With a win over Romania on Tuesday, the U.S. men’s water polo team is now third in the Group A standings, with the top four teams moving on to the quarterfinals of the Paris Olympics.
Italy and Greece, both in Group A, and Spain, in Group B, are the only remaining unbeaten teams. All three came to Paris following top-5 finishes at the most recent World Championships.
Spain is 2-0 despite only scoring 19 goals so far, one of only four teams in the field to have not scored at least 20. The Spanish squad is getting the work done on defense, having allowed a tournament-best 12 goals.
The U.S. is tied for fifth in goals scored (22), but has the fourth best defense so far with 20 goals allowed.
Greece has scored a tournament-best 31 goals, followed by Japan with 28. Montenegro and Romania have both allowed the most goals with 28 each.
Here’s a look at the men’s water polo standings and what to watch on Day 3 of competition.
Standings
Group A
Italy 2-0 (4pts)
Greece 2-0 (2pts)
USA 1-1 (2pts)
Croatia 1-1 (2pts)
Montenegro 0-2 (0pts)
Romania 0-2 (0pts)
Group B
Spain 2-0 (4pts)
Australia 1-1 (2pts)
Hungary 1-1 (2pts)
France 1-1 (2pts)
Serbia 1-1 (2pts)
Japan 0-2 (0pts)
Game 1: Group A – Greece vs. USA (4:30 a.m. ET)
The U.S. will look to stay in the top four of Group A against one of the best teams in Paris. Team USA and Greece are two of only three teams in the field with multiple players who have scored at least five goals. Hannes Daube has scored three goals in each of the U.S.’s two games, and Alex Bowen has five goals total. Adrian Weinberg is second among all goalkeepers with 22 saves.
Greece is led offensively by Stylianos Argyropoulos Kanakakis and Angelos Vlachopoulos, who have both scored five goals.
SEE MORE: U.S. water polo picks up first Paris win in defeat of Romania
Game 2: Group B – Serbia vs. Spain (6:05 a.m. ET)
Australia’s defensive effort against Serbia on Tuesday was historic because since 2008,when the Serbian National Olympic Committee began competing under the Serbia name, the team has scored least four goals in every Olympic water polo game it has played. That was until Tuesday, was Australia held the Serbians to just three scores.
Serbia came to Paris as the two-time defending gold medalists, and even though they struggled mightily on Tuesday, there’s little cause for concern. They also lost an early pool play game in Tokyo.
The offense might not also be much of a worry given the team scored a tournament-high 16 goals in Game 1, but they’ll now face off against another defensive powerhouse when they take on Spain on Thursday. Spain is one of only two teams to have yet to allow a team to reach 10 goals in a game, and is tied with Australia with the fewest goals allowed in Paris (12).
Serbia’s Dusan Mandic is second among all scorers in Paris with nine goals.
SEE MORE: Spain swims past Hungary 10-7
Game 3: Group B – France vs. Australia (9 a.m. ET)
Australia got it done on defense on Tuesday, but the offense hasn’t quite caught up. The Aussies have scored just 13 goals in two games, the fewest of any team in Paris. However, they’ve still scored one more goal than they’ve allowed.
France has allowed just as many goals as they’ve scored (26) through two games.
SEE MORE: France outlasts Japan in men’s water polo win
Game 4: Group A – Italy vs. Montenegro (10:35 a.m. ET)
Italy has been winning thanks to a deep offense with five players who have scored at least three goals in Paris. Francesco Di Fulvio leads the team with six goals, tied for third among all players in the tournament.
Montenegro might be close to must-win territory as they head to Game 3 following two straight losses to open the Games. The team has allowed 28 goals and has scored 24.
Game 5: Group A – Romania vs. Croatia (1:30 p.m. ET)
Romania sits at the bottom of the Group A standings alongside Montenegro following a loss to the U.S. The Romanians are last in goals scored with just 15, and have allowed 28.
Croatia is the defending World Champions, but is coming off of a loss to Italy on Tuesday. They’ve scored just as many goals as they’ve allowed (22).
Game 6: Group B – Hungary vs. Japan (3:05 p.m. ET)
Hungary goalkeeper Soma Vogel leads the tournament in saves with 24 so far. Vogel will likely have his hands full against a Japanese squad that is second in the tournament in goals (28). Nearly half of those goals have come courtesy of Keigo Okawa, who has scored six goals in each of Japan’s two games. His 12 goals is three more than any other player in Paris.
© 2024 KOBI-TV NBC5. All rights reserved unless otherwise stated.