenty more opportunities to add to his medal count throughout the 2012 Olympic Games.

The gold medal captured by Lochte was the first gold medal captured by the United States of America at the 2012 Olympic Games. It's certainly the first of many for the United States.

For the latest on the 2012 Olympic Games, be sure to check out SB Nation's dedicated Olympic Hub.

Olympics 2012: Saturday's TV Schedule Features A Few Minnesotans

The 2012 London Olympics' opening ceremony was held on Friday night, meaning the real fun begins on Saturday as the actual games get underway. Those games will feature quite a few Minnesotans, too, with a few of them scheduled to begin their quest for a gold medal on the first official day of the summer games.

Quite a few Minnesota Lynx players will don Team USA's jersey when they take on Croatia at 10:45 a.m. Central Time in lovely London. For those wanting to watch Hutchinson native Lindsay Whalen and Lynx teammates Seimone Augustus and Maya Moore, the television stream will be located here.

Former Minnesota Golden Gophers' volleyball player Lindsey Berg, a two-time USA Volleyball Indoor Female Athlete of the Year, will attempt to help Team USA get off to a good start when they play South Korea at 1:50 p.m. Central Time. The game doesn't look like it'll be televised, but can be streamed online at the Olympics' website.

Megan Kalmoe is competing in the women's quadruple sculls (one of the rowing competitions) and, though her hometown is technically St. Croix, Wis., she's spent quite a bit of time in Minneapolis. The first heats began early Saturday morning (3:20 a.m.), but it's tough to tell exactly what time Kalmoe will participate so here's where to watch.

For more Olympics coverage, you can stick with this SB Nation Minnesota stream, or check out SB Nation's Olympic hub.

London Olympics 2012: Michael Phelps, Ryan Lochte Earn Spots In 400 IM Final

USA swimming stars Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte locked up spots in the 400 Individual Medley final on Saturday morning. Both swimmers expended just enough energy in their respective preliminary heats to move on, although Phelps cut it really close.

Phelps will have to make waves from out in lane eight in the final after posting the slowest prelim time among the finalist of 4:13.33 and just nipping Laszlo Cseh of Hungary by .07 seconds. The slow pace qualified Phelps for the 400 IM final on Saturday evening but cost Cseh, the silver medalist in the event in 2008, a shot at another Olympic medal.

Phelps' U.S. rival Ryah Lochte saved a little energy for later as well, but still posted the third best time at 4:12.35, finishing second to South African Chae le Clos in his heat. Lochte will race the final from lane three and will line up next to Japan's 17-year-old Kosuke Hagino in lane four after the young swimmer surprisingly posted the top time in his prelim heat at 4:10.01.

The 400 IM is at 5:00 p.m. ET on Saturday and will be shown on NBC's Olympic coverage on tape delay during the 8:00 p.m. to Midnight ET broadcast.

For more Olympics coverage, stick with this SB Nation Minnesota stream, or check out SB Nation's Olympics hub. You can also watch SB Nation's YouTube channel:

London Olympics 2012: Michael Phelps In Action On Saturday

The 2012 Summer Olympics get down to business on Saturday, July 28. On the schedule are events ranging from archery to weightlifting. A number of competitions will also feature medals being awarding, including swimming and fencing.

American swimmer Michael Phelps will compete for the gold medal in the 400-meter individual medley.

Among the athletes with a Minnesota connection, a trio of players from the Minnesota Lynx of the WNBA are in action on Saturday with the Team USA women's basketball team. Seimone Augustus, Maya Moore, and Lindsay Whalen from the Lynx and the rest of Team USA take on Croatia.

Swimming competitions and others will be broadcast on NBC in prime time, from 8 p.m. to Midnight Eastern. A complete television scheduled is available here. For a complete schedule of events taking place on Saturday, be sure to visit NBCOlympics.com.

For more Olympics coverage, you can stick with this SB Nation Minnesota stream, or check out SB Nation's Olympic hub. You can also watch SB Nation's YouTube channel:

Olympics 2012 Opening Ceremony: TV Schedule, Watch Online, Live Updates And More

It's not going to be possible to watch the Opening Ceremony for the 2012 London Olympics if you're trying to see it on TV at its actual starting time. An NBC tape delay will knock the starting time on American television back three and a half hours from its official starting time of 4 p.m. ET -- 9 p.m. local time in England -- to 7:30 p.m. ET.

Though the Opening Ceremony will not be among them, most events in the Olympics will be streamed live on the internet at NBColympics.com, assuming you meet their restriction. According to the site, you can stream most events only 'with a cable, satellite or telco TV subscription that includes MSNBC and CNBC'.

For more Olympics coverage, you can stick with this SB Nation Minnesota stream, or check out SB Nation's Olympic hub. You can also watch SB Nation's YouTube channel:

Olympics Opening Ceremony 2012: Muhammad Ali, Peter Pan Among Potential Cameos At Opening Ceremony

The specs of the Opening Ceremony aren't yet known, but it figures to be a spectacle.

Olympics 2012: How To Watch, Streaming Info

When the Olympic Flame is officially lit on Friday in London, NBC will be capturing every moment of it in addition to nearly 3,500 hours of competition prior to the events completion.

Utilizing nine channels underneath the NBC umbrella of affiliate stations including MSNBC, CNBC, NBC Sports Network, Bravo, Telemundo and three newly created "specialty channels," specified competitions will be tailored to each channel to give viewers comprehensive coverage.

While every minute of action will be captured, not all viewers will be able to see everything.

The network will be streaming live footage of every competition but only satellite, cable and teleco subscribers that receive MSNBC and/or CNBC will be able to access its NBC Live Extra website. In addition, the network has already announced that it will not be broadcasting the game's opening and closing ceremonies for viewers who do not have subscription access.

For day-to-day broadcasting schedules, visit NBC's Olympics web site.

For more Olympics coverage, you can stick with this SB Nation Minnesota stream, or check out SB Nation's Olympic hub. You can also watch SB Nation's YouTube channel:

USA Rowing: Megan Kalmoe Aiming High In London

Twin Cities native, Megan Kalmoe, is looking to help USRowing win a gold medal in London.

USA Diving: Brittany Viola Overcame Difficult Odds To Get To London

After overcoming bulimia and two surgeries on her ankle, Brittany Viola is poised to try and take home the diving gold in London this summer.

Kevin Love Grabs Nine Rebounds In Team USA Win Over Spain

Team USA is ready to ride into London as the gold medal favorites for the Olympic games after rolling past Spain in the team's final exhibition game, 100-78.

Minnesota Timberwolves forward Kevin Love provided a little dirty work off the bench for the USA team with two points and nine rebounds, while pitching into help against the big Spanish front line led by Pau Gasol. Love was part of a strong team effort that should quiet any doubters of the U.S. squad. Love played a total of 13 minutes off the bench, making 1 of 3 shots.

After falling behind by nine points in the first quarter, the U.S. team rallied to take a 48-40 lead to the break and then turned it on in the second half to wear out the Spanish team. Carmelo Anthony led the U.S. with 27 points while LeBron James added 25 points and eight assists.

The two teams now head to the Olympics where they will be on opposite sides of the draw. At least for now, Love has bragging rights over injured teammate Ricky Rubio who tweeted a little friendly banter before the game.

@kevinlove are u ready to lose against Spain tonight?

— Ricky Rubio (@rickyrubio9) July 24, 2012

For more on Love and his quest for a gold medal, check out Canis Hoopus and SB Nation's Olympics hub.

USA Fencing: Susie Scanlan Takes Break From Princeton To Chase Olympic Dream

Susie Scanlan knew she had to choose between a normal college life and a shot at the Olympics.

Team USA Basketball: Playing Time Hard To Come By For Kevin Love

Despite multiple injuries to Team USA's frontcourt, Kevin Love has had trouble getting on the court in pre-Olympic tune-ups.

2012 Olympics: Alise Post of St. Cloud Overcomes Injuries, Goes For Gold

Alise Post of St. Cloud is going for gold in cycling at the 2012 London Olympics. She overcame two serious injuries to get there.

London Olympics 2012 Preview: Minnesota Well Represented On Team USA

Minnesota is well represented among the athletes headed to London to represent the United States in the 2012 Olympic Games.

Kevin Love Scores 6 Points In Team USA Exhibition Win Over Great Britain

Timberwolves forward Kevin Love scored six points in 15 minutes as Team USA cruised to a 118-78 win over Great Britain on Thursday in Manchester, England in an Olympic tuneup.

Love shot 3-for-4 from the field with three rebounds, one assists, one steal and one block.

Team USA was led by Deron Williams and Carmelo Anthony, who each scored 19 points. The team shot 60 percent from the field. The British were led by 18 points from Bulls forward Luol Deng. The Americans led 33-20 after the first quarter and didn't face any trouble.

Britain isn't exactly a basketball hotbed, but the English will be seeing plenty of it for the Olympics. The crowd in Manchester enjoyed the show, along with some help. From the AP (via ESPN.com):

In an unusual pregame scene, the crowd didn't seem interested in the home team's strange set of pregame warm-up exercises, choosing instead to watch the Americans' practice dunks, oohing and aahing along the way.

The rules of the game were then shown on the overhead video scoreboard and explained by the public address announcer before play began.

Blake Griffin, James Harden And Andre Iguodala Named To U.S. Olympic Team, According To Report

Kevin Love of the Minnesota Timberwolves learned on Saturday that he'll be joining the U.S. Olympic men's basketball team, and he's excited for the opportunity. He's going to be paired with guys like LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul, Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, Tyson Chandler and Deron Williams. There's other players, too, but the other spots are not official after injuries took out at least four players who would have been on the team.

According to the Associated Press, three more players have been added to the roster in Blake Griffin of the Los Angeles Clippers, Andre Igoudala of the Philadelphia 76ers, and James Harden of the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Blake Griffin, Andre Iguodala and James Harden have been chosen for the U.S. Olympic men's basketball team, a person with knowledge of the decisions told The Associated Press on Saturday.

They earned the final three spots that opened after a rash of injuries knocked out at least four players who would have been on the team. They beat out Eric Gordon, Rudy Gay and No. 1 draft pick Anthony Davis of New Orleans, who couldn't scrimmage this week because of a sprained ankle.

Those are certainly some strong names. Griffin was injured near the end of the season, but after an impressive performance in practice, was named ot the team. Harden should provide plenty of scoring power while Iguodala is great on defense. That being said, they're replacing some very big names.

Dwight Howard, Derrick Rose, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade all had to be taken off of the roster due to injuries over the last few months. Davis was also an intriguing possibility, as one of the biggest consensus No. 1 draft picks in NBA history, but the ankle injury kept him out of practice and so he wasn't able to show his stuff.

2012 London Olympics: Kevin Love Will Be On Team USA In London

Kevin Love will learn if he made the USA men's basketball team on Saturday when the final 12 players are announced.

Daughter Of Former Minnesota Twins Pitching Great Makes Olympic Team